Does car insurance cover windshield replacement? Learn more about the types of auto insurance that will cover a windshield replacement.
When you’re traveling at 65 mph down the highway, it doesn’t take a boulder to crack your windshield. Highway debris kicked up by the tires in front of you or a piece of gravel from a dump truck can collide with your window at high speed and cause a chip or significant crack. Windshield damage is the second most common car insurance claim in the US. Still, whether or not your car insurance policy will cover windshield replacement depends on the type of auto insurance you have.
Often, when a small piece of debris hits your windshield, it makes a small crack or chip. While it probably made a loud sound and made a blemish, it might not seem particularly dangerous. Unfortunately, these small cracks and chips often widen after a few days, creating long cracks that snake across a large portion of the windshield.
To determine whether you need a repair or replacement, time is of the essence. You can take your car to a qualified windshield specialist for a professional opinion about the services you need. If you’re a-sessing the damage yourself, the National Windshield Repair A-sociation (NWRA) states that a chip or crack smaller than a dollar bill can generally be repaired.
Whether your windshield replacement will be covered by insurance depends on your insurance type and the incident that caused the damage. Massachusetts law requires all drivers to purchase four compulsory auto insurance coverages. Required coverage includes bodily injury to others, personal injury protection, bodily injury caused by uninsured auto, and damage to someone else’s property. These policies do not provide coverage for window replacement, but you may have other coverage that does. Many drivers choose to purchase optional insurance coverage that helps them protect their investments in their automobiles.
There are many reasons that windshields get broken. Often, a flying piece of debris will come out of nowhere and collide with your windshield. You might never see what caused the damage or where it came from. Other causes of windshield damage are collisions with wild animals like deer, falling debris or limbs, or even an object thrown by a nearby lawnmower. Comprehensive auto insurance typically covers windshield damage caused by incidents other than a collision.