A 10-year workmanship guarantee
Every installation by Clear Skylights carries a 10-year guarantee on our workmanship. It is a written promise from the business about the quality of the fitting, and it starts on the day the job is finished.
Workmanship means how the rooflight was put into your roof: the framing, the fixing, the upstand, the weatherproofing details, the flashings, the sealing of the frame to the roof and the making good inside. If a fault comes from how we did that work, the guarantee is how you ask us to put it right.
The guarantee is given by Clear Skylights itself, on the strength of the business, and it is not backed by an insurance policy. We say so plainly so you know exactly what you hold. It is a clear statement of what we will stand behind, set out in this page and in the paperwork that comes with your job.
What the guarantee covers
The guarantee covers faults in our installation work for ten years. It is about the fitting, and it is written in terms you can picture.
- The fixing and support of the frame, including any trimming and framing we carried out in the roof.
- The upstand or kerb we built or supplied, and how it was joined to the roof covering.
- The weatherproofing we did around the unit: flashings, membrane dressings, tile or slate work and sealant joints.
- The fitting of the glazed unit into its frame.
- The making good inside: lining, plastering and finishing around the opening, as described in the quote.
Where a fault is found to come from our work, we return, put the workmanship right and cover the cost of doing so. That may mean refitting a flashing, rebuilding part of an upstand or re-dressing a membrane. The aim is that the installation does what the quote said it would, for the whole ten years.
The written quote and the quiet spec describe what was installed. The guarantee stands behind the fitting of that description, so the two documents are meant to be kept together.
What sits alongside it, and what sits outside it
A guarantee is clearest when its edges are stated. Some things belong to other parties, and some things happen after we leave. Here they are, in neutral terms.
| Matter | Where it sits |
|---|---|
| The rooflight product itself | The manufacturer's product warranty |
| Glass, seals and sealed units | The manufacturer's warranty terms |
| Motors, sensors and controls | The manufacturer's warranty terms |
| Later work by other people | Outside this guarantee |
| Wear, weather damage and impact | Outside this guarantee |
Manufacturer product warranties are separate from our workmanship guarantee. The glass, the frame finish, the seals in a sealed unit and any electric parts come from the maker and carry the maker's own terms. We tell you which product is being fitted and pass on the manufacturer's paperwork, so you have both sets of cover in one place. A fault in the product itself is raised with the manufacturer, and we will help you make that claim.
The guarantee does not extend to damage caused by later alterations by others. If another tradesperson re-covers the roof, adds a solar panel mount, cuts into the upstand or alters the flashing, the result is outside our control and outside the guarantee. The same applies to damage from impact, to fallen branches, to storm damage beyond normal weather, and to ordinary wear such as fading of a finish over many years.
Maintenance matters too. A rooflight needs its gutters and adjacent roof kept clear and its glass kept clean, and the guarantee assumes the roof has been looked after in the usual way. A short note on care is included with the paperwork.
How to make a claim
A claim is a simple message. Tell us what you have noticed, and we start from there.
- Write to us by email, through WhatsApp or via the contact page. Give the address, the approximate date of the job and a short description of what you see.
- Add photographs if you can: the unit from inside, the roof around it from outside if it is safe to take, and any marks or stains.
- We acknowledge the message, ask any follow-up questions and arrange a visit to look at the installation.
- If the fault comes from our workmanship, we agree a date and put it right at our cost.
- If the cause is something else, such as a product fault or later work by others, we explain what we found and point you to the right route.
Please do not attempt to alter the installation yourself before we have looked, and please keep your paperwork, because the guarantee terms and the date of completion are in it.
What we ask of you
A guarantee works best as a shared arrangement. We ask for a few sensible things in return, and they are the same ones any careful homeowner would want to do anyway.
Keep the paperwork safe: the quote, the quiet spec, the completion notice and the manufacturer's warranty. Tell us promptly when something looks wrong, because small problems are simpler to put right when they are reported early. Let us see the work before others do, so that the cause can be judged fairly. And let us know if you plan building work that touches the roof around the unit, so that the position of the guarantee is clear before the work starts.
The guarantee belongs to the property, and the written terms set out how it passes on if you sell. It is useful to mention it to a buyer, along with the Building Control record, and the written specification.
How it connects to the rest of the job
The guarantee is one part of a tidy, lawful installation. The other parts are the written specification, current Building Regulations and the Building Control notification.
We install to current Building Regulations, and we handle the Building Control notification where the work is notifiable. That covers the thermal, safety and ventilation requirements that apply to rooflights. The guarantee then covers the quality of the fitting itself. You can see how the work is planned on the pages for roof windows, flat roof rooflights and roof lanterns, and the same guarantee applies across all ten of our services.
The price of a job and the terms of its guarantee are linked, because a guarantee has to be funded by a fair price. The costs page explains what a quote should include, and the about page explains how we work.
Starting with a written quote
The guarantee terms come with the quote, so you can read them before you commit. You are under no obligation when you ask for a quote.
Use the quote form on this page to tell us about the room and the roof. We survey across Crawley and the 30 miles around, then send a written quote, the quiet spec and the guarantee terms together. The get a quote page explains the steps, and you can read every term before you decide.
Questions about the ten years
When does the ten years start?
On the completion date recorded in your paperwork, which is the day the job is finished and handed over.
Does it pass to a new owner?
The written terms say how it transfers. Keep the paperwork with the deeds or the home information you would hand to a buyer.
What if the glass misted or a motor stopped?
Those are product matters, so the manufacturer's warranty applies first. We will help you raise the claim, and if the unit needs replacing, we can quote for the work. See misted and failed rooflight replacement.
Do I pay to make a claim?
A valid workmanship claim is put right at our cost. A visit that shows the cause is something else is explained to you before any work or charge is agreed.