INFLATED ASPHALT WARRANTIES
DECEPTIVE
MARKETING TOOLS
Please see
Definitions
While many inexperienced roofing
buyers tend to assume warranties indicate either
shingle durability or quality
most industry experts understand that "limited"
warranties are just marketing tools designed to sell more
product.
Asphalt manufacturers and asphalt contractors generally understand
that consumers use warranties as a tool in
selecting shingles and the longest warranties sell the most
product... "Inflated" warranties are very
profitable.
It's assumed readers already
understand that, after the premature failure of
(fiberglass) asphalt shingles became
common knowledge, manufacturers stopped covering the durability or
shingles. See:
Service Life
is NOT Covered
INFLATED WARRANTY PERIODS
After manufacturers stopped
covering the "service life" of shingles, very
quickly warranty periods were increased.
Soon the traditional 15 year and 20 year warranties were replaced
with 30 year, 40 year, 50 year and (wait for
it)...
"lifetime" warranties. This practice of "inflating"
warranty periods became the norm in the
asphalt roofing industry
as competition caused
all manufacturers to increase warranty periods in order to
gain, or protect, market share.
Technical people throughout the industry,
however, generally agree that warranties
are little more than a
marketing device, and can't be considered an
accurate predictor
of shingle life.
[1]
Buyer Beware: While asphalt
shingles come with warranties ranging from 20 to
as long as 45 years,
roofers and
builders remain skeptical of those warranties.
Since warranties are a marketing device,
they are
not a reliable predictor of lifespan.
In the past decade, there have been many
complaints
of asphalt
shingle failure long before warranties expired.
[2]
Manufacturers who use long-term warranties as
marketing tools have found themselves compelled
to meet or exceed
warranties of competitive manufacturers.
In some cases, the length of the warranty
may have been established
without appropriate technical research or
documentation
of in-field
performance. [3]
The problem for consumers is they
tend to rely almost entirely on the Seller
(either the manufacturer or the installer)
for critical information in selecting a roofing product - but those
"advisors" do not profit from protecting the
Buyer's
interests, or recommending the most appropriate roofing material.
Manufacturers and installers of asphalt shingles
only profit when consumers buy asphalt shingles... therefore,
asphalt shingles are recommended to everyone.
To illustrate the extent to which
there's an adversarial relationship
between roof Sellers
(manufacturers/roofers)
and roof Buyers (Homeowners) we need only to compare the length of
warranty periods provided BEFORE the
premature failure of fiberglass shingles became common knowledge
and AFTER these defects were made public.
The graph below compares warranty periods offered by CertainTeed in
1993 (when "service life" was guaranteed)
to warranty periods in years after "service life" was excluded from
coverage. Witness the inflation of
warranties.
___________________________________________________________________________________________
Product Lines with
Product Lines with
Product Lines with
Product Lines with
Year
30 year warranties
40 year warranties
50 year warranties
Lifetime warranties
When "Service Life" was covered
[4] 1993
2
0
0
0
After "Service Life" was eliminated from
warranty coverage
[5] 1997
4
2
0
0
[6] 2002
5
3
4
4
[7] 2006
6
3
1
9
___________________________________________________________________________________________
After decades of covering
shingle "Service Life" with traditional
asphalt warranties of 15 years or 20 years -
When
premature failures of fiberglass shingles becomes common knowledge
and "service life" is not longer guaranteed
(so only "manufacturing defects" are covered) suddenly warranties
are "Inflated" so the majority of products are
marketed with warranties of 30 years or more. In fact, in
2009, CertainTeed marketed only two (2)
product lines
with warranties less than 30 years - and about half its
product lines now come with "lifetime"
warranties! [8]
WARRANTIES ARE DECEPTIVE MARKETING
TOOLS
Either the laws of physics have
ceased to apply to asphalt shingles - so that a
paper thin layer of asphalt now lasts
longer than slate and tile and metal - or asphalt manufacturers
(and asphalt roofers) have abandoned all
pretense
of "truth in advertising" or "full disclosure" and are now using
grossly inflated warranties strictly as
marketing tools.
If this shameful display of attempted misrepresentation does not
demonstrate the extent to which roof Buyers
are
in an adversarial relationship with the Sellers of
asphalt shingles... then we can only advise: BUYER
BEWARE.
In discussions with manufacturers, they are
quick to point out that they don't have any more
roof failures
with these
lighter products than they used to. They
also claim they couldn't say a roof will last 20
years
if it won't.
What they fail to mention, is that most roof
warranty failures go unclaimed. The
average
homeowner
moves every seven years. Most warranties
are not transferable. [9]
Also, most shingle warranties aren't
transferable when the home is sold. Since
the average American
homeowner
sells after about six years, shingle companies
are not liable even if their product
doesn't
perform as advertised. [10]
Moreover, while some inexperienced
consumers assume the introduction of a line of
50 year shingles demonstrates
the asphalt manufacturers' development of "new and improved"
technology... the fact is: manufacturers
have been
introducing cheaper (lower quality) shingles with 30 or 40 year
warranties and "bumping-up" the previous
shingles
to a higher warranty. In other words, shingles that had
previously been marketed with a 30 year warranty
are often
"bumped-up" to a 40 year warranty - so the manufacturer can
introduce a cheaper product line as the "new"
30 year shingle. [11]
While asphalt manufacturers use inflated warranties
to gain a competitive sales edge, at the same
time, they have
demonstrated their disregard for
warranties (and disrespect for consumers) with public admissions that
their (own)
warranties
are "meaningless" marketing
tools. In fact, manufacturers have been
so bold as to openly joke of giving
150 year warranties - if it will
help asphalt roofers sell more shingles.
But hey, what about the warranty?
Warranties (trust me here) are marketing tools...
So if someone wanted (not
saying they do, not saying they don't) to put out
a
truly meaningless warranty,
it would have just as
much effect on the product quality as today's
warranties.
(I've got it, we'll sell
a million, the first 150 year warranty!)
[12]
Since the durability of shingles
cannot be identified by the "limited"
warranties, there is no way for consumers
to determine the quality or longevity of a fiberglass shingle...
unless they have access to an
independent and
unbiased roofing expert willing to explain the difference
between products and the realistic lifespan
expectancy.
The issue is really one of finding the best resource of information
for product selection - and it is NOT
warranties.
ASPHALT SHINGLE DURABILITY
Most
manufacturers (and roofers) "specialize" in only
one type of roofing material and, therefore,
must try to "sell"
that material to everyone - even when a different material or
product would be more appropriate to the
consumer's
unique individual needs. Manufacturers (like CertainTeed)
sell only one material - asphalt shingles - and,
therefore,
will try to sell their products to everyone. Likewise,
roofers specializing in installation of asphalt
shingles will try to
use ''inflated" warranties to "sell" asphalt shingles - even when
they EXPECT premature failure.
A recent study for the National Association of Home
Builders (NAHB) determined the average life
expectancy
for asphalt
shingles is only 20 years. [13] Even the Asphalt Roofing
Manufacturers Association (ARMA),
recommends replacement of asphalt shingles
every 20 years. [14]
However, these estimates from both the National
Association of Home Builders (20 years) and the
Asphalt Roofing
Manufacturers
Association (20 years) are NOT indicating the
Re-Sale Window for asphalt shingles - which
needs
to also include a
Five Year Certification. If asphalt
shingles have a 20 year "functional
lifespan," that DOES NOT
mean
that they can actually pass a Re-Sale Inspection
at that time, please see: What
Constitutes a Roof Failure?
Homeowners can be excused for
considering an idea as ridiculous as 30, 40 or 50 year
asphalt shingles... they are
unsuspecting consumers, not roofing experts.
But what about the roofing contractors? What
about manufacturers?
Can they ever be excused for using deception to
sell defective products? See:
Selling
Defective Shingles in Seattle
It's very easy to "sell" inexperienced and
unsuspecting buyers the idea of a long-term
lifespan for asphalt shingles,
when the only examples shown are less than 10
years old. It's something altogether
different when consumers have
the opportunity to actually see the
condition of a 20 year fiberglass installation.
See: Recent Class
Action Lawsuits
Fiberglass shingles have been on the market for
over 30 years. Even "luxury" shingles like
the Presidential Shake
have been produced for over 23 years. If a
manufacturer or roofing contractor is unwilling
(or unable) to let you see
what you can expect your roof to look like in 15
or 20
years... maybe you should look for a
different roofing material.
Learn what roofers (and
manufacturers) DON'T WANT you to know.
Also see: The Truth on Presidential Shingles
A MATTER OF PERSPECTIVE
On the issue of failed / failing roofing, it's
important to understand that "expert" opinions
will reflect the fundamental
perspective of those expressing the opinion. And often the
difference between the perspective of (roof)
Sellers
and the perspective of (roof) Buyers can be quite extreme.
The perspective of sellers and buyers differs
because
their financial interests are diametrically opposed.
All
roofers claim to have the best product
and all roofers claim to provide the best
installation.
Obviously, that cannot be True.
There is always an adversarial relationship
between buyers and sellers
roofing buyers should never expect full
disclosure or unbiased information
from asphalt manufacturers, asphalt
distributors/suppliers or asphalt roofers.
Sellers (like CertainTeed) may consider roofing
"failed" when shingles pass their functional
lifespan and threaten
damage from leaking. Buyers (homeowners) may consider
"failure" to occur whenever the shingles are past
their
Re-Sale Window and require either replacement or payment of a
"Roofing Allowance" in order to sell their home.*
Sellers (like CertainTeed) may consider a
certain percentage of premature failures to be
acceptable because the
cost of paying claims is already built into the shingle price - and
very few failures get submitted as warranty
claims.
However, most buyers (homeowners) will consider ANY
premature failure to be unacceptable -
especially when the
warranty payment is just a small percentage of actual replacement
costs... and failure was expected by the Seller.
* Based on product design and proven
performance, there are only two (2)
conventional
fiberglass shingles that we find ANY evidence of
typical durability beyond 20 years. These
shingles are NOT popular products (in the
Seattle area) as most roofers don't tell
consumers
about the history of premature failures - and
the very limited durability of fiberglass
shingles.
Do you want to get the BEST VALUE on your
roofing project?
You will need Full Disclosure and Unbiased
Information.
Contact us for Specific Advice on your Project.
Free Consultation Anywhere in U.S.
Seattle Roof Brokers
__________________________________________________________________________________________
[1] Ted Cushman, 'Have
Asphalt Shingles Improved?'
Journal of
Light Construction Magazine, (July 2001).
[2] Bob Vila, 'Asphalt Shingles'
BobVila.com
[3] National Roofing
Contractors Association, 'Roofing Warranties'
NRCA.net
[4] CertainTeed
Warranty - 1993
[5] CertainTeed Warranty - 1997
[6] CertainTeed Warranty - 2002
[7] CertainTeed Warranty - 2006
[8] CertainTeed Warranty - 2009
[9] Ray Bolt, 'Shingle Problems: 20
Year Asphalt Shingles are Posing Problems in the
West'
Western
Roofing Magazine, (Jan/Feb 1991).
[10] Ted Cushman, 'Choosing an Asphalt Shingle:
Organic vs Fiberglass'
Journal of
Light Construction Magazine, (May 1993).
[11] Elk Corporation Asphalt Warranty Brochure
[12] Greg Malarkey,
'Cheap Shingles: As With Everything Else in
Life, You Get What You Pay For'
Western
Roofing Magazine, (Nov/Dec 1991).
[13] National Association of Home Builders, 'Study of
Life Expectancy'
[14] Asphalt Roofing Manufacturers Association, 'All
About Roofing'
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Disclaimer: This is not an advertisement or a solicitation
and information is provided only as a public
service.
The information above is presented for educational
purposes only. The commentary and all
contents reflect
the professional opinion and experience of the author
alone and are subject to error or change without
notice.
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approval or endorsement of that website or any
products,
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