According to South Carolina state law, as long as you have an auto insurance policy that includes comprehensive coverage your insurance provider must provide windshield replacement free of charge. South Carolina is one of six states with full glass insurance laws.

Windshield replacement insurance law might not be the first thing that comes to mind if you’re looking for a new

car insurance

policy. But in South Carolina, it’s an important factor to consider, since it might make comprehensive coverage worth the added cost to your premium.

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. We’re here with all the details on South Carolina’s full glass insurance and windshield replacement laws.

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Does South Carolina law cover windshield replacement?

Yes. As long as you have

comprehensive coverage

, you can get your windshield replaced for free in South Carolina.

To be more specific, South Carolina law stipulates that a comprehensive insurance claim for a cracked windshield must be covered free of charge. It is against the law for an insurance company to charge you a deductible for this service, and it is also against the law for your insurance rates to go up as a result of making an auto glass repair claim under comprehensive insurance.

The damage needs to be eligible for coverage under comprehensive car insurance in order to qualify for a no-cost replacement. If your auto glass claim is covered by comprehensive insurance, your insurance company must replace it free of charge.

In the case of a car accident scenario, you’ll need to go through

collision coverage

. In this case, your insurance company will be allowed to charge you a deductible.

It’s also important to remember that if you only have insurance to meet

South Carolina’s minimum liability requirements

, you’ll be totally out of luck when it comes to free windshield replacement. You could file a claim through another driver’s liability insurance to cover the cost of replacement, if you can prove that another driver caused the damage to your windshield.

MORE: Collision vs. comprehensive car insurance

Who pays for windshield replacement in South Carolina?

In some scenarios, it might be determined that you hold partial responsibility for the damage to your windshield. But you may also qualify for a completely free replacement, so long as you can file a claim for the replacement under your comprehensive coverage. If this is the case, your insurance company must pay the entire cost to replace your broken windshield.

Otherwise, you’ll likely have to pay for at least some of the cost of replacement or a deductible if the damage is covered under collision insurance. If all you have is basic liability coverage and you can’t file a claim through another driver’s liability insurance, you’ll have to pay out of pocket for the windshield replacement.

It costs between $150 to $500 to fully replace a windshield, depending on the car you have, but simply repairing a chip or crack should only cost about $50 to $200.

Does South Carolina law require auto insurance coverage for windshield repair?

No, you don’t need to have coverage for windshield repairs in South Carolina. However, if you want to have your windshield replaced free of charge, you need comprehensive coverage, which is also not required in South Carolina.

In South Carolina, the law requires that you purchase three different types of car insurance:

property damage liability

to pay for damages you do to other people’s property,

bodily injury liability

, which covers medical damages in the same way, and

uninsured motorist coverage

to cover costs that exceed other drivers’ liability limits.

If another driver is at fault for your cracked windshield, you may be able to file a claim through their insurance, but there’s no guarantee your windshield replacement will be covered in South Carolina without additional coverage.

MORE:

Does insurance cover cracked windshields?

Do I need to replace my cracked windshield in South Carolina?

There is no state law in South Carolina that requires you to repair your windshield, but Section 56-5-5000 of the South Carolina Code of Laws does state that your sight cannot be obstructed by cracks or damage in your windshield.

There are some general federal regulations that stipulate how much damage makes a windshield unfit for use. Cracks and chips cannot be bigger than three quarters of an inch, and you can’t have any damage that hinders your windshield wipers from working. Cracks also cannot connect or intersect, and you cannot have any damage in the center of the windshield that will obstruct vision.

Ultimately, you’re better off safe than sorry. It’s always a good idea to consult your mechanic or auto glass repair shop to determine whether or not your windshield is due for repair or replacement.

How to save on windshield insurance in South Carolina

There’s no specific “windshield insurance” in South Carolina, but comprehensive coverage can cover most damage scenarios free of charge and without any detriment to your car insurance rates.

However, comprehensive coverage also adds a significant extra cost to an insurance policy that otherwise sticks to South Carolina’s minimum insurance policy. But there’s no reason for you to worry about that! With

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