Recently, one of my new windshield repair customers told me he wanted to pay cash because USAA raised his insurance rate by $15 a month the last time he filed a rock chip repair claim.
Uh, that isn't supposed to happen...!
At an extra $15 a month, he will pay $180 for that windshield repair over the course of a year. Ouch.
Do All Windshield Repairs Raise Your Rates?
In Texas, most insurance companies do not raise your rates for windshield repair claims. Because I have never had a customer complain that their insurance went up because of a rock chip repair, I wanted to know why it happened in this particular case. So I did some investigating: I asked a claims representative at my own insurance company what was going on.
According to the claims rep, the number and type of claims within a certain period of time affects your rates. So if our customer had multiple claims over the past three years, the rock chip repair claim may have been enough to bump him up into a higher risk category and raise his rates.
How Do I Find Out if My Rates Will Increase?
The good news is, if you had no claims in the past few years, you don't have to worry about a rate increase. But if you have had several accidents or auto glass claims, it is a good idea to talk to your agent before filing a claim for a windshield repair.
Mark Huckle is a nationally certified windshield repair technician located in Irving, Texas. Read more...
Photo credit: © Suprijono Suharjoto
