Condition and Warranty
Agreements and contracts are in fact the meetings of minds on certain terms, statements and promises. In every contract, there are some promises which formulate its base and their fulfillment is of utmost importance while some terms are mere formalities and their performance is not as essential as those of which give base to contract.
Definition of Condition;-
Section 12(2) of the sale of goods act states that, "A condition is a stipulation, essential to the main purpose of the contract, the breach of which gives ride to a right to treat the contract as repudiated."
From the above mentioned definition of 'Condition' we can debate over following points;
l A condition is a 'Stipulation'. The word 'Stipulation' pertain to the meanings of 'the requirement of something as an essential condition of a contract'. It means that, a condition forms the very basis of a contract.
l A condition is always directly related to the main purpose of the contract and it's essential to be taken care of for the performance of contract.
l The breach of condition will provide the injured party with the right to cancel the contract.
Definition of Warranty;-
Section 12(3) of the Act states that, "A warranty is a stipulation, collateral to the main purpose of the contract, the breach of which gives rise to the claim for damages but not the right to reject the goods and to treat the contract repudiated."
The worth mentioning points in this definition are following;
l Unlike condition, warranty is a stipulation not essential for the main purpose of the contract but it is collateral to the main purpose. 'Collateral' means that its essentiality runs side by side to the purpose of contract.
l The breach of warranty unlike condition will not repudiate the contract but it will provide the injured party with the right to just receive damages.
Difference between Condition and Warranty
1)Essentiality;-
Condition
A condition is stipulation; essential to the main purpose of contract therefore, it's very essential to the contract. It goes direct to the roots of the contract.
Warranty
Warranty is stipulation; collateral to the main purpose of the contract. Its essentiality is lessor than that of condition as it does not form the basis of contract.
2)Breach;-
Condition
Breach of condition will give right to the injured party to repudiate the contract.
Warranty
The repudiation of contract will not be the result of the breach of contract. But, the injured party will possess the right to recover damages.
3)Treatment;-
Condition
A condition on breach can be treated as a warranty if the injured party accepts the damages.
Warranty
The breach of warranty will not be treated as a breach of condition. The injured party can demand for damages only and can't cancel the contract.
Types of Condition and Warranty;-
Generally speaking, there are two major categories in which both condition and warranty are classified separately. They are expressed in detail as following;
Express Condition and Express Warranty
Both the condition as well as the warranty falls in the first category if they are written of properly spoken at the time of signing the agreement. This category of condition and warranty is simple and clear totally based on the certain prescribed terms and statements.
Implied Condition and Implied Warranty;-
When the condition or warranty has not been expressly revealed upon any of the parties then from the terms and conditions of the contract, one can draw a number of implied conditions or warranties. These are discussed in Implied Condition and Implied Warranties section.
