Warranty is the part of a forklift purchase buyers skim and later wish they had read. The differences between two machines that both say "warranty included" can be worth thousands.
Get Free Quotes 👑New forklift warranty is normally expressed in two limits, a period of months and a number of hours, and whichever arrives first ends the coverage. A machine running two shifts reaches an hour limit long before the calendar limit, so a warranty that sounds generous in months can be short in practice for a hard-working truck. Coverage is also typically layered, with a shorter comprehensive period covering most of the machine and a longer period covering the powertrain only.
Comprehensive coverage includes most components and is the part that matters for the everyday failures. Powertrain coverage is narrower, generally covering the engine or drive motor, transmission and drive axle, and it typically runs longer because those components fail less often. When a seller quotes a long warranty figure, check which layer that figure refers to, because a long powertrain term tells you little about whether a hydraulic or electrical failure in year two is covered.
Wear items are excluded on effectively every warranty: tires, forks, chains, brake friction material, filters, fluids and light bulbs. Batteries usually carry their own separate warranty with its own terms rather than being covered by the truck warranty. Attachments are often warranted by the attachment manufacturer rather than the truck manufacturer. And damage from abuse, collision, overloading, operating beyond rated capacity, or operation by untrained personnel is excluded everywhere.
The common voiding causes are worth knowing because they are avoidable. Missed scheduled maintenance is the largest, which is why service records matter beyond their maintenance value. Unauthorised modification, including fitting an attachment without manufacturer approval or altering the counterweight, voids coverage and creates a compliance problem at the same time. Using non-approved parts or fluids can void coverage on the affected system. And operating outside the rated application, such as putting a standard truck into freezer duty, is generally excluded.
Used forklifts may come with no warranty at all, a short dealer warranty of a few months, or a longer warranty on a certified refurbished machine. The spread is enormous and it is the main thing separating a dealer-refurbished unit from a comparable truck at auction. When a used machine is sold with warranty, establish what it covers, whether it is parts only or parts and labour, and whether it is backed by the dealer or by a third party, because dealer-backed coverage from a business you can reach is worth considerably more.
This distinction is where buyers get caught. A parts-only warranty pays for the component and leaves you the labour, and on a forklift repair labour is frequently the larger half of the invoice along with the trip charge. A warranty that reads well on paper can cover a minority of the actual cost of a repair. Ask explicitly whether labour and travel are included, and get the answer in writing.
Extended warranty plans and planned maintenance contracts overlap but are not the same thing. An extended warranty continues failure coverage beyond the standard term. A service contract covers scheduled maintenance, and its higher tiers may cover repairs as well, functioning much like extended coverage. If you are being offered both, map what each actually covers rather than assuming they stack, because paying twice for the same coverage is common.
Whether remaining warranty transfers when you sell the machine affects resale value directly. Some manufacturers allow transfer, sometimes with a fee or an inspection. Some do not. If you turn equipment over regularly, transferability is worth asking about at purchase rather than discovering at sale, and a transferable warranty plus complete service records is a meaningful selling point on a used truck.
Get the comprehensive term in both months and hours, the powertrain term separately, whether labour and travel are included, what the exclusions are in writing, what maintenance you must perform and document to keep coverage valid, who performs warranty work and how fast they respond, whether the battery and any attachments are covered and by whom, and whether the warranty transfers. A dealer who answers all of those clearly is usually also the dealer who will handle a claim well.
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It is expressed as both months and hours, whichever comes first, and it is usually layered: a shorter comprehensive period covering most of the machine and a longer powertrain-only period. A two-shift truck reaches the hour limit well before the calendar limit.
Wear items including tires, forks, chains, brake friction material, filters and fluids. Batteries usually carry separate terms, attachments are often warranted by their own manufacturer, and abuse, collision, overloading and untrained operation are excluded everywhere.
Missed scheduled maintenance is the most common, which is why service records matter. Also unauthorised modification including unapproved attachments or counterweight changes, non-approved parts or fluids, and operating outside the rated application such as freezer duty on a standard truck.
It varies enormously, from none at all, to a short dealer warranty, to a longer term on a certified refurbished machine. That spread is the main thing separating a dealer-refurbished unit from a comparable auction truck.
A parts-only warranty pays for the component and leaves you the labour, and on forklift repairs labour plus the trip charge is frequently the larger half of the invoice. Ask explicitly whether labour and travel are included, in writing.
Sometimes, occasionally with a fee or inspection, and some manufacturers do not allow it. Ask at purchase rather than at sale, since a transferable warranty plus complete service records is a real selling point on a used truck.