Explaining 20-Year Battery Warranties

One of the most confusing issues impacting the lead acid battery industry centers on the interpretation and implementation of the standard 20-year product warranties offered by battery manufacturers. There is a significant disconnect between the understanding and expectations of end users regarding these warranty programs and its correlation to the actual battery performance and life they are realizing on most real-world applications. The 20-year battery warranty has been a standard offering in the industry for decades, and one might wonder what is driving this negative response. Much of it is due to the huge growth over the past 20 years in the installed base of VRLA batteries, as well as the significant proliferation of new customers and applications using lead-acid batteries. This market growth has only increased the level of scrutiny on many of the inconsistencies and confusion surrounding battery warranties. The result has been a growing dissatisfaction by both end users and manufacturers alike in the current industry practice.