Protecting a Tractor Warranty

How to protect a tractor warranty in case of a failure

Tractor warranties are there to protect you in the case of a manufacturing defect with your tractor. In the unfortunate event of a tractor failure then you will need to contact the manufacture to make a claim, the manufacture will check to make sure you have followed it's warranty guidelines, if you haven't then it will make making a claim more difficult.

AskTractorMike has put together this video to cover the doe's and don'ts to protect yourself if you have to make a warranty claim due to a fault with your tractor.

1 - Know Your Warranty When you purchase your new tractor, or a used one that is still under warranty, make sure you read the warranty document, and yes that includes the small print! You need to understand what is covered and what the manufacturer expects from you in order to honour a warranty.

2 - Tractor Oils and Filters User the oils and filters as recommended by the manufacturer. There are always cheaper options on the market, but you have just spent 10 of thousands on a new piece of kit, so why risk it?

3 - Tractor Fuel Use good quality, fresh, fuel.

4 - Know the Tractors Limits Yes tractors are tough, yes you can push them, but don't overdo it and abuse or over use them. They have limits of operation, taking them beyond these is only going to cause you trouble. Warranties cover for manufacturers defects, not for abuse or over use.

5 - Transporting a Tractor If your tractor fails and needs transporting back to the dealer, the cost of this transport is most likely not covered by the warranty.

6 - Local Dealer If you purchased your tractor from a main dealer, and your tractor gets a fault that is covered by your warranty, then you can take it back to any other main dealer. But if that dealer isn't the one that sold you your tractor don't expect any special treatment or a quick turnaround.

7 - Loader Warranties The warranty for your loader won't necessarily be the same as for the tractor, make sure you check this out.

8 - Tractor Maintenance Maintain your tractor! It's your workhorse and your business relies on it. If your don't it is more likely to fail and it won't be covered under warranty.

9 - Keep a Record of Tractor Maintenance Whether you do the tractor maintenance yourself of use a service company, make sure that the tractor service and/or maintenance that is carried out on your tractor is documented. Keep receipts and even take pictures. Having good records will make making a warranty claim more straightforward.

9 - Document Tractor Issues Make sure you evidence correspondence with the tractor manufacturer/dealer. In the event of a dispute you need to be able to show what was said, by whom and when it was said. Phones calls are nice, emails are better!

10 - Warrant End Date Warranties will cover a set period of time. If you have any issues, you need to make the tractor manufacturer/dealer aware of these before the tractor warranty end date. It is worth setting a reminder on your calendar so you don't forget when it is. If you notify them of a fault on your tractor after the warranty end date then they don't have to honour the warranty.

Thanks to AksTractorMike for allowing us to post this video. He has many more great ones on his YouTube Channel