Changing standards: what the new BSI standards mean for windscreen repair and replacement

In March this year, the British Standards Institution (BSI) issued updated standards regarding the code of practice of automotive windscreen repair. As the fastest growing aftermarket glass repair replacement (AGRR) company in the UK, National Windscreens has a duty to understand the influence of these changes that will have a direct impact on the decisions made by the technicians, and what that means for customers.

The BSI standards released BS AU 242b:2022, which features significant changes to the windscreen zones for repair, also with recommendations aimed to preserve the correct functionality and operation of windscreen mounted and incorporated technologies with ADAS, Heads Up Display (HUD) following a windscreen repair. This article aims to communicate what the changes mean for both customers and technicians.

Repairing a windscreen according to BS AU 242b:2022 with vehicle manufacturers exclusion zones has changed what is deemed as repairable in comparison with the previous standard BS AU 242a:1998.

Under the new standards, the repair zones for windscreens will be split into Zone A and Zone B. Zone A is the area 400mm wide area in front of the driver (500mm for HGVs and coaches) that is centred on the steering wheel with the top arc of the driver’s windscreen wiper. No repair of any type will be conducted in an area of the windscreen that supports, or supported, an aspect of ADAS technology.

New windscreen repair zones

Any damage to the camera area will require a replacement. In Zone A, if the damage is within a 20mm diameter circle then the technician can look repair, and within Zone B, a repair can be carried out if the damage occurs with a 40mm circle.

Post-repair, the damage must not interfere with the vision of the driver and must appear as ‘invisible’ which means it should be barely detectable, meaning that the repaired damage should be finished flush and less than 10mm with no surrounding damage.

The standards came into effect on 31 March 2022, with a year’s grace period with the withdrawal of BS AU 242a:1998, the previous standard, in March 2023.

National Windscreens always aims to repair rather than replace, saving the customer money and avoiding the environmental impact of recycling windscreens unnecessarily. As a market-leading and customer focused AGRR company, understanding and implementing these changes is paramount for the decision making of the company moving forward.

You can download our BSI standards for windscreen repair and replacement leaflet for more information.