15 Sep Do You Just Have A “Bad Batch” Of Shingles??
Roofing warranties are a funny thing. If you buy a new car and get a 3-year warranty, you fully expect to have a functional, good looking car at the end of three years – not a rusted bucket of bolts. If you buy that new flat screen television and get a 90-day warranty, you fully expect to still be able to watch the nightly news after 90 days.
But, historically, roofing warranties, especially those for asphalt shingles, have been much longer term than the products really last.
Typically, a homeowner might have what their contractor or builder called a “30, 40, or 50-year shingle” and find themselves replacing it after 15 – 20 years. And, in most cases, it looked like it needed to be replaced ever since it was five years old!
So, what gives? How can this be?
Most homeowners will explain it away by saying they “must have gotten a bad batch of shingles.” Well, if that’s the case, then we can assure you that there are a whole lot more “bad batches” out there than good batches! We regularly replace roofs that are just 12 – 20 years old. And, by “regularly,” we are referring to pretty much every roof we install – they all seem to replace a roof in that age range – some even newer!
And many shingles are now parts of class action lawsuits. There is even a website devoted to this problem.
At its very base, a warranty is a contract. In the case of roofing materials, it is a contract between the manufacturer and the homeowner. It says that, if “X” goes wrong, then they will do “Y” to remedy it. And then they write the warranties with so many limitations and exclusions, and so much fine print, that almost no one ever gets their roof replaced under warranty. And, in most cases, “full replacement” at best means they come and drop some bundles of shingles in your driveway.
Asphalt shingle warranties are largely not what homeowners assume they are!
Have you ever known anyone to get a “free roof” under an asphalt shingle warranty? Neither have we. It really doesn’t happen.
What we are seeing is warranties being written so that, if failure occurs, you may get a discount or coupon to help you toward a new roof – as long as you buy the same brand that you had before! That almost sounds like “fool me once, fool me twice” to us! But what they want is to have you as a customer for life, even if they have to give you a little discount to incent your future business.
At McCarthy Metal Roofing, we will not sell you one of these roofs with the misleading warranties. We don’t want you to ever again have to say that you must have gotten a “bad batch.”
We have carefully selected the metal roofing systems we sell and install. We have chosen products made from the highest quality raw materials and CERTIFIED PREMIUM by the Metal Construction Association. The warranties you get from the manufacturer on the product and from us on the workmanship are both unmatched.
Give us a call today at 919-900-1100 so we can schedule a time to come help you evaluate your roofing needs.