Roofing warranties get oversold in this industry. "Lifetime warranty" on a flyer doesn't mean what most people think it means, and the workmanship and product sides are often conflated on purpose. Here's how ours actually works: TNS provides a 10-year workmanship warranty on full roof replacements. Specific terms vary by material and scope, and the documents we hand you at the end of the job spell out exactly what applies to your roof.
What our 10-year workmanship warranty actually covers
Workmanship coverage is about how we installed the roof. If a flashing we put on isn't tied in the way it should be, if a detail within our scope of work fails because of how it was installed, that's on us and we come back and fix it.
The coverage applies to a complete roof replacement in Surrey because we've removed the old material, looked at the deck, installed the agreed system, and controlled the details. A small repair on someone else's old roof is different — we can't warranty material we didn't install or conditions we couldn't see.
The manufacturer's product warranty is a separate thing
Malarkey, IKO, GAF, every shingle and membrane manufacturer issues their own product warranty. That covers defects in the material itself, on their terms, and you register it with them — not with us. It does not replace our workmanship coverage and our coverage doesn't replace theirs.
So your roof typically has two separate forms of protection: ours for the install, the manufacturer's for the product. Each has its own paperwork and its own exclusions. Keep both.
Why warranty terms vary by material and scope
No two roofs are identical, and our written warranty reflects what we actually did on your project as part of our full roof replacement service. What changes the terms:
- Material: asphalt shingles, metal, and torch-on membranes use different assemblies and different install methods.
- Complexity: valleys, skylights, chimneys, dormers, and multiple roof levels mean more detail work and more places terms get specified.
- Ventilation: if the existing intake or exhaust ventilation isn't adequate and isn't being corrected, that affects what we can warranty.
- Connected construction: walls, drainage, rooftop equipment, and anything outside the replacement scope can affect performance and are excluded from workmanship coverage.
- Maintenance: blocked gutters, neglected moss, unreported damage — these can void coverage on the affected area.
- Later work by others: when a solar or HVAC contractor cuts into the roof after we leave, that's no longer our install.
Examples of what's typically covered
A new replacement leaks at a wall transition we installed, and we confirm the install is the cause — that's a workmanship claim. A vent boot we installed fails because of how it was set — same. We come back, fix it, and you don't pay.
Examples of what's not
A tree branch comes through the roof in a windstorm — that's an insurance claim, not a warranty claim. A satellite installer drills through a shingle and seals it with caulk that fails a year later — that's on them. A leak at a chimney we explicitly excluded from the scope because it needed masonry work — also not covered. For multi-unit buildings, coverage is tied to the strata replacement scope we agreed to.
Damage from blocked drains, heavy debris, or maintenance that was supposed to happen and didn't can also fall outside coverage. None of this is unusual for the industry — the difference is whether your contractor is upfront about it before the job or only when you call about a leak in year three. Your signed warranty controls in every case.
How to keep your coverage intact
Keep your proposal, invoice, final job photos, manufacturer registration, and our workmanship warranty document together. Stay on top of basic maintenance — gutters, moss, drains. Get the roof looked at after a real storm. And if you notice something, call us before a small problem becomes a soaked attic.
We're happy to walk through it before you sign anything
TNS works with homeowners, strata councils, and property managers across Surrey and the Lower Mainland. The best time to understand what's covered is before the work starts, not when you're trying to file a claim. Get in touch and we'll go through warranty options and the written terms for your specific roof.