ICBC Windshield Repairs Start Today

Date: 27 MAR 2017posted by Car Rentaledited by WinX

Starting today, ICBC will repair windshield chips for drivers with optional comprehensive coverage, as long as it is deemed safe to do so. For those who has lived in BC two decades ago, ICBC had originally offered this sort of repairs but it was abandoned in 2001. The removal of the program saw drivers pay a $200 deductible for a new windshield, even if the chip was small and repairable. The $200 deductible saw many drivers letting the rock chips stay because they could not afford to get them repaired. And under the replacement program, it made no sense to replace the windshield for every little chip and drivers would wait until those chips build up or form cracks across the windshield before going for the replacement. This was a definite safety hazard as the cracks would lower the integrity of the windshield and may cause a loss of vision for the driver.

The reasoning for the reintroduction of the program - better glass repair technology. In a statement from the insurance company "Today, repairs last substantially longer due to improvements and materials used." ICBC says since 2010, windshield replacement claims have climbed 17 per cent and nearly 30 per cent in cost. Cost has been a major issue for the one and only auto insurer in BC. Extremely poor and dare I say negligent, management has the company forecasting rising cost of basic insurance rates of up to 42 per cent by 2020. The insurance company reported almost 110,000 windshield replacements claims were handled in 2016 with an average cost of $820. A typical windshield chip repair cost less than $50 in Alberta, one province over to the East. Transportation Minister of BC said this new program will benefit the more than 2.5 million drivers on the roads in BC and reduce ICBC costs by more than $8 million a year.

So here are a few things to know if you want to repair your windshield chip.

• The chip cannot be larger than the size of a loonie, anything bigger during the repair may cause even more structural damage to the windshield
• The temperature matters, if it is too cold outside, it will require your vehicle to be at room temperature before even repairs can proceed which may take a few hours of waiting time, or the repairman may just tell you to come in on another day
• The repair is done by vacuuming out the air inside the crack then injecting some resin to fill the void and cured with UV light, the whole process can take about 25 minutes from start to finish

Work must be done in an ICBC Glass Express facility and no deductible will be charged.