It happens. Even when you keep a safe distance from other vehicles on the highway, rocks sometimes fly out from the tires of other cars and trucks and sooner or later, one hits your windshield, chipping or cracking it. So then the question arises, now what should you do?
The answer is to have the chip or crack fixed professionally by a company such as Auto Glass Repair St. Paul as soon as possible. Almost all automobile windshields cracks and chips are repairable so long as they are six inches in length or less. Prompt attention is important because chips tend to become cracks and cracks tend to widen and/or lengthen with stresses such as vibration and changes in weather. (Cold weather tends to cause cracks to “grow” horizontally while hot temperatures encourage vertical cracking.) Prompt repair from a qualified technician such as Auto Glass Repair St. Paul or North Metro Glass restores and preserves the windshield’s original strength, which is important in the case of an accident because the windshield provides up to 30% of an automobile’s protection. Fixing small injuries to a windshield in a timely manner makes it less likely that you will have to replace the entire windshield later on.
The repair process is straightforward. An Auto Glass Repair St. Paul or North Metro Glass professional will first inspect the damage to determine if it is repairable. If it is, the technician will then clean and dry the damaged area and inject it with a patented glass repair resin, completely filling the chip or crack. The excess is wiped away and the repair is “cured” with an ultraviolet light. Finally, the repair is polished to make it completely flush with the rest of the windshield. In most cases, the entire repair can be performed in about half an hour.
Most insurance companies will waive the cost of the deductible, particularly if the auto owner has comprehensive coverage, which means that in most cases, the repair will not cost you anything. Paying for windshield repairs quite often saves the insurance company the cost of having to have the entire windshield replaced later. Everybody wins in this situation!
