Answers to frequently asked questions about product warranties.

What's Below:

When I buy a consumer product, is it covered by a warranty?
How long does an implied warranty last?
How do I enforce a warranty if something is wrong with what I bought?
Do I have any recourse if the item breaks after the warranty expires?
I just bought a stereo system, and the salesclerk tried to sell me an extended warranty contract. Should I have bought the contract?

When I buy a consumer product, is it covered by a warranty?

Most new consumer products today are covered by a warranty. A warranty (also called a guarantee) is an assurance or promise about the quality of goods or services you buy. It's purpose is to give you recourse if something you purchase fails to live up to what you were promised.

Some warranties are implied and some are expressed, or "express."

An express warranty is a verbal or written statement that guarantees that a product is of a certain quality or will work in a certain way or for a certain amount of time. Most express warranties say something like "This product is warranted against defects in materials or workmanship" or "We will repair or replace parts that are defective in materials or workmanship" for a specified time. You are not automatically entitled to an express warranty. Most express warranties either come directly from the manufacturer or are included in the sales contract you sign with the seller. But, an express warranty may also be a feature in an advertisement or on a sign in the store (for example, "all dresses 100% silk"), or it may be an oral description of a product's features that you rely on in making your purchasing decision.

There are two types of implied warranties: the implied warranty of merchantability and the implied warranty of fitness. Virtually every consumer product you buy comes with an implied warranty of merchantability. This is an assurance that a new item will work if you use it for a reasonably expected purpose. For used items, the warranty of merchantability is a promise that the product will work as expected, given its age and condition.

The implied warranty of fitness applies when you buy an item with a specific (even unusual) purpose in mind. If you relate your specific needs to the seller, and the seller assists you in selecting the item, the implied warranty of fitness assures you that the item will fill your need. For instance, if you tell a retailer that you need a sleeping bag for sub-zero weather and the retailer sells you such as bag, it comes with an implied warranty that the sleeping bag will keep you warm in sub-zero temperatures.

Sellers sometimes try to avoid implied warranties by selling a product "as is." This isn't always successful because the seller hasn't carefully followed state law requirements for disclaiming implied warranties, and because implied warranties can't be disclaimed when there is an express written warranty.

How long does an implied warranty last?

In most states, an implied warranty lasts forever. In a few states, however, the implied warranty lasts only as long as any express warranty that comes with a product.

How do I enforce a warranty if something is wrong with what I bought?

Most of the time, if an item you buy is defective, the defect will show up immediately and you can ask the seller or manufacturer to fix or replace it. If the seller or manufacturer won't fix it, or gives up after one try and the fixed or replaced item is still defective, you'll have to take further steps.

In some cases, you can simply stop paying. But, before you do this, think carefully. If you took out a loan to purchase the product, the lender may not care whether it works properly. Even though you may feel that you are in the right, the lender may sue you if you stop making payments. Also, not all problems or defects are serious enough to allow you to stop making payments. In order to have a good reason to stop payment, the problem must be substantial, you must not have known about it when you bought the product, you must have given the seller or manufacturer a reasonable chance to repair the warranty problem, and you must not have damaged or abused the product. Even if you meet these criteria, withholding payments can be risky. If you are making payments to the manufacturer or seller, they may not agree with your version of events and may sue you for not making payments. If you aren't sure what to do, consider consulting an attorney.

If the seller refuses to cooperate, see if the seller will agree to mediate the dispute through a community or Better Business Bureau mediation program. If you can't get anywhere informally, you can sue. In many states, you must sue the seller or manufacturer within four years of when you discovered the defect, but in some states it's as little as three years and, in a few, it's 10 or 15 years. How much time you have to sue is also affected by whether you signed a written contract or bought it on a handshake.