4 Tips for Understanding a Home Improvement Contractor ‘Warranty’

Most states require a home remodeling businesses to carry a limited warranty. A home improvement company that offers a warranty that is longer than state requirements shows they are willing to stand behind their work.

Centering your home improvement contractor search on the warranty will weed out some of the less savory and questionable companies.  A reputable home improvement contractor will offer a warranty above and beyond that required by law. An extended warranty not only makes a home improvement contractor more competitive, it gives them more credibility with the homeowner.

4 Tips for Understanding a Home Improvement Contractor’s “Warranty”

  1. The Product Warranty. Every product installed on your home has a manufacturer’s product warranty that guarantees the product will not fail when correctly installed and is used under normal circumstances. For example, standard dimensional roofing shingles now have an industry-wide lifetime product warranty, many with a one-time transfer permitted to another owner.  Gone are the days of 30-year dimensional shingle product warranties. (If you are working with a contractor that doesn’t know this, it should be a red flag.) So what does this mean? That means that the manufacturer of the product will stand by the product’s performance for the lifetime of the roof, provided that their inspection deems that the shingles were installed according to their standards and with the (often overlooked) required accompanying materials.
  2. The Craftsmanship or Labor Warranty. This is a big one. This is where the warrantied repairs usually come into play. Maybe your roof shingles were installed on a slope that wasn’t steep enough for shingle use or maybe the flat roof you had installed isn’t draining properly because it should have had a better slope when installed. The bottom line is that the manufacturer will be looking for any and all of these reasons to blame the installer instead of the product’s performance in order to avoid being liable for the replacement and/or damage. BE SURE you are using a roofing contractor that is certified to install your product to avoid improper installation and ensure better coverage by the manufacturer should the product fail. The length of the craftsmanship or labor warranty says a lot about the company’s faith in its own work and its company’s fiscal strength. If they only offer a 1 year labor warranty on a lifetime roof product, that is suspicious. The industry standard is usually a 10-year minimum on a shingle roof….anything below that is questionable and anything above that is a plus, but keep in mind each roof has its own challenges.
  3. Read and write the specific fine print. Maybe the product is only guaranteed when used with specific types of accompanying products. Make sure all of the products you want are outlined in the contract!  Do not go on verbal agreements.
  4. Avoid headaches and go with a manufacturer-recommended, certified installer. For example, we are a Platinum Preferred Owens Corning Roofing Contractor, an honor bestowed upon only the top 3% of roofers in North America!

Ferris Home Improvements is your friendly local home improvement roofing contractors in Delaware. We back up our work with a warranty you can trust. Please call to find out more.