Prorated and Non-Prorated Shingle Warranties

A new shingle roof may turn out to be one of your biggest investment losses if the contractor does not do the job right. We welcome you to our blog, especially if you are shopping around for a Calgary roofer you can trust.

However, even if you have the best contractor in town you still need to have your warranties in place. Manufacturers’ prorated and non-prorated shingle warranties are most important followed by the quality of the roofer’s work.

Shingle Manufacturer Warranties and Roofer Work

The manufacturer and the roofer are two separate entities. It’s the responsibility of the factory to make quality, consistent materials to specification. Whereas the roofer’s task is to position and attach them correctly.

1… Shingle manufacturers’ warranties should cover manufacturing and product defects for a stated period of time. They should require them to repair or replace defective items to the original standard.

2… The roofer’s responsibility is to lay and attach the shingles correctly. The two should provide sufficient quality assurance. However, undertakings of either kind should never replace building insurance against extreme weather events.

Comparing Prorated and Non-Prorated Shingle Warranties

A pro-rated shingle warranty accepts the premise that the product degrades over time according to local climatic conditions. The manufacturer is therefore not liable to compensate the customer for the full cost of replacement after year one.

The value of a prorated warranty therefore diminishes over time as stated in the warranty documents. And hence the homeowner’s potential contribution increases correspondingly. The tipping point is the middle year in the warranty period, when the two parties bear equal responsibility.

Non-prorated warranties, on the other hand undertake to pay the total cost of repairing defects for the entire life of the warranty. The homeowner has the comfort of 100% cover. But there’s always a catch. This time it’s whether the manufacturer will still be in business after a decade.

So Is a Prorated or Non-Prorated Warranty Best?

We are roofers, not actuarial or legal experts. What we do know is asphalt shingles decay over time, and it’s mostly down to our notorious Calgary weather.

Many homeowners opt for more expensive non-prorated options offered by shingle manufacturers and built into the price. They figure they are purchasing peace of mind and it’s worth the additional outlay. Please call (403)829-1661 in Calgary if you need more advice.

We believe in playing the ball straight down the line at Valiant Exteriors Ltd. Our IKO shingles come with a non-prorated 15 year warranty defined as ironclad. The product is unlikely to fail for manufacturing reasons beyond that period. It just gradually ages until its useful life is over.