Windshield claim Q
 

Was derping along the 99 this morning behind a truck, who ran over some gravel on the road shooting a number of rocks into my car. My windshield was chipped in the process by the launching of said debris. I have dashcam footage that clearly shows the rocks hitting my windshield. A very audible sound can be heard in the video.

OK, fine. Shit happens. I was going to take it to the glass shop and get the chip filled.

Earlier tonight however, the windshield suddenly cracked. I have dashcam footage of that as well, and while you can't see the crack itself in the video, once again, the sound of it suddenly cracking is very audible.

Since I have to replace the whole damn windshield now, given the circumstances, am I able to make a claim against the driver of the truck that launched the rock(s) into my windshield? Or am I SOL since it was just road debris, and nothing fell off from his vehicle?

No, you can't make a claim as you technically have no way to prove it was the truck. I'm sure it WAS, it's just a car in the lane over from you could of shot a rock out at an angle and hit your window (is what they could say)

i don't think you can make a claim against the driver since it wasn't anything on his vehicle that became loose and struck your vehicle.

From the footage I can see that the truck drove over a pile of loose debris that is clearly visible. While I guess it still technically can't be proved that it was caused by an adjacent vehicle, doesn't take a genius to figure it out considering the footage...

It's not what you know, it's what you can prove.

Ya, fair enough. I'll give it a shot though obviously lol, worst that can happen is they'll deny the claim.

isn't it $200 deductible for the windshield replacement?

windshield is a common thing that just cant be claimed for free, doesnt matter footage or witness...just pay deductible and be on your way


It depends on our insurance.. somewhere between $200-$500

^^ anyone know if they give you oem glass? or some aftermarket replacement?? cuz some cars have special factory tinted glass or water repellant glass.

Since there were no collision between the two vehicles, this will be covered under the comprehensive side of your insurance. Depending on how much your comprehensive deductible is, that is the amount you will have to pay in order to get a replacement for your windshield. Up side is that since this is covered under the comprehensive deductible, it will not affect your insurance premiums at all.

^^ Icbc will only get you oem parts if your vehicle is within 2 or 3(can't remember exactly, but it's one of the two) years of the manufacture date. Once it is out of that certain time frame they will always look for an aftermarket replacements for you. Most, if not all windshields should come with a factory light greenish tint.

Unless you have APV286 (OEM Replacement Policy), or there isn't anything else available, first option is always aftermarket.

To be honest, most of the aftermarket windshields are identical to the OEM ones, they just dont have the manufacturers logo on them.

Whichever shop you take it to for your claim, talk to the person handling it, and see what they can do.

I've dealt with claims, where the OEM glass is cheaper then the aftermarket one.

Hope that helps.

Your argument should not be focused on whether the truck drove over debris or not, rather it is to argue gross negligence on the truck driver. In order for you to succeed, you'll need to prove the truck driver knowingly or should have known there was debris there and either deliberately drove over the road debris to cause damage to your vehicle or did not exercise enough due care as a motorist.

Might be difficult to prove so best bet may be pay your comprehensive deductible and move on.

I've had a windshield replaced without having to pay the deductible once... but that's only because I had footage of a fully loaded, uncovered gravel truck dumping it's load all over the road while driving, and some of the rocks bounced up and pelted the front of my car, causing paint chips and glass cracks. Every other time ICBC didn't care how it happened... just paid the deductible and continued on with my life.