Most homeowner’s will wait to contact the Warranty Administrator until after the expiration of the applicable warranty. For instance, if you have a one year workmanship/systems item that your builder has failed to remedy or address, you should request arbitration from your warranty company prior to the one year expiration date. There are specific guidelines and rules that should be followed when notifying your builder. Some of these rules include notifying your builder in writing and submitting a copy to the Warranty Administrator. It is very important that you read the warranty document carefully because notifying your builder does not mean you have notified your warranty company, and your claim or request could be denied due to time of notice.

In some cases, your builder may be out of business and the Warranty Administration Company could bypass the arbitration procedures and proceed directly to a claim. Also in some cases, involving your warranty company may get the builder to respond in a timely fashion.

The benefit of arbitration is that an independent third party can help settle the dispute you have with your builder, and the award may be binding.

Checklist to determine if arbitration is right for you:

• Are you still within the applicable warranty term?
• Have you notified your builder in writing?
• Do you believe the defect qualifies for coverage as listed in your warranty document?

If the answers to the above are yes, you should contact your Warranty Administrator to begin the process.

Other cases involving arbitration are but not limited to: Denied claims and Method of Repair.