Warranty
In contract law, a warranty has various meanings but generally means a guarantee or promise which provides assurance by one party to the other party that specific facts or conditions are true or will happen. This factual guarantee may be enforced regardless of materiality which allows for a legal remedy if that promise is not true or followed.
Although a warranty is in its simplest form an element of a contract, some warranties run with a product so that a manufacturer makes the warranty to a consumer with which the manufacturer has no direct contractual relationship.
A warranty may be express or implied, depending on whether the warranty is explicitly provided (typically written) and the jurisdiction. Warranties may also state that a particular fact is true at one point in time or that the fact will be continue into the future (a “promissory” or continuing warranty).
Guarantee
Guarantee is a legal term more comprehensive and of higher import than either warranty or “security”. It most commonly designates a private transaction by means of which one person, to obtain some trust, confidence or credit for another, engages to be answerable for him. It may also designate a treaty through which claims, rights or possessions are secured. It is to be differentiated from the colloquial “personal guarantee” in that a Guarantee is a legal concept which produces an economic effect. A personal guarantee by contrast is often used to refer to a promise made by an individual which is supported by, or assured through, the word of the individual. In the same way, a guarantee produces a legal effect wherein one party affirms the promise of another (usually to pay) by promising to themselves pay if default occurs.
At law, the giver of a guarantee is called the surety or the “guarantor”. The person to whom the guarantee is given is the creditor or the “obligee”; while the person whose payment or performance is secured thereby is termed “the obligor”, “the principal debtor”, or simply “the principal”.
Suretys have been classified as follows:
Those in which there is an agreement to constitute, for a particular purpose, the relation of principal and surety, to which agreement the secured creditor is a party;
those in which there is a similar agreement between the principal and surety only, to which the creditor is a stranger;
those in which, without any such contract of suretyship, there is a primary and a secondary liability of two persons for one and the same debt, the debt being, as between the two, that of one of those persons only, and not equally of both, so that the other, if he should be compelled to pay it, would be entitled to reimbursement from the person by whom (as between the two) it ought to have been paid.
Warranty (noun)
A guarantee that a certain outcome or obligation will be fulfilled; security.
Warranty (noun)
An obsolete legal agreement that was a ran with the land, whereby the grantor and his heirs of a piece of real estate held in freehold were required to officially guarantee their claim and plead one’s case for the title. If evicted by someone with a superior claim (paramount title) they were also required to hand over other real estate of equal value in recompense. It has now been replaced by personal covenants and the covenant of warranty.
Warranty (noun)
A legal agreement, either written or oral (an expressed warranty) or implied through the actions of the buyer and seller (an implied warranty), which states that the goods or property in question will be in exactly the same state as promised, such as in a sale of an item or piece of real estate.
Warranty (noun)
A written guarantee, usually over a fixed period, provided to someone who buys a product or item, which states that repairs will be provided free of charge in case of damage or a fault.
“I took out an extended warranty on my television for five years at a cost of $100.”
“I made sure to check the terms of my warranty for my computer to ensure I was covered in case it broke down.”
“It’s always a good idea to get a good warranty on anything you buy that you think may break down.”
Warranty (noun)
A stipulation of an insurance policy made by an insuree, guaranteeing that the facts of the policy are true and the insurance risk is as stated, which if not fulfilled renders the policy void.
Warranty (noun)
Justification or mandate to do something, especially in terms of one’s personal conduct.
Warranty (verb)
To warrant; to guarantee.
Guarantee (noun)
Anything that assures a certain outcome.
“Can you give me a guarantee that he will be fit for the match?”
Guarantee (noun)
A legal assurance of something, e.g. a security for the fulfillment of an obligation.
Guarantee (noun)
More specifically, a written declaration that a certain product will be fit for a purpose and work correctly; a warranty
“The cooker comes with a five-year guarantee.”
Guarantee (noun)
The person to whom a guarantee is made.
Guarantee (noun)
A person who gives such a guarantee; a guarantor.
Guarantee (verb)
To give an assurance that something will be done right.
Guarantee (verb)
To assume responsibility for a debt or other obligation.
Guarantee (verb)
To make something certain.
“The long sunny days guarantee a good crop.”
Guarantee (noun)
a formal assurance (typically in writing) that certain conditions will be fulfilled, especially that a product will be repaired or replaced if not of a specified quality
“the treaty provides a guarantee of free trade”
“we offer a 10-year guarantee against rusting”
Guarantee (noun)
something that ensures a particular outcome
“a degree is no guarantee of a fast-track career”
Guarantee (noun)
an undertaking to answer for the payment or performance of another person’s debt or obligation in the event of a default by the person primarily responsible for it.
Guarantee (noun)
a thing serving as security for a guarantee.
Guarantee (noun)
less common term for guarantor
Guarantee (verb)
provide a formal assurance, especially that certain conditions will be fulfilled relating to a product, service, or transaction
“the company guarantees to refund your money”
Guarantee (verb)
provide a guarantee for
“the cooker is guaranteed for five years”
Guarantee (verb)
provide financial security for; underwrite
“a demand that £100,000 be deposited to guarantee their costs”
Guarantee (verb)
promise with certainty
“no one can guarantee a profit on stocks and shares”