Hi,

Half if my heated windscreen (drivers side) does not work whilst the other side is working perfectly. Any thoughts on the cause please ? and how to fix it ?  

Thanks for any/ all advice and help received.

kindest Regards

joe

each side is a separate circuit. check fuses. I don't know where the cable connections are on Ka. On some Focus models the cable connections are at the bottom of the screen and one the wires sometimes gets pulled off by getting caught on the wiper mechanism (drivers side). But on mk6 fiesta for example the cables are on the windscreen pillar inside the car behind the plastic trim. 

I've had this happen on a few fords including our Ka - every time it has required a new windscreen. My advice would be to "pick up an unfortunate nasty stone crack" and claim on the insurance for a replacement screen. £85 windscreen excess, job done.

my windscreen xs is only £75 but you still have to declare that claim to anyone else you ask to quote for your insurance at renewal - declaring the full cost, not just the excess.

If you don't you can lose out later on. All claims details are shared by insurance companies on CUE

http://www.experian.co.uk/consumer-information/claims-underwriting-exchange.html     so there is no hiding it.

   But this would not be a very fruitful course of action unless you have established it is the screen at fault and not the relays / fuses / wiring / connectors

 

Thanks to all I appreciate your input. I will check all possible causes first but bearing in mind there is a lot of loose gravel and stones on the road where I live lol.

kindest Regards

joe

Check your insurance cover - mine doesn't effect my no-claims bonus (Direct Line) - though I haven't had the problem.

on most insurance a windscreen claim does not reduce your NCD. although I have seen policies which say that if you have a windscreen claim your NCD will not increase in years at the next renewal (not a problem for anyone on max NCD already).

However, it does not mean they can't increase the base premium before the NCD is applied.  If someone was insured with XYZ Insurance Ltd for five years and they made a winscreen claim every year and the windscreen cost each time was more then the annual premium, then of course XYZ insurance would increase the premium.  Insurance companies can do what they like. It's an annual contract. They can do whatever they like at the next renewal date and they can tell you whatever the reason the decide to - instead of saying it is because you made a claim, they can just say our rates for drivers of your age in your postcode area for your model of car have gone up in general and you can't prove otherwise.