When deciding to floor your area using carpet flooring, it is crucial to consider the warranty of the carpet. Carpet warranties can be complicated containing many terms and conditions, so it is important to have basic knowledge about the details of the carpet warranty that you are going to purchase. In this article, we try to get deeper into this topic to provide you with useful information that you need to know about carpet warranties and what they cover.
What is a carpet warranty?
A carpet warranty is the proof provided by the manufacturer or installer that guarantees certain aspects of the carpet flooring installation and quality. The warranty is a promise that ensures the carpet installation will be done correctly and the carpet will perform well under normal conditions of the area. If any problem that is under the warranty coverage, happens, the carpet installer or manufacturer is responsible for taking necessary actions like carpet replacement, repair, or money refund.
Types of carpet warranties
There are two types of carpet warranties: Manufacturer and installation warranties. Each of them guarantees specific aspects and covers certain carpet issues.
1. Carpet manufacturer warranties
Manufacturer warranties cover the carpet quality and performance after the installation. Here are some of the most common carpet manufacturer warranty coverages:
- Wear warranty: This option covers certain wears and tears of the carpet over a specified period (from 5 to 25 years). If the carpet wears or tears within that period, the manufacturer may do a carpet replacement.
- Stain warranty: This option protects the carpet from permanent stains that usually happen due to some common substances like harsh chemicals, bleaching materials, etc., and cannot be cleaned completely.
- Texture retention warranty: This option guarantees the carpet texture remains with no change like the first day of the shopping or installation if it is used under normal conditions.
- Fade resistance warranty: This option ensures the color of the carpet will not fade due to using suitable cleaning products or sunlight exposure.
- Abrasive wear warranty: This option like a wear warranty ensures the carpet will not get damaged due to foot traffic.
2. Carpet installation warranties
Another carpet warranty is a carpet installation warranty which is provided by the installer and mostly covers the items below:
- Installation workmanship warranty: This option guarantees that the carpet is installed under the manufacturer’s standards. It also covers issues like carpet wrinkling, seam separation, and inappropriate carpet stretching.
- Lifetime installation warranty: This option offers a carpet lifetime installation-related issues coverage. This always provides customers with a high trust in the carpet installation company.
- Limited installation warranty: this option like the previous warranty offers any installation-related issue but within a limited period of time usually between 1 year to 5 years after the carpet installation.
Common issues covered by carpet warranties
Here are some of the common issues that are covered in a carpet warranty:
- Seam separation: If the seams of the carpet become visible or get separated, it may be the carpet installer’s responsibility to solve the issue and repair it.
- Waves: If you notice waves and wrinklings on the carpet surface, it means the carpet was not stretched and adhered correctly during carpet installation. Therefore, it can be the installer’s responsibility to repair the carpet.
- Carpet fray: If signs of the carpet fray become visible at the carpet edges, it is mostly because of the incorrect carpet installation and needs to be covered and repaired by the installer.
- Incorrect padding installation: If the carpet padding is installed wrongly, it can cause uneven spaces on the carpet surface or even wear that need to be covered by the installer.
- Mismatched patterns: If patterned carpets have been installed in your area, but the patterns are not aligned and matched with each other, it is an installation error and needs to be repaired or reinstalled by the installer under warranty.
What carpet issues are not covered by the warranties?
There are also common issues that are not included in the warranty coverage list. Here are some of them:
- Normal wear and tear: If signs of normal tear or wear happen over time, which are signs of carpet use during a period, are not covered by warranty.
- Incorrect maintenance: Using harsh cleaning materials and improper carpet maintenance which are all caused due to not following the maintenance instructions that are provided by the manufacturer, are not included in the warranty coverage.
- Accidental carpet damages: If any accidental damage happens to the carpet such as burns, cuts, or pet damage, it will not be covered by the carpet warranty.
- Unusual moisture: If any excessive moisture, water damage, or any unusual existence of water causes damage to the carpet, which is the result of inattention to the carpet maintenance rules, it is also not included in the carpet warranty.
We recommend you to read our “Top 8 carpet cleaning mistakes to avoid” to prevent any damages to your carpets due to a wrong maintenance routine.
How to ensure your carpet warranty stays valid?
There are several factors to consider to keep the carpet warranty valid. The first factor is to ask for carpet installation from a professional carpet installer. It helps you have a satisfying result without any post-installation problems. Another factor is following the carpet manufacturer maintenance guide that helps you have your carpet for years without any need to use your warranty. Next is to keep all the carpet documents from purchase receipt to warranty and installation documents. This way you can always refer to the documents in case of need to claim a warranty. In the end, it is of high priority to report the issue immediately after it happens or you notice it because without reporting the issue at the right time, your warranty may not cover the problem anymore due to the delay in reporting and causing the issue more serious.
How to file a carpet warranty claim?
If any problem happens to your carpet and you need to use your warranty, you need to follow the steps below to use your carpet warranty:
- Read the carpet warranty carefully to ensure whether the newly happened issue is covered by the warranty.
- Contact the installer or carpet manufacturer (based on the type of issue that happened) to ask them for further actions regarding the carpet repair, reinstallation, or money refund.
- After contacting the responsible section (manufacturer or installer), you need to provide the necessary documents to prove the validation of the carpet warranty.
- Stay in touch with the warranty provider to ensure the warranty process is getting done.
Carpet flooring installation in Melbourne
When you decide to have carpet flooring in your area, it is crucial to purchase certified carpets and install them with the help of a professional carpet installer. MA Flooring is one of the most trusted flooring service providers in Melbourne. You can contact our flooring team to get a professional consultation before making any decision about the carpet flooring type, product, and installation.