What to Have Ready Before You Report a Glass Claim

From your policy

• Your policy number. It is on your insurance card and your declarations page.
• Your comprehensive deductible. On the declarations page, beside the comprehensive coverage. Glass breakage is a comprehensive loss in the NC Department of Insurance’s list, and the coverage pays ‘less any deductible’.
• Any glass line. Some policies include full glass coverage, which can change what you pay. If you see a separate glass deductible or glass endorsement, note it. Our page on full glass coverage explains what to look for.

From the car

• The VIN. It is on the dash at the base of the windshield, visible from outside, and on the driver’s door frame. Impex uses it to order the glass, so the part matches your exact car and its sensors.
• Year, make and model, and whether the car has lane departure warning, collision braking or adaptive cruise control. Those features usually mean a camera behind the mirror.
• Which glass. Windshield, a door window, a quarter window or the back glass.

About the damage

• When it happened, as near as you know.
• How it happened, in plain words: a stone from a truck on I-40, a branch, a break-in.
• Photos. One close up with a coin or a key for scale, one from a step back showing where the damage sits on the glass. Where it sits matters as much as size: Impex says a repair may be possible when damage is small, shallow and away from the edges.

Questions to ask before you hang up

1. What is my deductible on this claim? Confirm it, including any separate glass deductible.
2. Is camera calibration included with the windshield? I-CAR lists removing the windshield as an event that may require the forward camera to be aimed again. Make sure the claim covers the whole job.
3. What is the claim number? Your glass company will ask for it.
4. Is my chosen glass company noted on the claim? Under G.S. 58-3-180 you choose the repair service, and the insurer pays the same amount whichever you choose.

If the glass is broken open

A smashed door window or back glass needs a few minutes of care before any phone call. Take valuables out of the car, cover the opening with heavy plastic taped to the paint rather than to any remaining glass, and photograph the damage before you sweep anything up. Then report it the same way as a windshield: glass breakage is a comprehensive loss in the NCDOI’s list. Impex says a side window takes 30 to 60 minutes and can be driven straight away, and back glass takes one to two hours, with the rear defroster left off for 24 hours afterwards.

Before you report it at all

One more question is worth asking yourself first: is this a claim? If the job is a chip repair or a side window that costs less than your deductible, a claim pays nothing. A comprehensive glass claim adds no SDIP points in North Carolina, but the NCDOI notes that many insurers look at how often you file claims, so it pays to claim for the jobs coverage is meant for. Our page asking does comprehensive cover a windshield sets out both sides.

Or let Impex make the call with you

Impex’s claims guide says it handles the insurance claim process for you, with direct insurance billing. If you would rather not sit on hold, call Impex with the list above and ask how it will work for your policy. Insurer by insurer, the steps are on our pages for Progressive windshield replacement, State Farm windshield replacement and GEICO windshield replacement.

Questions drivers ask