Not too long ago, my first new body-style Charger rolled into the shop bay. It had frameless windows and a hatchback, and I was excited for what I anticipated would be a straightforward job. Boy, was I wrong.

I decided to switch up my typical approach to this job. I usually start with the passenger front door and work my way around the vehicle, ending with the windshield. That day, I decided to do the opposite.

Tinting the windshield went without incident, as did the driver side, hatch and passenger side. Or so I thought. I cleaned up after myself and cleaned the exterior of the glass once I thought I was done. I then parked the car outside for a quick photo shoot. That photo shoot turned into a mini videography session because I was impressed with the results.

This is exactly how I felt about the situation.

After that initial thrill subsided, I started the next job. I then decided to move the Charger further out in the parking lot with the windshield facing the sun. As I drove the car to the other side of the parking lot, it appeared that there was a long hair in the tint on the passenger front door. That was odd for a few reasons, but mainly because I am bald. Upon closer inspection, the “hair” was actually a crack in the laminated glass.

I was baffled. I have tinted countless frameless, laminated pieces of glass over my 30-plus years in the business. I couldn’t think of anything I’d done differently to cause this damage. I decided not to dwell on it and move on to fixing the problem. It happened to a brand-new car (200 miles on the odometer) while in my possession, so I knew I had to do something about it.

In this industry, mistakes will happen. What sets you apart is how you handle those mistakes. I called my local glass guy to see if he could source a factory Mopar replacement quickly. He stated that because the car was so new, that part was currently available only to dealers. So, I called Dodge and ordered the glass. They told me it would arrive in about a week.

Next, I called the customer to inform him of the damage. I also told him that I ordered and paid for a factory replacement which was on the way. I offered to do the job for free and apologized for the inconvenience and extra time. I guess I did something right, because he was so impressed with how I’d handled the situation that he demanded to pay for the tint after all.

Once the car was ready for pick-up, he thanked me for choosing a dealer part rather than an aftermarket one. He also thanked me for not asking to run the replacement through his insurance.

I told him that in instances like this, I always try to put myself in the other party’s shoes. Would I want my brand-new car plastered with aftermarket parts right away? No. Would I want to file an insurance claim for something I had no part in damaging? Also no.

I guess that was the right answer, because he ended up tipping generously and thanking me repeatedly.