It’s Easy To Be Fooled!
You have to have seen it advertised at some point throughout your day. Lifetime Warranty!
Roofing contractors all throughout the DFW area have it posted on their trucks, business cards and contracts.
What is a Lifetime Warranty? How exactly long is a Lifetime? What is the warranty referring to? Labor or Materials?
These are all great questions. Questions that every single homeowner in the market for a new roof today should be asking.
Is Warranty Important?
Absolutely! This is not some extended warranty you have to waive off at Walmart or Best Buy just to check out and leave the store.
Roofing Warranties are by far the most important aspect of hiring a contractor and purchasing a new roof. As a homeowner you will need to be able to answer all of these questions and fully understand their meanings and applications before making a hiring decision.
Most contractors are not being on the up and up when it comes to the warranty information and are hoping you don’t see what their hiding.
At Honestroof.com we pride ourselves on bringing you the Truth. So…..without further adieu, here it is:
The Truth About The Lifetime Warranty?
Its a Scam! Yep, I know, shocking right? They are misleading their customers with hot button words like “Lifetime Warranty” and hiding the truth within the small fine print on their contracts. Their actual warranty against faulty work or leak issues is only 2 to 10 years.
The “Lifetime Warranty” they are referring to is the “Manufactures Warranty”.
What is a manufactures warranty? This is a warranty issued by the shingle manufacture towards the shingles themselves. It will cover a pro-rated portion of the shingles in the event of a defect in the product.
However, this amount will not cover the cost of the labor to replace the roof. Homeowners typically end up paying thousands out of pocket for the difference in material costs and for ALL of the labor costs to install a new roof.
Not To Worry
Don’t worry, depending on the shingle manufacture, the odds of having an actual manufactures defect on the shingles themselves are slim to none. You are more likely to have an issue with the way the roof was installed. Faulty installation is the #1 cause of all reported roof leak issues each year.
Owens corning has the least amount of shingle defects of any shingle manufacture and is the very reason we only recommend them for all of our roof installations. Be very skeptical of any other product other then Owens Corning.
What About The Labor!
OK, so now we all understand the truth about the material “Lifetime Warranty”. What about the labor?
The labor or installation of the roof, is the most important part of the warranty and should be paid very close attention to.
Improper or faulty roof installations are the #1 cause of reported roof leaks throughout the year.
Why? Because each year, more and more homeowners are trusting middleman companies or jacks of all trades such as; General Contractors, Insurance Claim’s Specialist’s, and/or Construction companies with their roof replacements, instead of actual roofing specialists.
Compare Apples to Oranges
Roof replacements require specialized knowledge and should not be left to middleman companies or jacks of all trades.
The proof? When you look closely at the labor warranty of a General Contractor or any jack of all trades company that offers multiple services you will notice that their “Labor Warranty” only ranges between 2 to 10 years maximum.
To prevent you from realizing this, they openly promote “LIFETIME WARRANTY” in large letters and in plain site, when in realty they are hiding the true “Labor Warranty” information within the fine print of their contracts.
Why such a poor labor warranty? The answer? Because they are not actually doing the work themselves.
No matter how great someone says they are, or how great your neighbors say someone is, the true measure of a roofers quality is the length of their “Labor Warranty”.
Avoid The Middleman
Can you remember a time when you were willing to stand behind someone else’s work for more then a few years, if at all. If you’ve never hired someone else to do something you were supposed to do, then this may not make a lot of since to you.
Bottom line: General Contractors and Jacks of all trades are middlemen companies. They get paid to sub-contract the work out to someone else after selling you on their services and should not be trusted with anything as complex as a roof installation. They are not doing the work themselves, therefore they are not willing to legally put their name on the work for very long.
When You Want It Done Right, The 1st Time
“Roofing Specialists” on the other hand, always have a better understanding of their craft and it shows in their warranty against the work. Compare any specialist to any jack of all trades or middleman company, in any field, and you see it time and time again. Better pricing, better warranty, better communication. Specialist’s are just better.
Have you ever been to the doctors office and been referred over to a specialist? It’s the same thing, the general practice doctor handles a little bit of everything but is not confident in areas that require specialized knowledge, therefore you are referred to someone who possess master skill levels to avoid possible complications and issues.
That same caution should be applied to a roof replacement. General Practice Contractors (middlemen) should be left to the projects that do not require specialized hands on knowledge. Such as; fencing, rain gutters, window screens, etc… These are all trades that are almost always priced under $3,000 with not a lot that could go wrong. Almost anyone can do these trades without much skill or experience.
A Slight Roof Mistake Could Cost Thousands!
On the other hand, installing a new shingle roof system “in-correctly”, can cost you thousands in repairs from floors to ceilings.
Installing a superior shingle roof system is not a skill that is learned by juggling multiple trades. It takes years of back to back “focused” roof installations, day after day, for a minimum of 20 years, before the company can be considered a master installer.
According to google, faulty roof installations cost homeowners millions of dollars each year and it seems to be happening at a rapid pace within the D/FW area.
The homeowner quickly scrambles looking for their General Contractors phone number to put in a claim against their “Lifetime Warranty”, only to be told that their actual “Labor Warranty” has already expired and that the “Lifetime Manufactures Warranty” does not cover roof leaks. Of course, this is only found out after the fact.
How To Avoid This?
Read your contracts and estimates very carefully. Look closely at the Labor Warranty information. If it is 10 years or less, then you are most likely dealing with a middleman company, or someone that has not been in business long enough to offer a decent warranty against their work.
Go With A Specialist
We are shingle roof specialists with 64 years of hands on installation knowledge. Our word is then backed up with an unmatched 20 Year Leak Free “Labor Warranty” Guarantee, “in writing,” on every single project. That’s putting our money where our mouth is!
Don’t be fooled by the words “Lifetime”. Look closely and save yourself a lot of headache and money down the road. Avoid the middleman crap shoot. Go with the specialist and know for sure.