I love the title of this column. It was taken from the statement made by a floor covering dealer in an email sent to me. He says, “Every time I visit a jobsite for after installation issues (staining, buckling, denting, wearing, etc…..) I am essentially going to a crime scene and some how I am the number one suspect. Isn’t that always the case? Whenever a complainant sees a problem with flooring material the first thing they suspect is the flooring itself and naturally that’s connected directly to the flooring dealer. You are the number one suspect in the crime of failed flooring. How could you not be? You sold the flooring material, made all the positive statements about it and installed it. No one else could be to blame but you, right? If you sold the wrong product into the wrong place then you are at fault but let’s not be so hasty. There are a lot of reasons why a flooring material fails.
The first legitimate reason is the material itself is defective for whatever reason, whether it is a compromise in the structural integrity of the product, an inherent weakness, a colorfastness issue or some other manufacturing related reason. However, there are a multitude of reasons flooring material fails that aren’t related to the dealer or the material.
Soiling, one of the biggest causes of complaints certainly can’t be blamed on the flooring dealer or the flooring material. If you drop or spill something on the flooring material that causes a dark spot (not a stain by the way) or a discoloration or color loss (these are stains) this is not the dealers fault or the flooring materials’. This is purely a site related, use, abuse or maintenance issue or the selection of the wrong color or material.
Buckles, wrinkles or bubbles in the material, most often caused by a substrate condition not realized by anyone prior to the installation, are another huge cause of flooring failures. Certainly this could be an installation problem but the vast majority of the time it’s an underlying problem such as moisture – failures that have reached epidemic proportions – residues on the floor or changes in ambient conditions (heat and humidity). Vinyl failures in homes with damp basements or crawl spaces can affect the material on the first floor. In stretch in carpet installations the cause is more likely installation related. Not acclimating the product, cushion too thick, carpet not properly stretched, wrong tackstrip and improperly placed tackstrip.
Dents, scratches, cuts, gouges and chips are typically caused by someone doing something to the flooring material. It could be walking on it with spiked high heels, dragging furniture or heavy items, vacuum cleaners, gritty soils, dropping heavy objects and so forth. None of these are the dealers fault. Unless you tell end users that hard surface flooring material is indestructible you can’t be blamed for things done to the flooring that damage it.
People often want to believe that things are not their fault and certainly this is true with flooring problems. No matter how factual your explanation for the problem is you could be labeled an idiot or totally incompetent, two terms I was recently graced with. So being the flooring dealer makes you the number one suspect because the problem has to be your fault and no one else’s, until proven otherwise at which point you are looked at with disdain. This would be akin to blaming a tree for getting in the way of the car in an accident. Makes no sense but it’s rationalized by the end user.
How do you avoid being the number one suspect? Qualify the end use and end user, put product performance issues in print and give then to the consumer and make sure you don’t rely on warranties to sell. Know what the products you sell are capable of and what will cause problems with them. This way you won’t be searching for answers to defend yourself.
Author: Lewis G. Migliore
LGM and Associates – The Floorcovering Experts