Windshield replacement made easy

Years ago getting a windshield replaced meant you would have to book an appointment with ICBC, drive down to the claim center, wait for an adjuster to look at your vehicle and then they would hand you a piece of paper with your claim information on it. After that you would need to schedule an appointment with your local glass shop to replace your windshield.

Those days are long gone, as an ICBC GlassEXPRESS provider you can come directly to us. We will process your claim at the shop and can even get you in a courtesy car so you can continue on with your day. 5 hours later you can return to the shop and take your vehicle with its new windshield.

Maybe you have private insurance coverage? We are also a preferred vendor for all of the major private insurance companies in BC and we also deal with many insurance companies across Canada and the United States of America.

Make an appointment to see us today.
250-474-5551

Why we offer free rock chips

I always get asked this question. Why would we offer a chip repair for free when some of our competitors are charging anywhere from $35 – $90 ? The short answer is building up our customer base.

Way back in 2001 sometime ICBC stopped covering rock chip repairs. We used to be paid $47 for a chip, most private insurers still pay for chips. For a while we were charging $35 to repair chips and doing probably 5-10 repairs a month, but one day Ian bounced this idea off of me. What if we didn’t charge ? How many people could we do chips for ?

So our “Free Rock Chip Repair” program was born. It has been modified over the years, starting with up to three chips for free to our current day offer of the first chip for free and then  $25 up to four chips. Most people are amazed that we do this, but it is an awesome opportunity to meet people and chat with them for  15 – 20 minutes about other services we offer. We have had people come back to us after three years to get work done, because we initially did a free chip for them.

We currently do thirty to forty chips a month, which means thirty to forty new potential customers.

I need some help.

I live about 10 minutes from the shop and do a lot of shopping in the local area. For the last month or so I have seen a green Jeep Cherokee driving around with a couple of plastic garbage bags duct taped to the back glass, or where the back glass should be. I have seen this person many times, both in my personal vehicle and the shop van with decals on it. I’ve never stopped at the same places though. I am looking for ideas to get this guy to come in at least for a quote or the window replacement. Do you have any ideas ? Is following them until they stop at a public place creepy / stalkerish ? This is my goal for May. Any input / advertising ideas to bring this guy in would be great. Or maybe you know him, a referral would be awesome!

Thanks
Duncan

A little about us …

We are a family owned and operated auto and residential glass shop located in Langford BC

Ian, our fearless leader, has been working with cars for a long time. He owned an automotive repair shop in Underberg, Natal, South Africa then moved to Canada in 1994. Shortly thereafter started working for Capital Auto Glass. After working his way up the ranks at Capital he decided he would like to own his own business again. In 1998 he opened a franchise of Capital Auto Glass out in Langford, a small outer community of Victoria. After 4 years and a move to a bigger shop he decided to go on his own. This was the official launch of Van Isle Auto Glass in September 2002.

Duncan, Ian’s son, has been working for his dad since before he can remember. Lots of memories of pumping gas and playing in the shop in South Africa. Duncan started working part-time in 1998 while he was completing school. Then moved up to full-time in 1999 and has been a permanent fixture since. Duncan became a certified automotive glass technician in 2005 and is currently the manager of Van Isle Auto Glass.

Lia, Duncan’s wife, has been working at the shop as an office admin since early 2008. She takes care of all the paper work and makes sure everything stays on schedule.

Jefferson , Duncan and Lia’s brother-in-law, freshly imported from India started working for us almost as soon as he stepped of the plane in 2010. He is working on his automotive glass technicians apprenticeship .

Jake, Guard dog extraordinaire, tipping the scales at a monster 4 and a half pounds our little miniature pinscher occasionally comes in to keep him out of trouble at home.

That’s pretty much it for the team, occasionally you might see Duncan and Lia’s kids Cassidy and Grayson hanging around the shop.

Come check us out, we would love to meet you.