What's The Warranty??

Written by Greg Wednesday, 11 August 2010 15:45

Warranties are funny things; most products we buy carry one, but usually we don't read them or fully understand them. Because of that, some vendors make great headline claims (try "lifetime warranty") but follow it up in the fine print with multiple exclusions and restrictions - i.e., loopholes.

The first thing you need to know is that just because the warranty headlines of two differing spa brands are the same, they can still be very different in coverage and application. As far as Sundance Spas warranties go, the 780 and 880 series spas have the following coverage:

• a 10-year warranty on the spa shell
• a 7-year shell surface warranty
• a 5-year parts and labour warranty

Sounds straight forward enough right? - many other spa brands offer a similar headline warranty. But I have seen numerous cases in these other vendor's fine print where they water down the warranty. Here are a couple of examples:

"Damage resulting from a neglected leaking seal is not covered under warranty. This includes but is not limited to bearing seizure, end bell failure, impeller failure and capacitor failure. It is the responsibility of the customer to report shaft seal failure before further damage can occur."

Now the pumps are inside the cabinet of the spa, how are you supposed to know if and when a leak has started...are you supposed to take out your screwdriver every week and do a systems check?...I guess so if you want coverage. At The Sundance Spa Store the pumps are covered FULLY for 5 years; so you can put your tool box away.

"Note that union connection leaks are considered to be user serviceable and are expressly excluded from the limited warranty. Damage resulting from union connection leaks are expressly excluded from the limited warranty"

You had better get your plumbing license, because it looks like you're responsible for fixing union connection leaks and no coverage for any damage to the base of the spa from the leaking water. At Sundance Spas you're FULLY covered for 5-years for plumbing issues.

"There will be no charge for on-site labour to the customer...travel costs are the responsibility of the customer."

So you get a 5-year parts and labour warranty, but only the on-site labouris free...get ready to pay a service fee for their travel time. At the Sundance Spa Store you get DON'T get charged for travel time.

"All warranties hereunder are void if the spa has been subject to misuse...Misuse includes...damage caused by improper chemical balance (including any damage to spa components caused by scale build up due to poor water chemistry)"

This is a classic loophole to get out of covering your heater if it fails and they find a bit of scale built up on the heating element like a tea kettle...almost a certainty. Sundance Spas offers a NO FAULT warranty on their heaters meaning even if you mess up your water chemistry the heater is covered for 5 years.

"Scratches or micro-glazing in the spa shell reported after the day of installation are not covered under warranty."

Sundance Spas covers the possibility of micro-glazing and other surface issues for 7 years, not just the day the spa arrives.

In summary, don't just read the warranty headline. You need to read, understand, and compare warranties for what they are. You're making a significant investment, and should be fairly covered under warranty should something happen. Statements in the fine print such as the examples above are red flags of poorer quality products and higher costs to maintain your spa.

If you have stories to share about warranty issues, I'd love to hear them.