Benefits of the commercial warranty

Directive 1999/44/EC and its national transposition laws provide protection to consumers in cases of defects in or non-conformity of goods which they purchase. However, the duration of the legal guarantee is limited and it is not always easy to prove the existence of a defect. Commercial warranties can therefore have benefits for consumers.

List of the main advantages of commercial warranties

The ECC-Net, based on its case-handling experience and the checks performed online and offline, has drawn up a list of the main advantages of commercial warranties.

  1. Its duration is longer than that of the legal guarantee.
  2. Consumers do not have to prove the existence of adefect, particularly after the first six months.
  3. Consumers get a replacement item during repair.
  4. Complaint procedures are clear and simple.
  5. Consumers do not need to organise shipping of the defective items.
  6. It provides for a repairer to come to the consumer’s home.
  7. All costs for analysing the item, repair or replacement are borne by the guarantor.
  8. The item can be replaced with no attempt to repair.
  9. All issues are covered, including water damage, accidental breakage and oxidation.
  10. Consumers can usually contact any representative of the producer or reseller (if it is a producer warranty) for application of the warranty.
  11. It is an accessory to the item, and can be included in any re-sale.
  12. It offers a “cooling off” period. If the consumer is not satisfied with the product, bigger brands often offer a total refund or a voucher to the value of the purchase price.