[Andy Graves]

Caesarstone has a new “LIFETIME” warranty for material offered through Costco. I went ahead and read the warranty and couldn’t find many examples of countertops that would be covered.

In most cases it puts the responsibility on the fabricator or the owner.  It is not transferable and you must live in the home.

HERE IT IS:

RESIDENTIAL LIFETIME WARRANTY

U.S. Quartz Products, Inc. will warrant from the original date of installation material that fails due
to any manufacturing defect when fabricated and installed by a CaesarStone Certified Fabricator.
This warranty applies to the repair or replacement of failed material that has been permanently
installed in your residence. The option to repair or replace the material is at the sole discretion of
U.S. Quartz Products, Inc.

This Residential Lifetime Warranty is available only to the original owner of a single family
residence in which CaesarStone has been originally installed. In the case of a newly constructed
single-family residence, this warranty is available to the “first” owner purchasing the residence
with CaesarStone permanently installed and is transferable according to the terms and conditions
stated below.

TERMS and CONDITIONS:

This warranty applies to product that was installed after February 15, 2008.

• This warranty applies only to CaesarStone quartz surfacing materials and does not apply
  to any other products, including other quartz surfacing products manufactured or supplied
  by any other party, except U.S. Quartz Products, Inc.
• This warranty applies only to CaesarStone quartz surfacing materials that have been
  permanently installed in the interior of single-family residences and have not been moved
  from their original installation. If after or during installation you decide that you do not like
  the color or finish you selected, that decision is not covered under this warranty.
• This warranty does not cover any residence where the owner is not the occupant.
• This warranty does not cover materials and/or services that have not been paid in full.
• This warranty applies only to materials that have been maintained according to the
  CaesarStone Care & Maintenance guidelines. Care & Maintenance guidelines are
  available at  CaesarStone website
• To request service under this warranty you must contact the company who sold you
  CaesarStone or contact U.S. Quartz Products, Inc. directly at 1 877 9QARTZ (978-2789)  within thirty
  (30) days of the failure of CaesarStone quartz surfacing materials.
• Following installation, you must register your product within thirty (30) days in order to
  activate your warranty. Simply complete the online form made available at 
  CaesarStone website.  In the event that no record of your warranty is on
  file, you must provide proof of purchase in the form of a copy of your original receipt or
  invoice showing the name of the Owner, Authorized Dealer and CaesarStone Certified
  Fabricator. Upon receipt of your original receipt or invoice showing the name of the
  Owner, Authorized Dealer and CaesarStone Certified Fabricator, U.S. Quartz Products,
  Inc. will fully honor this warranty even though no warranty is on file. You must agree to
  cooperate with U.S. Quartz Products, Inc. or its authorized agents in the inspection of the
  product and assist us in efforts to perform our obligations under this warranty.

• This warranty is transferable under the following conditions: The original or first owner
  must have initially registered the warranty with U.S. Quartz Products as specified in item
  F. The original or first owner must submit to U.S. Quartz Products Inc. in writing the
  name, address and phone number of the new owner. The new owner will receive a
  prorated 10-year limited warranty, which is prorated from the original date of installation.
  In no event will the transferred warranty exceed ten (10) years from the date of the
  original installation.
• In the event that CaesarStone quartz surfacing materials fail due to a manufacturing
  defect, U.S. Quartz Products, Inc. will, at its sole discretion, repair or replace such
  materials. U.S. Quartz Products, Inc. will seek to obtain the best possible result, whether
  we decide to repair or replace your installation. However, exact color match is never
  guaranteed. All decisions regarding this warranty are at the sole discretion of U.S.
  Quartz Products, Inc. No representative, dealer, salesperson, distributor, fabricator or any
  other person is authorized to make any warranty or promises on behalf of U.S. Quartz
  Products, Inc. with respect to CaesarStone quartz surfacing products.

EXCLUSIONS:

• This warranty does not cover use for any commercial purposes.
  Commercial use includes but is not limited to, use in a store, rental
  properties, office or any other place of business.
• This warranty does not cover products installed in any outdoor application.
• This warranty does not cover products used as flooring material.
• This warranty does not cover improper use or abuse. Improper use or abuse includes,
  but is not limited to, damage from mishandling of the product, damage from excessive
  heat or uneven exposure to weather conditions, physical or chemical abuse and damage
  from improper care and maintenance.
• This warranty does not cover chips or other excessive impact damage in the product.
• This warranty does not cover scratches. CaesarStone is a very hard material and highly
  scratch resistance but not scratch proof. Proper care must be exercised including the use
  of a cutting board as part of your care and maintenance.
• This warranty does not cover routine maintenance. Routine maintenance includes but is
  not limited to, minor conditions such as removing stains and water spots by following the
  techniques specified in the CaesarStone online Care & Maintenance Guidelines at 
  CaesarStone website.
• This warranty does not cover failures due to fabricators/installers not following the
  prescribed fabrication and installation procedures as outlined by U.S. Quartz Products,
  Inc. Improper fabrication and/or installation is the sole responsibility of the fabricator
  and/or installer.
• This warranty does not cover any defects that were visible at the time of fabrication and
  were not avoided during fabrication. Fabricators are required to perform a visual
  inspection of all materials prior to fabrication and again prior to installation.
• This warranty does not cover seam appearance or seam performance, adhesives, caulk
  or other accessory items. Once the product is installed, the two main reasons for seam
  separation or cracking are the shifting or movement of the substrate, cabinets or
  foundation, and thermal shock. Thermal shock can occur when a hot pan, dish or other
  receptacle or object is left on the countertop for more than a brief period. Trivets or hot
  pads should always be used. These issues are not considered material defects and are
  subject to proper care and maintenance by the owner.
• This warranty does not cover any chemical damage.
• This warranty does not cover any creative use of the material including bending or
  curving.
• This warranty does not cover material that has been milled or reduced in thickness.
• This warranty does not cover the installation of sinks.
• This warranty does not cover securing mechanical fasteners directly into the material.
• This warranty does not cover any failures due to inadequate support for the installation.
  This includes overhangs in excess of the recommendations provided by CaesarStone
  which are inadequately supported.
• This warranty does not cover any chips or cracks that are a result of “dry” cutting or
  polishing.
• This warranty does not cover chips or cracks that are a result of not following the
  minimum requirements for edge details.
• This warranty does not cover mitered edges where the joint is not cut correctly.
• This warranty does not cover the altering of any factory applied finish. Only colors listed
  as available in our brochure, sample book or on our website as “honed” are eligible under
  this warranty. Any issues arising from the practice of “in-shop” honing are the sole
  responsibility of the fabricator.
• This warranty does not cover temporary marks that are common to honed finishes such
  as metal marks, fingerprints or other signs of daily living. A signed “Special Care
  Considerations for CaesarStone Honed Finishes” form is required to be submitted to
  CaesarStone or its assigns to receive coverage under this warranty. This form must be
  signed by the end user/owner of the finished installation.
• This warranty does not cover additional modifications such as plumbing, electrical, tile,
  cabinets, flooring etc that may be necessary to repair or replace the CaesarStone product
  covered under this warranty.
• This warranty does not cover natural variations in the color, size, shape and distribution
  of the pattern of the natural quartz or the natural variations in background tone. These
  characteristics are inherent and unique characteristics of the product. Color samples
  provided to consumers, dealers and fabricators are only representative and not an exact
  replication of what will be installed in your home.
• This warranty does not cover what is referred to as spots or blemishes smaller that a U.S.
  ten (10) cent piece. A certain level of spots or blemishes are inherent in the
  manufacturing process and do not affect the structural integrity of the material.
• CaesarStone materials contain important product information on the back of each slab.
  Removing this product information will void the warranty.

U.S. Quartz Products, Inc. is not responsible for damage or injury caused in whole or in part by
acts of God, job site conditions, and architectural/engineering design, and structural movement,
acts of vandalism or accidents.

U.S. Quartz Products, Inc. shall not be responsible in either contract or tort for any loss of direct,
indirect, consequential, incidental, special, exemplary, or punitive damages arising out of the use
or the inability to use the products covered by this warranty. Some states do not allow exclusion
or limitation of incidental damages, so the above limitations or exclusions may not apply to you.

THE FOREGOING IS THE COMPLETE WARRANTY FOR CAESARSTONE AND
SUPERSEDES ALL OTHER WARRANTIES AND REPRESENTATIONS, WHETHER ORAL OR
WRITTEN. EXCEPT AS EXPRESSLY SET FORTH ABOVE, NO OTHER WARRANTIES ARE
MADE WITH RESPECT TO CAESARSTONE AND U.S. QUARTZ PRODUCTS, INC.
EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES NOT STATED HEREIN, INCLUDING, TO THE
EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, ANY WARRANTY THAT MAY EXIST UNDER
NATIONAL, STATE, PROVINCIAL OR LOCAL LAW INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY
IMPLIED WARRANTY OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.
SOME STATES OR OTHER JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OF IMPLIED
WARRANTIES, SO THE ABOVE LIMITATIONS MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.

This warranty gives you specific legal rights, and you may also have other rights which vary from
State to State.

[KCWOOD]

removal of the information on the bottom of a slab voids the warranty.  So if that label, just happens to be under a lazy susan, and no label can be seen, wow, no warranty.

Just reading that warranty should make anyone run from this company. I have never read such a thing… ever…

Read the Hanstone warranty….  pretty staightforward.

[Chris Yaughn]

WOW.

 

You could have a chunk of a guys thumb from the factory in there and as long as it was smaller than a dime, youa re out of luck…..

 

 

 

[Wags]

All the consumer see’s is. Lifetime Warranty…when they purchase…after that it’s too late. It’s just a sales tool.

[Brian Stone]

Posted By Kelsey Crisp on 14 Feb 2011 09:46 PM

removal of the information on the bottom of a slab voids the warranty.  So if that label, just happens to be under a lazy susan, and no label can be seen, wow, no warranty.

Just reading that warranty should make anyone run from this company. I have never read such a thing… ever…

Read the Hanstone warranty….  pretty staightforward.

On the back of Caesarstone slabs there is text with the run number and also the Caesarstone logo. It runs across the entire slab in a diagonal pattern. Once a top is installed it’s about the only way to actually tell with any certainty that you’re actually dealing with Caesarstone and not some knockoff so I can see where they’re coming on that one.

If you read both warranties they are saying the exact same thing. Caesarstone just uses more words.

They can be useful to homeowners but they screw the fabricator. We installed an ES top about a year an a half ago. The customer called because there was a crack in the top coming out of the seam. At first the manufacturer said that they do not cover seams. Then we pointed out that the material was cracked and they said that they do not cover cracks (which it doesn’t state in the warranty.)

After going up the ladder a bit they finally offered material to remake the tops but would not cover any of the cost to actually fabricate the tops. The homeowner ended up getting new tops because we weren’t going to screw over a good customer but we ended up eating the cost to fabricate new tops, tear out and dispose of the old tops, disconnect and reconnect plumbing, and reinstall the new tops.

The more warranties I see, the more I hate them. DuPont is the only company that I have ran across that actually states in the warranty that labor is covered.

[Tom M]

I agree with Brian on the label thingy.

The most important thing a fabricator/seller needs to tell his customer is that there are severe time limits on actions here, from registering to identification and notification of a problem. 30 days to register is reasonable. 30 days to report an instance is ridiculous.

Also, as Andy points out, few actual things are covered by this warranty. If they rule out chips, they rule out a large portion of manufacturer’s defects.

[Norm Walters]

Brian, I had a Cambria top that had flaws in after the install, looked like water marks.  Cambria paid for the material, fabrication, tear out, plumbing, and electrical, this was a kitchen and a master bathroom.

[Len Smith]

Seems like a pretty standard “material warranty.” The material itself isn’t going to chip, crack, stain, etc just sitting there by itself. It normally takes someone acting on it for the material to have an observable defect, and when someone acts on it, the manufacturer has someone else to point a finger at. The fabricator is the easiest to point to, because it’s unlikely the customer will fess up to any customer abuse.

Even if they do, some customers expect it to be covered. We had a customer once who put a high-heat Wok over a seam, and left it cooking there for a lengthy period of time, and it popped the seam (it was a supported solid surface seam.) They admitted to using the Wok there, but expected the repair to be covered.

[Brian Stone]

Posted By Norm Walters on 15 Feb 2011 06:26 PM

Brian, I had a Cambria top that had flaws in after the install, looked like water marks.  Cambria paid for the material, fabrication, tear out, plumbing, and electrical, this was a kitchen and a master bathroom.

Let me re-phrase…DuPont is the only company that we do business with that actually states in the warranty that labor is covered.

I don’t agree with a number of their business practices but it’s off topic and not something that should be discussed on an open forum.

[Tom M]

Len,
I agree with you about the finger pointing, and I do think they knew what they were doing when they wrote the warranty that way.

I disagree, however, in that material flaws can be exposed when fabricating. If a material should be able to be cut a certain way, and while cutting that material as proscribed, a chip or somesuch occurs, you the fabricator should be justified in claiming material problems resulting in the damage.

You will be shoveling poop against the tide, but you do have grounds.

[Len Smith]

Posted By Tom M on 16 Feb 2011 10:54 AM

Len,
I agree with you about the finger pointing, and I do think they knew what they were doing when they wrote the warranty that way.

I disagree, however, in that material flaws can be exposed when fabricating. If a material should be able to be cut a certain way, and while cutting that material as proscribed, a chip or somesuch occurs, you the fabricator should be justified in claiming material problems resulting in the damage.

You will be shoveling poop against the tide, but you do have grounds.

Tom, I agree and that’s sort of the point I was getting at.  Warranties are often written to cover the material only.  Once you fabricate it, and you expose a flaw, a manufacturer can say “well see, you should have inspected it prior to fabrication” and it gives them wiggle room.  It’s crafted that way for a reason.

I have to say that there are really good manufacturers out there who do stand behind their product.  We recently ran into a problem on a large solid surface job.  We received two shipments, the first shipment fabricated without a hitch and was completely normal.  We assumed that the second shipment of 8 pallets of material (160 sheets) would be the same, but ohhhh no.

All the sheets from the second shipment were from the same run, and were sequential, but we couldn’t get two sheets to match, no matter what we tried.  It started out subtle enough that we probably had a dozen or more units fabricated before we saw the problem.  We skipped a couple of skids and tried again, with the same result.  Skipped a couple more skids and no dice.

This is a manufacturer we have used often, and we have never run into a batch like this before.  Did I mention that this job was on an extremely tight time frame?  That I was on the phone with the mfgr on a Friday and we needed replacement material by Tuesday?

We had to get the customer to pick a different (but similar) color, and the mfgr had the sheets to us by Tuesday so we could keep the job moving.  In the end they picked up all the defective material, the fabricated kitchens, and credited us back for the material, our labor, and the shipping to the jobsite.  That is a stand up company in my book.

[Tom M]

Yes, they are.

Also, thee are still jobs that large?
San Diego is looking better and better….

[Len Smith]

It wasn’t in San Diego Tom.  We work with national contractors and travel with them where they go.  Is El Paso sounding as good to you as San Diego?

:^)

[Tom M]

From what I understand about Texas, yeah.

Isn’t Texas the move-to destination for California ex-pats?

[Wags]

With all the is going on in the Middle East, wonder how long till supply problems arise. The factory is not far from the border.

[Author]

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