Windshield insurance laws by state: three regimes, not fifty rumors

Regime 1 · Deductible waived by law

Three states, and only three. Each with a different scope, which is where articles go wrong.

State	What's covered	The catch
Florida §627.7288	Windshield only	Not side or rear glass. Whether calibration cost is included is legally unsettled
Kentucky KRS 304.20-060	All glass, plus required lights, calibration included by statute	The claim must be glass-only. Mixed storm damage voids the waiver
South Carolina §38-77-280(B)	All safety glass	Physical-damage coverage is itself optional in SC. A 2026 sunset bill appears to have died; we re-check in 2027

Regime 2 · Insurer must offer the option

Five states where $0 (or reduced) glass coverage exists only if you added it to your policy. The question isn't "what does my state do," it's "what did I buy?"

State	The option	Worth knowing
Arizona §20-264	$0 on glass and required lights	Broader than glass alone: "safety equipment"
Colorado §10-4-613	$0 glass endorsement	Same statute also bans steering to a specific shop
Connecticut §38a-339	$0 on safety glass	Since 2005 insurers haven't had to tell you it exists
Minnesota §65B.134	$0 on safety glass	Regularly mislabeled a "free windshield" state
Massachusetts c.175 §113O	$100 glass deductible	A floor, not $0. No MA law requires a zero option

Regime 3 · Optional coverage allowed, nothing required

New York (§3411(k)) generally bans $0 deductibles on physical damage but lets insurers sell no-deductible window glass coverage. May sell. Not must offer. New York appears on "must offer" lists all over the internet; the state's own insurance regulator says otherwise.

Every other state has no deductible rule of its own, so the file-or-pay call is arithmetic. But the details around it, whether a claim can be surcharged and whether you can choose your own shop, still vary. The eight biggest are broken out just below.

No deductible rule, but the fine print still differs

These thirteen states waive nothing for glass, so your deductible decides the money. What varies is everything around it: whether a claim can raise your rate, whether you can pick your own shop, and whether a new shop-conduct law changes the paperwork. Verified against the primary statutes on the dates on each page.

State	What actually matters there
Texas 28 TAC §5.7016	One claim can't get you dropped, but three flying-object losses in 36 months let an insurer raise your deductible
California Ins. Code §1861.02	A not-at-fault glass claim can't raise your driving-record rate, thanks to Prop 103
Pennsylvania 31 Pa. Code §67.33	A comprehensive claim can't be surcharged; the $0 "full glass" coverage is a paid add-on, not a state rule
Michigan MCL §500.2111	The rate statute excludes comprehensive by name, so a glass claim can't be surcharged, and the anti-steering law names glass too
North Carolina N.C.G.S. §58-36-75	Zero Safe Driver Incentive Plan points for a glass claim, but you can still lose a claims-free discount
Georgia O.C.G.A. §33-34-6	Strong right-to-choose-your-shop law, but the not-at-fault surcharge shield covers only multivehicle crashes, not glass
Ohio R.C. §3937.31	No state points and no mid-policy drop for a glass claim, but your renewal rate is the carrier's call
Illinois 215 ILCS 5/143.19	No state points and no mid-policy cancellation for a glass claim; new rate-review authority arrives July 2027
Virginia §59.1-207.6:3	2026 ADAS calibration disclosure law: shop must tell you in writing whether calibration is needed and whether they'll do it to spec
Louisiana HB 929 (2026)	NCOIL Motor Vehicle Glass Act: claim number before contract, ADAS disclosure, no kickbacks for referrals
Washington RCW 48.30.340	Anti-steering, plus a written affiliation disclosure when the insurer owns the shop it recommends
Wisconsin §632.37	Glass-specific anti-steering statute, separate from the general body-repair rule
Tennessee §§56-7-1113 to 56-7-1116	Statute polices the shop: "free windshield" ads and deductible waivers by shops are unfair practices; assignment of benefits contemplated by name

The remaining states without a distinctive rule share the same deductible-decides answer. For a Midwest pair we won't fake a distinction, see the honest Missouri and Indiana rollup. Everywhere else the arithmetic is what the calculator is for.