Windscreen Repairs on Channel 9

Service 8 Windscreens & Auto Glass recently worked with Channel 9 and Wheels Magazine in a hidden camera investigation regarding windscreen safety.

Not many motorists are aware that the windscreen is a safety device. In fact passenger side airbag systems rely on a properly installed windscreen to deploy in the correct position. Incorrectly fitted windscreens can be ejected by airbags, rendering a life saving device useless. Channel 9 demonstrated this during the investigation.

Knowing these facts you may be surprised to learn that no licence is required to operate a windscreen business in Australia and many companies provide very little training at all. The truth is that the majority of windscreen technicians today are not aware of basic quality procedures. What was discovered in the investigation was a culture of cutting corners at the cost of your safety.

With the assistance of Channel 9s A Current Affair team, four random companies were put to the test. Two of the companies were local and two were national. ALL of the technicians representing these companies failed to meet basic quality procedures.

More alarming was when Channel 9 contacted the two national operators. Their response to Channel 9 was that the short cut methods used by their technicians were considered standard company procedures and disagreed there were any safety issues.

Service 8 Auto Glass removed all the glass from the tested vehicles following the investigation. It was discovered that none of the windscreens had completely bonded properly to the vehicle bodies. Some vehicles had exposed bare metal showing as a result of being scratched behind the windscreen. One particular vehicle had part of the plastic grill broken off were the technician had pulled it back to slide the windscreen in place. It had been placed back with some adhesive to disguise the damage.

When you have a windscreen replaced its absolutely critical that the glass is bonded properly to the body of the vehicle. "Technicians that take short cuts or fail to prepare the bonding surfaces correctly can put lives at risk," said Michael Smedley (JP) and Technical Director of Service 8 Auto Glass.

It was apparent that all technicians put to the test were completely unaware of basic procedures, not a single technician fitted their windscreen correctly. The results indicated that most technicians invented their own procedures to speed up the job and increase productivity.

Service 8 Auto Glass urges motorists to be aware of the importance of windscreen safety. "There is more to consider than just the price when selecting a repairer" says Mr Smedley. Discount pricing usually indicates poor quality. Always choose a quality repairer.

Service 8 Auto Glass is a trusted brand and a quality windscreen repairer. Our advice is that motorists should ask windscreen repairers some basic questions about the quality before you trust them to install your windscreen.

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