Auto repair shops across Ottawa have been inundated with broken windshields in the wake of this week's freezing rain.

"We've had six vehicles with broken windshields in the last day, more than double a typical day," said Peppi Paluzzi, co-owner of UniglassPlus/Ziebart on St. Laurent Boulevard.

The sound was very, very loud. I thought the windshield was going to come in on me. - Geri Rodgers, motorist

According to Paluzzi, customers said the damage was caused by ice flying off larger vehicles and striking their windshields.

At larger operations, the lineups are even longer: Mehdi Auto Service on Merivale Road has had 18 vehicles with broken windshields come through so far Tuesday and Wednesday, while Apple Auto Glass on Carling Avenue has seen 28.

Geri Rodgers was one of those customers. She was driving along Highway 417 around 11 a.m. Tuesday when a large sheet of ice flew off a commercial truck and struck her windshield full-force.

'It was scary'

"It was scary. It knocked the wind right out of me," she said. "The sound was very, very loud. I thought the windshield was going to come in on me."

Rodgers wonders why drivers aren't more careful clearing off their vehicles, not only to see the road better, but for the safety of motorists behind them.

Paluzzi recommends that whenever possible, drivers steer away from transport trucks and delivery vans on the highway after there's been freezing rain.

He also encourages drivers to get stone chips or small cracks repaired before they spread, since insurance companies will often waive the deductible because it's less costly to fix those problems early on than to replace an entire windshield.

$110 fine

In Rodgers's case, the flying ice caused a circular crack that radiated outward, costing her more than $300 to replace her windshield.

But she said it's not the money that concerns her; it's what could have happened if she'd been a less-experienced driver.

"It could have been an accident.... What if there were children in the car? It could have been a very different and scarier situation. I'm lucky."

Under the Highway Traffic Act, drivers who don't clear ice and snow off their vehicles can face a $110 fine, plus additional fines if they fail to clear off their headlights, windshields and roofs. If uncleared ice or snow causes injury or death, drivers could also face a careless driving charge, according to Const. Chuck Benoit of the Ottawa Police Service.