One of the come-ones commonly used by companies to draw in customers is “lifetime warranty.” Unfortunately, not every company is transparent about the finer details of that lifetime warranty and customers find out only after something goes wrong that the lifetime warranty is tainted with terms and guidelines.
At Castle Impact Windows, when we say “Lifetime Warranty,” we mean a guarantee that if you encounter a problem with our product, we will respond to your distress call and repair or replace the item or part that’s damaged as long as there was no intentional action on your part to destroy it. For instance, if you accidentally throw a ball through the window, we cannot cover the replacement of the broken glass or if the window was damaged or because of “abnormal use and abuse.” Also, we refer to “lifetime” on the basis not of your lifetime but on the estimated lifetime of our products which we believe is built to last for decades!
Also, under our lifetime warranty, we include the cost of servicing your window when it is damaged under our guarantee terms. And unlike other companies, we will never short-sell you on terms like “pro-rated” which refers to a decreasing warranty the longer you own the product.
To help you out and in the spirit of transparency, here are some of the warranty questions you should ask suppliers when you are shopping around:
- Do you have a deductible? Believe it or not, some companies believe in hidden fees which is another way of negating the term, “lifetime warranty.” By the time you find out about the deductible, your window needs repair, and you have no choice – for the sake of convenience – you just sigh, grumble, close your eyes, and give the go signal.
- Do you issue the warranty or do you pass it on to a third party? Some companies do this as part of their policy because they prefer not to be bothered by after-sale concerns. A third party would be excellent if the third party is an expert and obliged to abide by the legal obligations of a lifetime warranty with no additional terms and limitations.
- What are the maintenance requirements especially on rails, locks, and other mechanical fixtures?
- Do you have insurance for the repair and installation in case anything goes wrong? What exactly is covered by this insurance policy?
The point is for most companies there are always terms that underlie warranties and guarantees. At Castle Impact Windows, we believe in being upfront and open about all transactions. Ask us anything – and we won’t balk or hide behind generic statements. We genuinely believe in the quality of our products and services – and we stand by this with our firm and honest-to-goodness lifetime warranty.
