What you should know:

The most important thing to look for when buying carpet is the warranty information, as it provides the best story of how a carpet will perform.

Although there are many warranties offered today, only a few provide the kind of performance protection against the things that can destroy your carpet’s good looks fastest. Richmond carpet offers various warranties for your carpet that will assure you that you have made the right carpet investment decision. Recognizing and understanding carpet warranties that give the best coverage is the most reliable way to know what you are buying and what sort of appearance will be maintained a few years down the road.

The most common types of carpet warranties.

1. Wear Warranties - Probably the most common warranty, this guarantees that the carpet fibre will not wear away. It offers no protection against manufacturing defects and makes no performance promises.

This guarantee offers assurance that the fibre was made by a reliable source, an important consideration, but it gives no indication of the performance quality of the carpet on your floor.

2. Manufacturing Defects - Any carpet you buy should be covered by a written warranty against manufacturing defects, since it comes directly from the manufacturer and is your assurance that the carpet was not made in a shoddy manner.

This warranty protects against problems like tufts pulling out of the carpet, the face of the carpet coming apart from the backing, and the dye coming out when you shampoo your carpet.

While very important, this warranty still does not guarantee performance over the long term.

The most important warranties for long lasting carpet.

1. Crush-Resistance Warranty - A crush resistance, or texture retention warranty, states that the carpet will resist matting and crushing due to twist loss for a specific period of time.

If you are really concerned about how your carpet will look years from now, this is one warranty you should insist on.

2. Stain-Resistance Warranty - Since there are a lot of stain-resistance processes on the market, look for one that is guaranteed by the mill or fibre manufacturer for proven results.

Find out exactly what kind of protection you are getting:

Warranties often include limitations and disclaimers. Read the warranty carefully, and be sure you know the answers to a few important questions before you buy:

How long is your carpet covered? Is this a 1-year, 5-year, or 10-year warranty? The more faith a manufacturer has in a carpet’s longevity, the more faith you can have in it.

If you have a problem, what will the manufacturer do about it? A proper warranty spells out exactly how the manufacturer will compensate you if you have a problem, and often the compensation program starts on a minimal level and drops quickly from there.

It is important that you understand the reimbursement policy before you buy. The manufacturer’s policy is another indication of how strongly the product is supported.

What disclaimers are included in the warranty? Sometimes a warranty does not cover certain types of installations in certain areas, one of the most common areas where a carpet is not guaranteed is on stairs. Other areas may also be excluded.

These disclaimers may not affect you directly, but they do tend to weaken the overall warranty.

Almost any performance warranty will be dependent on proper maintenance, but some can be more unreasonable that others. See if the warranty specifies exactly how you must care for your carpet and if those requirements are reasonable.

This guarantee applies on a one time basis only to each purchase of Richmond residential branded carpet that is installed in a residential dwelling that is used for residential purposes. Richmond commercial branded carpet is not covered by this warranty.

In order to make a claim for the replacement of your Richmond residential carpet you must send a request in writing, post marked on or before 15 days after installation, to the dealer from whom you purchased the carpet stating the date of purchase and the date of installation, AND SEND A COPY TO: FloorsFirst, 50 Kenview Blvd. Brampton, Ontario L6T 5S8 Attention: Warranty Department.

Richmond carpet will authorize the replacement of your carpet with carpet of equal or greater value than that which was originally installed. If the carpet is of greater value then you must pay the difference between the cost of the carpet originally purchased and the cost of the replacement carpet. If you choose a lessor quality carpet as your replacement carpet, you will not receive a cash refund or a credit note.

The responsibility of Richmond carpet is to provide the replacement carpet to the dealer from whom the carpet was purchased. Any other charges incurred ie. the cost of lifting, installation, underpad or additional labour will be the responsibility of the consumer and appropriate arrangements should be made with the dealer.

Cash refunds are not allowed.

This warranty applies only to first quality carpet sold by an authorized FloorsFirst™ Retailer, professionally installed and properly maintained.  It does not cover commercial or stair installation or damage caused by accident.   Pooling and shading do not constitute wear.  If the carpet fails to perform as warranted, it will be replaced or repaired.  Claims will be honoured after examination by an inspector authorized by Richmond Carpets.  Proof of purchase must accompany all claims.  This warranty gives you specific legal rights which may vary from province to province.

For the purpose of this warranty, matting and crushing is defined as yarn tufts losing their twist and the carpets appearance cannot be restored.  Note that the texture of any carpet will change to some degree in heavy traffic areas.  Carpet installed outdoors or in areas subject to other than ordinary shoe traffic is excluded from this warranty.  Crushing caused by furniture including impressions left by legs of furniture is not covered by this warranty.   Proper installation requires use of a Richmond approved carpet cushion.   Consult your FloorsFirst™ Retailer for details.  This manufacturer's liability under this limited warranty shall be limited to the actual cost of repair or replacement of the affected area of carpet only.

 Richmond will repair any area of the carpet that does not perform as warranted.  If repair can not be reasonably made, Richmond will either replace the affected area or reimburse the consumer according to the table below.   This Limited Warranty is subject to the following conditions:

1.  No carpet is fully stainproof.  This Limited Warranty excludes stains from: 

• non-food and non-beverage substances; 
• such foods and beverages that contain strongly coloured natural disperse dyes as found in mustard and herbal tea; 
• very hot beverages, such as coffee, tea or soup; 
• vomit;  
• substances which alter or destroy colour such as bleaches, acne-medicationm, drain cleaner, plant food and iodine; 
• stains which may occur in high traffic areas such as stairs and hallways 

2. This Limited Warranty excludes soiling.
3. Prior to any repair, replacement or reimbursement by Richmond under this Limited Warranty the consumer must provide written proof of at least one carpet cleaning by a qualified professional carpet cleaner who has followed Richmond's recommended cleaning procedure for stain resistant carpet, and a statement signed by the consumer that the professional carpet cleaner was unable to remove the warranted stain using the proper cleaning method.
4. Topical treatments (including many fungicides, bactericides, biocides and antistatics, etc.) may adversely affect the stain resistance and/or other benefits of Richmond Stain Shield Carpet.  This Limited Warranty excludes any claim or liability for defects or damages to Richmond Stain Shield carpet caused by such topical treatments.   However, topical soil-resistant fluorochemicals which do not adversely affect the carpet are acceptable and recommended after professional cleaning.
5. Any repair, replacement or reimbursement under this Limited Five-Year Stain Resistance Warranty must be authorized in advance by Richmond and is limited to the affected area of the carpet.
6. In the event that repair can not be reasonably made by Richmond, the consumer may choose the option of replacement or reimbursement of the affected area under the following guidelines:

Replacement  - Richmond will pay only for removal of the original carpet and the price of replacement carpet. If the identical carpet is not available, Richmond will provide a carpet of comparable quality and colour.   Any other costs including, but not limited to, installation labour, furniture moving or padding are the responsibility of the consumer.

Reimbursement -  Richmond will pay for removal of original carpet from the consumer's residence and will reimburse the consumer according to the following table:

COST is defined as the purchase price (plus applicable taxes) of the original carpet actually paid to the dealer by the consumer of the Richmond Stain Shield carpet.  Original installation costs, padding, finance charges, delivery charges, cleaning or maintenance costs or other expenses of any variety are specifically excluded.

7. Any implied warranty of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose on the carpet is limited in duration to five years after installation of the carpet.

OUTDOOR LIMITED WEAR WARRANTY
Manufacturer warrants carpet for the applicable period of time against excessive wear defined as 50% decrease in pile height due to loss of face fibre.

If any of the above occurs, manufacturer will replace the affected portion of the carpet with new carpet of equivalent quality (excluding installation) or reimburse the consumer, based on original purchase price, subject to conditions below.

OUTDOOR LIMITED FADE WARRANTY
Carpets are warranted by the manufacturer against excessive fading of the pile fibre (as distinguished from a change in texture) or pile height decreases of more that 50% due to ultraviolet degradation.

If any of the above occurs, manufacturer will replace the affected portion of the carpet with new carpet of equivalent quality (excluding installation) or reimburse the consumer, based on original purchase price, subject to conditions below:

FIRST QUARTER OF WARRANTY PERIOD: Manufacturer will provide 100% of replacement carpet of cost at its option, excluding labour.

SECOND QUARTER OF WARRANTY PERIOD: Manufacturer will provide 75% of replacement carpet of cost at its option, excluding labour.

THIRD QUARTER OF WARRANTY PERIOD: Manufacturer will provide 50% of replacement carpet of cost at its option, excluding labour.

FOURTH QUARTER OF WARRANTY PERIOD: Manufacturer will provide 25% of replacement carpet of cost at its option, excluding labour.

LIMITED SPIKE WARRANTY
Manufacturer warrants carpet for the applicable period of time against excessive wear defined as 50% decrease in pile height due to loss of face fibre.

If any of the above occurs, manufacturer will replace the affected portion of the carpet with new carpet of equivalent quality (excluding installation) or reimburse the consumer, based on original purchase price, subject to conditions below:

CONDITIONS:
These warranties do not apply to carpeting installed on stairs or athletic playing surfaces, burns, cuts, tears, pulls, matting* crushing*, improper installation, negligence, damage caused by use of improper cleaning methods or maintenance, or pivot turn areas.

* It is inherently characteristic of all polypropylene/olefin fibres that matting and crushing and pile reversal may occur which will not be accepted as a basis for claim against the fibre producer nor the manufacturer.