By Vitralux Bradtke — Master Glazier in Luxembourg since 1865

It is 11 pm on a Sunday evening. A gust of wind, an accident or an attempted break-in has just shattered your window. It is 5°C outside. You do not know what to do, who to call, or whether anyone in Luxembourg still turns out at this hour. This article answers every one of those questions — and gives you the right moves to get through the night safely.

Broken window emergency in Luxembourg?

Call the Vitralux emergency line on (+352) 621 817 650 or go to depannagevitres.lu. Call-outs 24/7, right across the Grand Duchy.

1. The five things to do straight away

Before you think about replacement, you need to make the situation safe. Here are the five moves to make in the first few minutes after a breakage.

Move #1 — Keep clear of the broken glass

Toughened glass breaks into thousands of small, blunt fragments, but ordinary glass produces dangerous shards. Never pick up the pieces with bare hands. Keep children and pets away from the area. If there are fragments on the floor, cordon the spot off with a chair or a piece of furniture until the glazier arrives.

Move #2 — Board up the opening temporarily

Until a glazier gets to you, you need to protect the opening against the weather, the cold and intruders. Several stopgaps will do the job: thick cardboard taped in place, a builder's tarpaulin, boards if you have any. What matters is that the opening is closed, even imperfectly. The emergency glazier always brings his own boarding-up material.

Move #3 — Call your insurer as soon as you can

If the window was broken during a burglary, an attempted break-in or water damage, tell your insurer as soon as possible — ideally before the glazier arrives, so that the repair is handled as part of your claim. Photograph the damage before anything is touched.

Move #4 — Report a break-in to the police

If the window was smashed during an attempted burglary or an act of vandalism, report it to the Police Grand-Ducale before calling the glazier out. That police report is essential for your insurance file.

Move #5 — Call a glazier with a genuine 24/7 emergency service

Do not spend the night with an unprotected opening. An emergency glazier can turn out at any hour to make your home or your business secure.

Broken window in Luxembourg? Call us now.

Available 24 hours a day · 7 days a week · Across the Grand Duchy — (+352) 621 817 650 or depannagevitres.lu

2. Broken window at night in Luxembourg: who do you call?

That is the question everyone asks at 2 am in front of a shattered window. In Luxembourg, very few glaziers run a genuine round-the-clock rota, seven days a week. Vitralux Bradtke runs a dedicated emergency glazing service — depannagevitres.lu — reachable at any hour, every day of the year, Luxembourg bank holidays included.

Vitralux works throughout the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg: Luxembourg City, Esch-sur-Alzette, Differdange, Dudelange, Ettelbruck, Diekirch, Mersch, Grevenmacher, Remich and every other commune. How quickly we reach you depends on where you are and on how busy the teams are, but our aim is always to be there as fast as possible.

3. What the emergency glazier does on arrival

An emergency call-out always follows the same sequence. Here is what to expect when the Vitralux team turns up.

  • Assessing the situation: type of glazing broken, size of the opening, cause of the breakage, security risk
  • Making it safe immediately: boarding up the opening with a rigid panel or timber if the replacement glass is not available on the spot
  • Clearing the glass fragments in and around the opening
  • Permanent replacement if the right glass is carried in the van or held in the workshop
  • A written call-out report for your insurer if you need one

In some cases — large double glazing units in particular, or specialist glazing such as fire-rated and security glass — only the temporary boarding-up is done during the night call-out, and the permanent replacement is booked in for the following day.

4. Which types of glazing can be replaced in an emergency?

The vast majority of everyday glazing can be replaced quickly thanks to the permanent stock Vitralux holds in Howald (10,000 m² of glass on the shelves). Here is an overview of the situations we see most often.

  • Single pane in an older window: quick replacement, substitute glass held in stock
  • Standard double glazing (common sizes): replacement often possible the same day or the next
  • Internal or external glazed door: immediate replacement or temporary boarding-up, depending on the configuration
  • Shopfront: immediate boarding-up, express replacement depending on the dimensions
  • Velux and other rooflights: watertight temporary cover overnight, replacement by appointment
  • Car or company vehicle glass: please ask us, it depends on the type of vehicle

For the windows and glazing in your home, take a look as well at our glass repair service for homes.

5. Does my insurance cover broken glass?

In the vast majority of cases, yes. Luxembourg home insurance policies include glass breakage cover, which pays for replacing panes broken in an accident, a storm, a burglary or an act of vandalism. The detail varies from one contract to the next: excess, reimbursement ceiling, notification deadline.

  • Photograph the damage before the glazier touches anything
  • Keep the invoice with the itemised breakdown of the work
  • Report the claim to your insurer within the deadline set out in your contract (usually 5 working days)
  • Ask Vitralux for a written call-out report if you need one
  • After a burglary: the police report is required before the claim can be paid

6. Can broken glass be prevented?

Some breakages simply cannot be foreseen: an accident, vandalism, a storm. Others can. If you live or trade at ground level, if burglars have already targeted your home, or if you run a shop holding valuable stock, moving to security glazing (laminated glass certified to EN 356) is an effective precaution.

Laminated safety glass does not stop the pane cracking, but it stays in place once broken: there is no open hole, no falling shards, and a break-in takes considerably longer. This is the glass we fit in jewellers, late-night pharmacies and banks in Luxembourg. See our dedicated page → Security glass and Panzerglas.