Florida is one of three states where, by law, you have a no-cost windshield replacement.
Out-of-town driver and Redditor /u/got_stacks_like_esp shared unfortunate dashcam footage from earlier this year from the express lanes of Tampa, FL to the /r/IdiotsInCars subreddit showing the moment a driver in a Ford Explorer towing a trailer ran into those foldable lane separators, causing a freak accident where the debris kicked up caused irreparable damage to his windshield.
Check out the dashcam footage below.
[oc] SUV hits separators and breaks my windshield Tampa, FL [nsfw language]
byu/got_stacks_like_esp inIdiotsInCars
As mentioned, the incident happened on a stretch of highway in Tampa, FL (Exact location undetermined, but it might be the Veterans Expressway)
As OP’s dashcam footage shows, he’s driving in the middle lane with an express lane next to the fast lane separated by foldable lane delineators.
A driver in a new-ish Silver Ford Explorer appears on the left towing a trailer.
For some reason the Explorer swerves a little, swinging his trailer into the traffic delineators, running them over, and destroying them.
In a freak accident, pieces of the lane delineators fly up and hit OP’s windshield.
You can’t see the damage in the dashcam footage but, according to OP, “I have a handful of little chips and 1 dime-sized crater with a 2-inch crack directly in my life of sight on the driver’s side.
Thankfully, windshield replacements are usually covered by most insurance companies, the only hassle being paying the deductible and scheduling someone to fix it.
However, it sounds like OP was non-plussed over the situation.
After all, who wants to spend their disposable income on an insurance deductible, or worse, an entirely new windshield?
Thankfully, it looks like OP can use Florida’s not-so-well-known statutes to his advantage to get a free windshield when it’s because of damage no fault of his own.
“Good thing you’re in Florida and it’s one of the three states (KY and SC also) where by law you have a no-cost windshield replacement. Statute FL 627.7288 if you need it,” /u/PremiumUsername69420 commented.
According to Florida Statutes Title XXXVII. Insurance § 627.7288,
“The deductible provisions of any policy of motor vehicle insurance, delivered or issued in this state by an authorized insurer,… shall not apply to damage to the windshield of any motor vehicle covered under such policy.”
OP will have to suss it out with his insurance, but it looks like he can evoke this statute to his advantage to avoid a deductible cost.
He also has his dashcam footage to back him up if you need any more proof to get yourself a dashcam.
“Thankful for the cam, otherwise would be hard to prove that driver did it,” /u/Honest_Cynic added.
“I thought those things were plastic, not metal. Yikes. Guess you should consider yourself lucky it wasn’t worse,” /u/Devil_lettuce commented.
The other two states with a similar statute?
