Your Windshield Just Shattered: What to Do in the Next Ten Minutes
A calm, ordered checklist for the moment it happens, from getting off the road safely through to getting the glass replaced.
Key Takeaways
- Slow gradually and get fully off the roadway before assessing
- Do not push on damaged laminated glass to clear your view
- Photograph everything before moving the vehicle if it is safe to do so
- Call for same-day service; driving with a compromised windshield is not safe
First: get off the road
Reduce speed gradually rather than braking hard, signal, and move fully onto the shoulder or into a lot. A laminated windshield that has taken a major impact still holds together, so you have vision enough to pull over safely. Use it for that and nothing more.
Do not clear the glass
The instinct to punch out the damaged section to see better is exactly wrong. The laminate is what is holding the structure together and keeping fragments out of the cabin. Leave it alone.
Document it
If you are safely stopped, photograph the damage from inside and outside, and photograph the roadway if debris or a specific vehicle caused it. This takes two minutes and makes the claim straightforward.
Call, do not drive
A severely damaged windshield is a structural and visibility problem, and in most states it is a citable violation. Emergency mobile service comes to where you are, including a shoulder or a parking lot, and can weatherproof the vehicle immediately if the correct glass has to be ordered.