Warranty in the United States

Warranty Definition

In Insurance. A statement or agreement by the insured, which is part of the contract of insurance, and the truth of which is essential to the validity of the policy. For the distinction between warranty and representation, see Representation.

In Sales of Personal Property. An undertaking, express or implied, by which the seller insures the existence of certain facts as to the thing sold. It is an express or implied statement of something which the party undertakes shall be a part of the contract, and, though part of the contract, yet collateral to the express object of it. …. It is express when the undertaking is by express words of the seller; it is implied when it results by inference of law from the nature of the transaction.

In Sales of Real Property. In old law, a real covenant, whereby the grantor of an estate of freehold and his heirs were bound to warrant the title, and, either upon voucher or by judgment in a writ of warrantia chartae, to yield other lands to the value of those from which there had been an eviction by a paramount title. …. Collateral warranty existed when the heir’s title was not derived from the warranting ancestor, and yet it barred the heir from claiming the land by any collateral title, upon the presumption that he might thereafter have assets by descent from or through the ancestor; and it imposed upon him the obligation of giving the warrantee other lands in case of eviction, provided he had assets. …

Lineal warranty existed when the heir derived title to the land warranted, either from or through the ancestor who made the warranty. St. 4 Anne, c. 16, annulled these collateral warranties, which had become a great grievance. In the United States, warranty in its original form, it is presumed, has never been known. The more plain and pliable form of a covenant has been adopted in its place ; and this covenant, like all other covenants, has always been held to sound in damages, which, after judgment, may be recovered out of the personal or real estate, as in other cases. And in England the matter has become one of curious learning, and of little or no practical importance. (This definition of Warranty is based on The Cyclopedic Law Dictionary . This definition may need to be proofread).

For a meaning of it, read Warranty in the Legal Dictionary here.

Plain-English Law

Warranty as defined by Nolo’s Encyclopedia of Everyday Law (p. 437-455): A guarantee by a seller to stand by its product or services by making repairs or offering replacements if something goes wrong. See express warranty and implied warranty.

Practical Information

Affirmation of a material fact or promise by the seller, which acts as an inducement for the buyer to make a purchase. A warranty may be express (a direct statement made by the seller), or implied (one that is indicated by the nature of the contract). Warranties relate to many things: fitness of the goods sold for a special purpose; merchantability of goods; title to real or personal property; and quiet enjoyment of premises. All representations made by an applicant for insurance, whether material or not, are deemed warranties. The term guaranty is loosely used in the sense of warranty. The common guaranty of a product is, strictly, a warranty and not a guaranty. (See guaranty (in U.S. law).) Any warranty made by a seller that proves to be false gives the buyer a right of legal action. (Revised by Ann De Vries, 1982)

Warranties

The UCC governs express warranties and various implied warranties, and for many years it was the only statutory control on the use and meanings of warranties. In 1975, after years of debate, Congress passed and President Gerald Ford signed into law the Magnuson-Moss Act, which imposes certain requirements on manufacturers and others who warrant their goods. We will examine both the UCC and the Magnuson-Moss Act. (1)

Types of Warranties include Express Warranties and Implied Warranties.

Warranty in Foreign Legal Encyclopedias

For starting research in the law of a foreign country:

Link	Description
Warranty	Warranty in the World Legal Encyclopedia.
Warranty	Warranty in the European Legal Encyclopedia.
Warranty	Warranty in the Asian Legal Encyclopedia.
Warranty	Warranty in the UK Legal Encyclopedia.
Warranty	Warranty in the Australian Legal Encyclopedia.

Resources

Notes

“Business and the Legal Environment”, by Don Mayer, Daniel M. Warner and George J. Siedel.

Warranty meaning

A promise, whether express or implied, that a good shall be free of defect. Thus cases of products liabilities may be founded on a theory of warranty as well, either as an independent or alternative theory of liability.

The Fred Smartley, Jr., C.C.A.Va., 108 F.2d 603

Warranty in the International Business Landscape

Definition of Warranty in the context of U.S. international business and public trade policy: A promise of quality or performance for a good or service.

Warranty