DIYbanter - View Single Post - Wilton vise "Lifetime Warranty"....what it really means.

Jon Elson

wrote:
I broke the main cast iron frame of my Wilton C-3 vise the other day.
In shopping for a replacement, I noticed on the Wilton Tool website
that this vise has a "Lifetime Warranty". I called Wilton to get info
on warranty replacement or repair. The man asked me how old is the
vise....about 15 years, I said. After a moment, I learned that the
"lifetime" of a Wilton vise is 6 years. After 6 years, the "lifetime
warranty" expires.....how can they be comfortable in misleading the
customer?....why not be ethical and advertise a "6 year warranty".
This kind of thing pis_es me off to no end. Is this typical of how
industrial manufacturers operate? I thought I'd feel better after
venting here.....I don't.
This may actually be a federal crime, it is almost certainly a
violation of FTC rules. It most likely is a crime in your
state, as well. You can write a letter to your state's attorney
general and the FTC (they may have an on-line forms on their web
sites.) The term "lifetime" has an accepted legal definition,
and a company that uses that word is bound by what Black's Legal
Dictionary SAYS it means! They may have some fine print on
their actual warranty card that will get them off the hook, but
if the front of the card says "lifetime warranty" then a bunch
of weasel-words on the back in half-mm type may not undermine it.

Jon