1 Scope
NOTE This standard establishes the administrative and procedural requirements for warranties and surety bonds furnished on the Work, and applies to all project types and all Divisions of the Specifications. (1.1)
NOTE It is the overarching administrative framework that every technical section plugs into when it invokes a special warranty or a bond. The intent is to write the warranty and bond administration once, here, so that product sections carry only the parameters unique to their system rather than re-stating boilerplate. (1.2)
1.2.1The Contractor shall comply with the warranty and bond requirements of this section in addition to any special warranty or bond required by an individual product section.
1.2.2Where a product section invokes a special warranty, the administrative requirements of this section shall govern its form, execution, submittal, and enforcement unless the product section states a more stringent requirement.
1.2.3Where a requirement of this section conflicts with the Owner-Contractor Agreement or the General Conditions, the Contract documents shall govern.
NOTE The bond amounts, surety qualifications, and the contractor's general warranty originate in the Owner-Contractor Agreement and the General Conditions. This section references and operationalizes those instruments for closeout compliance; it does not replace them. (1.2.4)
NOTE This section does not cover product-specific warranty language, closeout logistics, or contract procurement instruments. (1.3)
NOTE Special warranty wording for a particular system (for example, a roofing membrane manufacturer's no-dollar-limit warranty) lives in the product section, such as
Membrane Roofing, which cross-references this standard for its administrative requirements. Closeout submittal assembly and delivery is handled by
Closeout Procedures, and operation and maintenance documentation submitted alongside warranties is handled by
Operation And Maintenance Data. Bid bonds, bid security, and the contract bonding and insurance certificates are instruments of the Owner-Contractor Agreement and are not specified here.
(1.4) 1.5 Definitions
NOTE General warranty (correction period) is the Contractor's contractual obligation to correct Work found defective within a fixed period after Substantial Completion; in the standard general conditions this period is one year. (1.5.1)
NOTE Special warranty (extended warranty) is a separate, longer warranty for a specific product or assembly, typically issued by the manufacturer or a specialty subcontractor and required by a product section. (1.5.2)
NOTE Performance bond is a surety bond guaranteeing the Contractor's faithful performance of the Contract; on default the surety completes the Work or pays the Owner up to the penal sum. (1.5.3)
NOTE Payment bond (labor and material payment bond) is a surety bond guaranteeing payment to subcontractors and suppliers, protecting the Owner against liens and the lower tiers against nonpayment. (1.5.4)
NOTE Maintenance bond is a surety bond guaranteeing correction of defects in materials and workmanship for a defined period after Substantial Completion; it backstops the correction-period obligation with surety credit. (1.5.5)
NOTE Penal sum is the maximum dollar amount a surety is obligated to pay under a bond, stated as a percentage of the Contract Sum. (1.5.6)
NOTE No-dollar-limit (NDL) warranty is a manufacturer warranty with no cap on the cost of covered repairs over the warranty term, as distinct from a materials-only or pro-rated warranty. (1.5.7)
2 Referenced Standards
2.1The Work shall comply with the latest adopted edition of each of the following unless a specific edition is cited or the Contract documents direct otherwise.
2.2Where referenced documents conflict, the more stringent requirement shall govern unless the Engineer of Record directs otherwise in writing.
| Standard |
Title |
| AIA A201 |
General Conditions of the Contract for Construction (§3.5 Warranty, §12.2 Correction of Work) |
| AIA A101 Exhibit A |
Insurance and Bonds |
| 40 U.S.C. §§ 3131-3134 |
Miller Act (Federal Performance and Payment Bond Requirements) |
| FAR 52.228-15 |
Performance and Payment Bonds - Construction |
| FAR Subpart 46.7 |
Warranties (Federal Acquisition Regulation) |
| U.S. Treasury Circular 570 |
Listing of Approved Sureties (Companies Holding Certificates of Authority) |
| ASTM E2191 |
Standard Guide for Examining and Evaluating Building Warranty Programs |
NOTE The Contractor is responsible for knowing the applicable state Little Miller Act, which sets the public-works bond threshold and amounts for state and local projects. (2.3)
NOTE All fifty states have a Little Miller Act analogous to the federal statute. Thresholds vary widely, from every public project regardless of value in some states to a fixed dollar floor in others. The applicable state law controls bond requirements on state and local public work; the federal Miller Act controls on federal contracts. (2.4)
3 Warranty Commencement and Duration
NOTE The general warranty (correction period) commences at the date of Substantial Completion unless the Contract documents establish a different commencement date. (3.1)
NOTE The standard general conditions tie the one-year correction period to Substantial Completion. Some contracts instead commence warranties at the date of Final Acceptance, or at first beneficial occupancy of a specific system or area. The specifier must select one basis and state it clearly, because the commencement date sets the clock for every downstream warranty obligation. (3.2)
● Date of Substantial Completion
○ Date of Final Acceptance
○ Date of first beneficial occupancy (per system or area)
3.2.1For phased projects, the general warranty for each phase or area shall commence at the date of Substantial Completion established for that phase or area.
NOTE When occupancy of one wing or system precedes Substantial Completion of the whole, the correction-period clock starts at different times for different areas. The Contract documents must state the commencement date for each phase so that warranty expiration can be tracked unambiguously and disputes over coverage windows are avoided. (3.2.2)
3.2.3The Contractor shall record, on each warranty document, the commencement date and the expiration date applicable to the Work it covers.
3.3 Contractor General Warranty Duration
3.3.1The Contractor's general warranty (correction period) shall be one year from the applicable commencement date unless an extended period is specified.
NOTE One year from Substantial Completion is the general-conditions default and the typical case for private commercial work. The correction period is a contractual remedy distinct from, and shorter than, the implied warranty of workmanship, which in most jurisdictions runs to the applicable statute of limitations. (3.3.2)
3.3.3Where an extended contractor warranty is required for a specific trade, the product section shall state the extended duration, and that duration shall control for that scope.
NOTE Extended contractor warranties are most common for mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems at two years, and for waterproofing and below-grade systems at up to five years. The extended period applies only to the scope named in the product section; the one-year general correction period still applies to the balance of the Work. (3.3.4)
NOTE The correction period does not limit the Contractor's other obligations or remedies available to the Owner under the Contract or at law. (3.3.5)
NOTE A frequent misconception is that the one-year correction period is the full extent of the Contractor's warranty. It is not. The Contractor's implied warranty of workmanship survives the correction period and remains enforceable until the applicable statute of limitations or repose expires, commonly four to six years depending on the jurisdiction. (3.3.6)
4 Special and Extended Product Warranties
4.1Each product section that requires a special warranty shall state the required warranty tier and duration, and the Contractor shall furnish a warranty meeting or exceeding that requirement.
NOTE Manufacturers offer multiple warranty tiers - standard materials-only, no-dollar-limit, and full-system or design-assist warranties - at different costs and with different installer requirements. Naming "extended warranty" without specifying the tier produces requests for information and inconsistent pricing. The product section, not this standard, fixes the tier and duration for its system; this standard governs how that warranty is executed, submitted, and enforced. (4.2)
4.2.1The special warranty shall name the Owner as the warranted party and shall identify the project by name and contract number.
4.2.2The special warranty shall state the covered components, the term, the commencement and expiration dates, and the exclusions.
○ Manufacturer standard (materials only)
● No-dollar-limit (NDL) - labor and materials, no repair cost cap
○ Full system / assembly warranty (multiple components warranted as one)
○ Design-assist / single-source warranty
4.3 Typical Special Warranty Durations
NOTE The durations below are typical defaults; the governing product section always controls the duration for its system. (4.3.1)
NOTE These figures reflect common manufacturer offerings and serve as defaults when a product section does not state otherwise. They are not a substitute for the product section's own requirement, which always controls for its scope. (4.3.2)
4.4 Installer Certification and Warranty Activation
4.4.1Where a special warranty requires installation by a manufacturer-certified installer, the Contractor shall engage a certified installer and shall obtain the manufacturer's confirmation of certification before the Work begins.
NOTE Manufacturers routinely condition a system or NDL warranty on installation by a certified applicator and on formal execution of the warranty at the time of installation. A claim can be denied if the installer was not certified or if the warranty was never executed before closeout. The specifier should treat installer certification as a precondition of the warranty, not an afterthought. (4.4.2)
4.4.3The Contractor shall cause the special warranty to be executed by the warranting party at the time of installation, not deferred to closeout.
● Yes - certification required to activate warranty
○ No - standard installation acceptable
4.5.1The Contractor shall submit each warranty on the form designated in the Contract documents.
NOTE Two formats are common: an Owner-supplied blank warranty form that the warranting party completes and executes, and a contractor-assembled binder containing each party's executed warranty. The specifier should state which is required, and whether a manufacturer's standard printed warranty is acceptable or whether an executed custom form is required. (4.5.2)
○ Owner-supplied blank warranty form
● Contractor-assembled binder of executed warranties
○ Manufacturer's standard printed warranty acceptable
4.5.3Each warranty submitted shall bear original signatures, the project name, the contract number, and pre-filled commencement and expiration dates.
NOTE Photocopied or undated warranty forms are a recurring closeout failure. They leave the warranty term ambiguous and weaken the Owner's position in a claim. Requiring original signatures and pre-filled dates makes each warranty independently enforceable on its face. (4.5.4)
4.5.5Photocopied, unsigned, or undated warranty forms shall be rejected and resubmitted.
4.5.6Where required by the Contract documents, each warranty shall be assignable to subsequent owners.
NOTE On condominiums, sale-leaseback arrangements, and public-private partnerships, a warranty that is not expressly assignable can be voided when ownership transfers, leaving the new owner without coverage. The specifier should require express transferability whenever a change of ownership is foreseeable. (4.5.7)
○ Yes - express assignability required
● No - transferability not required
4.6 Warranty Exclusions and Coverage Continuity
4.6.1Standard warranty exclusions for events beyond the Contractor's control, such as casualty, Owner misuse, or normal wear, shall not relieve the Contractor of its general warranty obligation for defects caused by the Contractor's Work.
NOTE Manufacturer warranties exclude acts of God, owner misuse, and normal wear. Those exclusions are appropriate for the product warranty but must not be read to excuse contractor-caused defects, which remain covered by the contractor's general warranty. The specifier should state this so that an excluded product claim does not become a gap in contractor responsibility. (4.6.2)
NOTE Many manufacturer warranties are conditioned on documented preventive maintenance and are voided by the Owner's failure to maintain; the specifier and Owner should confirm the maintenance obligations of each special warranty so that coverage is not forfeited inadvertently. (4.6.3)
4.6.4The Contractor shall coordinate special warranty terms so that coverage does not lapse before the Owner's next planned maintenance or capital renewal cycle.
NOTE A labor warranty that expires before the Owner's next capital renewal can create a coverage gap during which neither the manufacturer nor the contractor is responsible. The specifier and Owner should align warranty durations with the facility's maintenance planning horizon. (4.6.5)
5 Surety Bonds
5.1 Bond Types Required
5.1.1The Contractor shall furnish the surety bonds required by the Contract documents for this project.
NOTE Not every project requires all three bond types. Public works and federally funded work require performance and payment bonds; many public infrastructure projects add a maintenance bond. Private projects may require a performance bond only, or no bond at all below the Owner's risk threshold. The selection is driven by project type, funding source, and the Owner's risk tolerance. (5.1.2)
☐ Performance bond
☐ Payment bond (labor and material)
☐ Maintenance bond
☐ Consent of surety to final payment
5.1.3On federal contracts exceeding the statutory threshold, the Contractor shall furnish both a performance bond and a payment bond.
NOTE The Miller Act mandates performance and payment bonds on federal construction contracts above $150,000 (the statutory threshold), and the implementing Federal Acquisition Regulation clause sets each at the full contract price. State public works are governed by the applicable Little Miller Act, whose threshold and amounts vary by state. (5.1.4)
5.2 Bond Amounts
5.2.1The performance bond penal sum shall be the percentage of the Contract Sum stated in the Contract documents.
NOTE One hundred percent of the Contract Sum is the default for federal and most state public works and is the predominant case for public work generally. Some private projects accept a reduced penal sum, commonly fifty percent, where the Owner's risk is lower. The specifier should weigh the bond premium, typically a fraction of a percent to a few percent of the contract, against the risk on smaller private projects. (5.2.2)
5.2.3The payment bond penal sum shall be the percentage of the Contract Sum stated in the Contract documents.
NOTE Under the Miller Act and most state analogs the payment bond equals one hundred percent of the Contract Sum. This protects subcontractors and suppliers and, in turn, shields the Owner from liens on public property where mechanic's liens are unavailable. (5.2.4)
5.2.5The penal sum of each bond shall increase proportionally with any increase in the Contract Sum resulting from change orders.
5.3 Maintenance Bond
5.3.1Where a maintenance bond is required, its term shall be the period stated in the Contract documents, measured from the same commencement date selected for the general warranty.
NOTE Twelve months from Substantial Completion is the typical default for buildings and parallels the one-year correction period. Twenty-four months is increasingly required for paving, drainage, and roofing on public projects, where defects often surface only after a full seasonal cycle. The specifier should match the maintenance bond term to the system's likely failure window. (5.3.2)
● 12 months from Substantial Completion
○ 24 months from Substantial Completion
5.4 Surety Qualifications
5.4.1Each surety shall hold a certificate of authority to act as surety in the jurisdiction of the project.
5.4.2For federal work, and for any project that receives or may receive federal or state grant funding, each surety shall be listed on the U.S. Treasury Circular 570.
NOTE Treasury listing certifies a surety's underwriting capacity for federal obligations. A private project that later draws federal or state grant money can discover mid-project that its surety is unqualified and must re-bond at additional cost and delay. Requiring Treasury listing up front on any grant-eligible project avoids that risk. (5.4.3)
5.4.4Each surety's underwriting limit (single-obligation capacity) shall equal or exceed the penal sum of the bond it issues.
● State-licensed surety acceptable
○ Listed on U.S. Treasury Circular 570
5.5 Consent of Surety
5.5.1The Contractor shall furnish the surety's consent to final payment and to release of retainage before final payment is made.
NOTE The consent of surety is a separate instrument from the original performance bond. It confirms that the surety agrees to final payment and release of retainage and remains bound for the maintenance period. Without it, the Owner risks impairing the surety's obligations by paying out retainage prematurely. (5.5.2)
5.5.3The consent of surety shall be executed by the same surety that issued the performance bond and shall reference that bond.
6 Submittals
6.1 Action Submittals
6.1.1Prior to commencing the Work, the Contractor shall submit the following for review:
- Executed performance bond on the form designated in the Contract documents
- Executed payment bond on the form designated in the Contract documents
- Power of attorney for the surety's attorney-in-fact who executed the bonds
- Surety's current financial qualification or Treasury Circular 570 listing
- Sample special warranty forms for Owner approval, where custom forms are required
☐ Executed performance bond
☐ Executed payment bond
☐ Surety power of attorney
☐ Surety financial qualification / Treasury listing
☐ Sample special warranty forms
6.2 Closeout Submittals
6.2.1The Contractor shall submit the following warranty and bond closeout documents, within the time stated below, as part of the closeout package:
- Executed contractor general warranty stating commencement and expiration dates
- Executed special warranties from manufacturers and specialty subcontractors
- Subcontractor special warranties counter-signed by the Contractor where required
- Executed maintenance bond, where required
- Consent of surety to final payment and release of retainage
☐ Contractor general warranty (dated)
☐ Manufacturer special warranties
☐ Subcontractor special warranties (counter-signed)
☐ Maintenance bond
☐ Consent of surety to final payment
6.2.2Warranty and bond closeout documents shall be submitted within the period stated below after Substantial Completion, concurrent with the closeout submittal package.
NOTE Warranty and bond submittals are a subset of the overall closeout package handled by
Closeout Procedures. Submitting them concurrently, typically within ten days of Substantial Completion, keeps the warranty clock and the retainage release on the same schedule.
(6.2.3) 6.3 Subcontractor-Issued Special Warranties
6.3.1Where a specialty subcontractor is the warranting party, the special warranty shall be co-signed by the Contractor.
NOTE For trades such as glazing, waterproofing, and mechanical work, the specialty subcontractor often issues the special warranty, but the prime Contractor must counter-sign so the Owner has a single responsible party to pursue. The counter-signature does not relieve the subcontractor; it adds the Contractor's backstop. (6.3.2)
6.3.3A subcontractor's default or insolvency shall not relieve the Contractor of the warranty obligation the Contractor counter-signed.
7 Warranty Claims and Enforcement
NOTE A warranty is only as good as the claim procedure behind it. The specifier should state the notice method, the required response time, and the remedy. Where a manufacturer warranty and the contractor general warranty both cover an item, the Owner may pursue either; the contractor remains responsible for coordinating the manufacturer's response. (7.1)
7.1.1The Owner may notify the Contractor of any defect discovered during the applicable warranty period.
7.1.2The Contractor shall begin correction of a covered defect within the response time stated in the Contract documents.
7.1.3If the Contractor fails to begin correction within the response time stated in the Contract documents, the Owner may have the defect corrected by others and recover the cost from the Contractor or its surety.
7.1.4Upon notice of a covered defect, the Contractor shall correct the defective Work at no cost to the Owner.
7.1.5Where the Contractor and the Owner disagree whether a condition is a covered defect, the Architect/Engineer of Record shall make the initial determination, subject to the dispute-resolution provisions of the Contract documents.
7.1.6The Contractor shall repair or replace other Work damaged by the covered defect or by the correction of it, and shall restore affected finishes to their original condition, at no cost to the Owner.
7.1.7The Contractor shall coordinate manufacturer warranty claims on the Owner's behalf for systems the Contractor installed during the contractor warranty period.
7.1.8Corrected or replaced Work shall be re-warranted for a new full warranty period equal to the original term, measured from the date the correction is completed and accepted, or for the remainder of the original warranty term, whichever is longer.
NOTE Without this provision, a repair late in a warranty term could carry little or no remaining coverage. A full reset of the warranty term on corrected Work keeps the Owner protected after a corrective action and removes the incentive to defer repairs to the end of the warranty period. (7.1.9)
8 Coordination
NOTE Bond requirements stated in the Owner-Contractor Agreement and General Conditions shall be cross-referenced in this section so that subcontractors and trades reading only their technical sections are aware of flow-down bonding obligations. (8.1)
NOTE A common pitfall is to state bonding only in the contract and never in the specifications, so that specialty trades never see obligations that flow down to their work. Carrying a cross-reference here closes that gap. Quality and inspection coordination is handled by
Quality Requirements and
Submittal And Quality Procedures; operation and maintenance data accompanying warranties is handled by
Operation And Maintenance Data.
(8.2) 8.2.1The Contractor shall reconcile the warranty and bond requirements of each product section with the requirements of this section.
8.2.2Where a conflict exists between a product section and this section, the Contractor shall apply the more stringent requirement unless the Contract documents direct otherwise.