There are many different warrantees out on the market today.  Listed here are some of the most common ones you will find, along with a brief description of what each warrantee covers.

Stain Resistant- No carpet is stain proof, "resistant" does not mean that nothing will stain it.  The protection applied in the construction of the carpet will make cleaning easier and some otherwise permanent stains may be partially or completely removable.

Wear Warranty- This refers to the abrasive loss of yarn that has nothing to do with how the carpet will appear years from now.

Matting and Crushing- All carpeting will eventually crush down since it is made of soft fibers and cannot be expected to resist crushing indefinitely.  Rather it is the amount of crushing that is being warranteed given the expected performance of the particular style of carpet under normal conditions and with regular cleaning. 

Fade Resistance- This refers to the ability of the carpeting to maintain it's original color. carpeting that is exposed to strong sunlight for extended periods of time will tend to fade (in varying degrees depending on fiber type) if it does not have some form of fade resistance.

Anti-Static - This refers to the ability of the carpeting to resist static buildup. In carpets that do not have this protection,  there may be a build of electrical charge ("static") when you walk on them.  Carpets with this type of warrantee are guaranteed to resist or eliminate this type of buildup.

     Individual warrantees may contain a variety of requirements or restrictions to be kept valid. Maintenance schedules, type and thickness of pad, original ownership, etc. may be included in these warrantees. 

Hint: Make sure to get your carpeting professionally cleaned every 6-12 months. Many manufacturers will invalidate the warrantees of consumers who do not keep up with what they consider to be required maintenance.

     Most warrantees have some limitations or exclusions.  For example some Matting and Crushing warrantees will exclude steps or areas were furniture is located from the warrantee.  Terminology is also critical, for example Matting is not the same condition as Crushing. Matting is when the loss of twist in the fiber causes the adjoining fibers to entangle giving a matted appearance. Whereas Crushing of the fiber is not always accompanied by Matting though a matted carpet is definitely crushed as well.  These slight differences in terminology can affect whether your warrantee will cover a given situation.

Hint: Save any significant sized pieces of wastage from your carpet installation.  Some manufacturers require a piece of unused waste material from the original installation for testing to validate a warranty complaint.

     If you have a warrantee complaint contact your dealer.  They will in turn contact the manufacturer who will either send out an independent inspector to assess the condition of your carpeting, or they may request a piece of wastage from the original installation that will be tested to determine the validity of the claim. If they determine that your claim is justified and valid the response of the manufacturer is dependent on the type of warrantee, the condition under question, and the conditions provided by the warrantor. Repair or replacement of the affected areas is common.  But in the case of replacement they will generally only replace the affected room even if the original installation was the entire house.  In the case of refunds, a depreciation schedule may come into play and in some cases only a partial refund of the original purchase price will be given.