Why You Should Care About Your Windshield Replacement
Today, windshields are held in with urethane adhesives and are an integral part of the overall vehicle safety system. The windshield is a critical component in making sure that the car’s roof does not collapse and crush the occupants inside in the case of a rollover. The windshield also serves as the backboard for the passenger side airbag; if the windshield does not stay in place in a crash, the passenger side airbag will have nothing to inflate against thereby making the airbag worthless. The windshield is also important to the overall rigidity of the vehicle, impacting the timing of the deployment of the airbags; if they fire too early, the airbags deflate before the occupants are into them, defeating their purpose. If the airbags fire too late, the occupants can be injured by being thrown into the force of the airbag inflating.
Car Insurance Agents and Replacement Referrals
Fewer and fewer insurance agents are allowed to make referrals for their policyholders who need glass service. Instead, the agents’ hands are tied by third-party administrator agreements that force your customers to call someone else and be subjected to a sales pitch for someone else, often times your foreign-owned competitor who is also taking the phone call for the insurer. If you do keep the job, you’re often paid something less than what is fair and reasonable.
Windshield Safety Standards
On top of all those pressures, there is a safety standard for replacing windshields that needs to be followed, customers need to be aware of safe drive away times, there may be restrictions on how you market your services…. You find yourself having to fight for every job and every nickel when what you want to be doing is providing a safe, reliable, dependable service for your customers and earn a living doing it.
How Our Auto Glass Attorneys Help
Believe it or not, you are not alone. Many glass companies have faced the same impediments to success. Many of them have been represented by Livgard & Lloyd auto glass attorneys. We understand the auto glass business. Chuck Lloyd has been representing glass companies for nearly 25 years. He speaks your language and knows the difference between NAGS and a hole in the ground. Our clients are both big and small, old and new, and we have been involved in every aspect of the business – from short pays to steering to television investigations to regulatory enforcement and legislative advocacy. We also serve as counsel to the Independent Glass Association, the only active trade association working to advance the interests of independent glass shops in the United States.
Livgard & Lloyd auto glass attorneys counsel and represent individuals and companies in the auto glass business on virtually every area where auto glass legal issues come into contact with them:
- Short pays
- Steering
- Changes in legislation
- Regulatory compliance and enforcement
- Warranty limitations and the proper wording of written warranties
- Customer disclosures and communications
- Business formation and planning
Check our news section often for updates on the Auto Glass Industry and Cases.