I remember when I was a kid, my parents would always buy a new appliance based on which brands offered the best warranties. Back then, warranties would guarantee that if something went wrong within a set amount of time, the buyer would be refunded, or the appliance would be replaced by the store or manufacturer.

Well, a lot has changed in our world since I was a kid, including what warranties do and don’t do in this modern age. So, what is a warranty for, and who pays for what? Recently, I’ve had many customers come in to my store and say, “this unit just a few months old,” or “this product is not performing as it once did,” or even “I cannot get it to work properly.” Every manufacturer provides some guarantee to their customer that a certain product will work as it is designed to – at least for a certain length of time – and these manufactures’ warranties are there to protect that person’s investment in their products. However, sometimes what the customer hopes for and what the manufacturer insures is not the same. Here are my top five examples of this disconnect between manufacturer and buyer.

1. “I’m having trouble with my vacuum and here is my internet proof of purchase.” Many online sellers are not regarded as an authorized Canadian retailer by the actual manufactures, and as such no warranty service is available or should be implied.
2. “My vacuum no longer picks up as it did when I first bought it.” There are many reasons for this, most of which are not the responsibility of the manufacturer. The unit may have a clogged filter or accessory, which is not covered under most warranties.
3. “I thought it had a 7 year warranty, so why am I taking out my credit card?” Many warranties today are separated between parts and labour. In my experience, I’ve found that while the part of one of my appliances was covered by warranty, unfortunately, the labour costs of that warranty replacement part was at the complete discretion of their authorized service company.
4. “I didn’t know this part is not covered.” Many products have what are considered wearable parts. These parts are the equivalent to a car’s windshield wipers, brake pads, and even oil needing a changing; on a vacuum cleaner, brush rolls, belts, bags, and filters are never covered by your warranty.
5. “I did not realize my actions caused anything to go wrong.” If you are using a dry-only vacuum to pick up drywall dust, or you are putting boiling water into the clean water tank of your carpet shampooer, sometimes these pieces of equipment reach their limits, and the manufacturer would not be responsible. Your car may have a bumper-to-bumper warranty, but smashing that bumper into a tree is not covered. Always read your owner’s manual.

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Thank you for reading my four articles this year, if you have any further questions please contact me at 905-876-3394, or drop by the store at 785 Main St, E Milton.