How many repairs can you make before it’s too many?
By Abby Bowman
There are many benefits to repairing a windshield rather than replacing it. It’s usually less expensive, quicker and better for the environment. All‑in‑all, everyone from the customer to the technician to Mother Nature leaves happy.
But what happens when a customer returns with new damage, needing their windshield repaired for the third, fourth or fifth time? Is there a limit to the number of times a technician can repair a windshield before it becomes impractical or unsafe?
As with many things in the auto glass business, the answer to this question is “it depends.”
Linda Rollinson
Owner, Superior Auto Glass of Tampa Bay Inc.
New Port Richey, Florida
For Linda Rollinson, chair of the ANSI National Windshield Repair Division (NWRD)’s Repair Of Laminated Automotive Glass Standard (ROLAGS) Committee, how many times you can repair a windshield really comes down to the driver.
She says while some drivers notice and are bothered by the sight of a small repair on a windshield and want it replaced instead, others can drive around with five different repairs on their windshield completely unbothered.
“Some people have absolutely no problem looking through their windshield,” Rollinson says. “Other people look at their windshield.”
She adds that you do have to be careful about where and how big the repair is. If the repair is directly in front of the driver and could obstruct their view, that’s a safety issue.
“You can’t have them have a nice scar right in front of their face,” she says.
Shiloh Spoo
President, GlasWeld
Bend, Oregon
Shiloh Spoo says there’s no hard‑and‑fast limit to the number of repairs, but you do have to keep in mind the driver’s ability to see, as well as the overall appearance of the windshield.
“From my perspective, if a repair is done correctly the number of repairs isn’t really limited to any specific number,” he says. “But I’m sure there would be a point where, from an aesthetic standpoint, it would not be reasonable.”
Spoo says that certain kinds of windshields can handle more repairs than others. In fleet vehicles such as buses, large trucks and RVs, windshields are so large that there’s more room for repair. Plus, those windshields are expensive enough that there’s an incentive to repair them as many times as possible.
Spoo says this is part of the reason why repairing a windshield rather than replacing it has become more popular over time.
“We’re going to see more windshields repaired multiple times in the life of a vehicle now than we saw 15 years ago,” he says. “Generally speaking, windshields were smaller.”
Aric Haarala
Vice President of Sales and Business Development, Glass Mechanix Solutions
Clearfield, Utah
Aric Haarala says you have to be aware of what kinds of damage can and can’t be repaired, for which he refers back to the ROLAGS standard.
If it’s something that can be safely repaired, he hasn’t found a practical limit to the number of times a windshield can be repaired.
“I’ve never run across a scenario in my career where the number of chips in the windshield that needed to be repaired and that had been repaired created an issue with the stability of the (windshield) or how that piece of glass performs,” he says.
In his career, Haarala’s seen windshields that have been repaired 10 times or more. He says the customers were perfectly satisfied with the windshields, which still worked well.
Haarala agrees that you have to keep the driver’s visibility in mind and adds another word of caution.
“Anytime you repair a vehicle in any way, there’s inherent risk,” he says.
Korey Gobin
Sales Manager, Delta Kits
San Diego, California
“If you’re doing windshield repair, first you have to ask yourself what’s your business model?” Korey Gobin says.
He explains that if a shop bills through insurance, many insurance companies limit how many times a windshield can be repaired before it has to be replaced. That limits the number of times repairs can be done on a windshield from a business angle.
Gobin says from a repair technician’s point of view, though, there’s no specific limit.
The number of repairs possible also depends on the kind of damage being repaired and where it is. Gobin says it is important to follow the ROLAGS regulations when it comes to the type of damage you can repair and where the repair is within the driver’s line of sight.
Meghan Martin
CEO, SuperGlass Windshield Repair
Orlando, Florida
Meghan Martin says that the number of repairs you can do on a windshield depends largely on the kinds of damage, the location of the damage and the customer’s preferences.
Martin says that in some cases, replacing the windshield can be less expensive. About 10 years ago, she encountered a fleet truck with a flat‑glass windshield with 10 damages. Though it was safe to repair them, that company had a discount on a new windshield that made it cheaper to replace rather than repair.
In that scenario, the cost of the endeavor limited the number of repairs possible.
Martin says aging resin is another safety issue to keep in mind.
“Every company has different resin that they use, and some of them age at different rates,” she says.
Though a good repair job with a quality resin should last for a long time, Martin says that at a certain point it could be a problem if there are a lot of repairs on a windshield.
“Over time, I think some repairs might be a distraction if they start to yellow or age or change,” she says.
Abby Bowman is the associate editor for AGRR magazine. Email her at abowman@glass.com and follow her on LinkedIn.
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