Supply Chain Issues: Glass Shortage Only Adds To Frustrations For Car Break-In Victims

SAN FRANCISCO (KPIX-TV) -- Supply chain issues are plaguing consumers and business owners alike as the holiday season begins. Now you can add glass to the long list of materials bitten by the shortages and delays impacting the economy.

Yen Phan, a San Francisco food blogger, found her car windshield violently smashed while she was parked on Mission Street near 22nd Street -- a busy, heavily trafficked part of town. "I thought it was bird poop or some kind of stain, but no, it looked like it was smashed with a baseball bat, and there were about four marks, and then the roof was also dented," said Phan.

After calling about half a dozen glass repair shops, she found they all faced a glass shortage. "Normal glass repair is about $200 to $300," said Phan. "And then when I talked to the guy I was like, 'Why is it $900, does it really cost that much?' and, 'Can you not get it done any sooner?' And he was like 'No.'"

The owner of a brand new Audi RS7 also ran into the same headaches, after burglars broke into her vehicle on Hawthorne Street near Howard Street in San Francisco's South Of Market neighborhood in September.

"We went to probably seven auto glass shops in the Bay Area," said Trisha Bantigue. "All of them were backlogged, and especially you know add in the manufacturing delays from all over the world, it took me more than 4 weeks to replace that car window."

And it cost $2,000.

"We have not seen a glass shortage like this," said Co-Owner of MAZ Auto Glass Kevin Sarat-Guzman. "We've seen low supply, but not until the aspect where even when we order through the dealer they have no projected timeline, so we could be waiting weeks to months."

MAZ Auto Glass located on Bayshore Boulevard San Francisco said it used to be able to replace glass in a couple of days. But since most of the glass is imported, pandemic supply-chain issues are causing massive delays.

MAZ said it's seeing shortages in all kinds of glass for old and newer cars. Newer car replacements are more complex because they often have more features and need recalibration.