The warranty is the biggest difference between waterproofing contractors. Two companies can install similar systems, and one backs it for a year while the other backs it for the life of the home and passes that protection to the next owner.
A real warranty is lifetime, transferable, written, and honored by a company that will still be in business when you need it. That is the standard United Waterproofing’s 100 percent lifetime transferable warranty is built to, and it is the benchmark this guide uses.
Below you will find the warranty types, what a strong one covers, the fine-print traps, and the questions to ask before you sign.
Warranties fall into three broad groups. The names sound similar, and the coverage is not.
Feature | Limited warranty | Lifetime warranty | Lifetime transferable warranty |
|---|---|---|---|
Coverage | Often labor only, or specific parts. | The system, for as long as you own the home. | The system, for the life of the home. |
Term | One to ten years, sometimes prorated. | Your ownership. | Your ownership, then the next owner’s. |
Transfer | Usually none. | Usually none, or for a fee. | Passes to the buyer, in writing. |
Exclusions | Broad, including flooding and acts of nature. | Varies by contractor. | Should be short and specific. |
Most homeowners assume any warranty is a good one. The table shows why the details decide whether the paper is worth anything after the crew leaves.
A strong warranty makes a simple promise: if water gets through the system, the contractor comes back and fixes it, at no cost, for as long as the home stands.
United’s warranty covers the patent-pending interior system described on our basement waterproofing process page, and it transfers to one future owner. Sump pumps carry their own manufacturer terms, which is standard across the industry, so ask how pump coverage works alongside the system warranty.
The traps are predictable once you know them.
A basement is one of the first things a buyer’s inspector checks, and a water history is one of the most common reasons a sale is renegotiated after inspection. A warranty that transfers changes that conversation.
It gives the buyer protection from day one, it gives the listing agent a line to lead with, and it gives the inspector a documented, backed system to note in the report. A non-transferable warranty offers the buyer nothing, so the basement is treated as unprotected no matter how good the work was.
This is why transferability is the feature that pays for itself. It protects you while you own the home and protects the sale price when you leave.
Put these to any contractor, and get the answers in writing.
New Jersey law helps here. Home improvement contracts over $500 must be in writing and must include the contractor’s registration number, the total price, the start and completion dates, and a description of the work. A warranty that is only spoken is not a warranty.
A warranty is only as good as the company issuing it. Three checks tell you whether the promise is real.
A free inspection is the easiest way to see the warranty in writing before you commit. A specialist inspects the basement, explains the system, and provides a written, itemized quote with the warranty terms attached. Schedule your free inspection and read the warranty before you compare prices.
The full system and the workmanship that installed it, for the life of the home, with transfer to the next owner, and all of it in writing. Labor-only, prorated, and company-lifetime warranties fall short of that standard.
A warranty that covers the system for the life of the home and passes to a future owner when the house is sold. United Waterproofing's 100 percent lifetime transferable warranty transfers to one future owner.
No. A lifetime warranty may end at closing, leaving the buyer unprotected. A transferable warranty follows the house, which is what makes it an asset at resale.
Coverage decreases each year, so a repair late in the term may be covered only in part. It is one of the most common ways a long-sounding warranty pays little when needed.
It defines lifetime as the life of the contractor, not the home. If the company closes, the warranty ends, which is why years in business is part of evaluating any warranty.
Usually the pump carries its own manufacturer warranty, separate from the system warranty. Ask how pump and battery backup failures are handled and whether the contractor services them.
It supports the sale price. A documented, warrantied basement removes a common post-inspection renegotiation and gives buyers protection from day one, which a non-transferable warranty cannot offer.
Yes. Home improvement contracts over $500 must be written and include the contractor's NJ registration number, the total price, start and completion dates, and a description of the work. Warranty terms should be part of that document.
Verify the 13VH registration number through the NJ Division of Consumer Affairs license lookup, check the Better Business Bureau profile and rating, and confirm how long the company has operated under its current name.
Ask whether it is lifetime or fixed term, whether it is prorated, what it covers, whether it transfers and how, what is specifically excluded, what maintenance is required, and how pump failures are handled.
