Error processing SSI fileLack of rain helps save windshields
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For Jim Eddy, this summer has seemed like open season on his windshield.
With so many miles of Metro Detroit's roads littered with construction debris, the General Motors Corp. retiree claims he can't leave the driveway of his Dearborn home without risking the glass and paint on his 3-year-old Chevrolet Impala.
"You can't convince me it's a normal year," said Eddy, 61. "I can't go anywhere without getting another dent or chip in my car."
But auto insurance companies statewide report the number of broken glass claims saw only the usual summer time spike. In some places, the number of claims has fallen.
"Glass claims were up in July and August, which is normal due to the fact there are more people on the road," said Jim Rink, a spokesman for AAA, which issures almost a million Michigan motorists. "We haven't noticed any higher-than-normal amount of claims due to anything other than normal driving."
Repair business disappoints
The summer has been nothing like Keith Nowicki expected. He fixes 40 to 50 windshields a week in Metro Detroit as the owner-operator of a mobile SuperGlass Windshield Repair business. He thought this summer's massive construction projects would give his business a big boost.
"The ones I'm seeing are all coming from the construction zones with all the work going on to get ready before the Super Bowl," Nowicki said. "But, the numbers aren't where we expected them. We thought we would have seen more."
Lack of rain this summer helped save windshields, Nowicki says. Rain washes stones onto the pavement and Metro Detroit is about 5 inches below normal in annual precipitation, according to WDIV-Local 4 meteorologist Andrew Humphrey.
"The colors already are changing up north probably two weeks early because of it, and the lack of water probably means less breakup of our pavement, too," Humphrey said. "So the lack of rain can have a positive affect."
Kent Linkfield, president of the Michigan Professional Insurance Agent's Association, said broken windshield claims have remained constant statewide, and have fallen in the Grand Rapids area where he runs an independent agency.
"But, we don't have the kind of construction going on that you do around Detroit. I've seen it. It's a mess," Linkfield said. "The typical broken windshield comes from the guy going 70, and his tire throws a rock at you. Where you have construction, you have gravel on the road."
Lori Conarton of the Insurance Institute of Michigan said there is no single statistical source, but that several insurers she checked report the overall number of damage claims has decreased slightly. She believed that high gasoline prices have reduced the number of miles driven and reduced exposure to road risks.
Replacements cost less
Linkfield said aggressive marketing among repair and replacement companies has made it cheaper to get broken windows fixed, even as the price of windshields has increased.AAA notifies its customers every summer that it encourage windshield repairs, rather than total replacement, by waiving deductibles for the process.
"Windshield repair technology has improved and public confidence in that process has increased," Rink said. Nowicki said the majority of his customers are commercial fleet operators and rental car companies.
New car windshields can cost from $800 to $1,000. Using clear epoxy resins to repair a windshield can cost $100 or less.
Peg Stroka, director of operations for the National Windshield Repair Association, said her organization's 250 members nationwide have battled to persuade motorists that repairs are safe and less visible than when the process was introduced 30 years ago.
"We don't recommend repairs in the critical viewing area right in front of the driver, but it can be almost invisible elsewhere, and it's very safe because the resins bond with the glass to prevent any cracking," Stroka said. "We tell people to act fast though or put a piece of tape over the chip to prevent dirt from settling inside the defect. It's that contamination that makes a repair visible."
Eddy, who already had one stone chip in his windshield repaired this summer and suffered another just the other day, said, "These repairs are better than they used to be. AAA says if you can cover it with a quarter they'd rather have it fixed rather than replaced. When I'm cleaning the windshield I can find it, but not if I'm not looking for it so I'll get this one repaired, too."
Tom Greenwood's column will return. You can reach Doug Guthrie at (313) 222-2359 or dguthrie@detnews.com.
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