Our guarantee, in plain English
Every Terralume surface is backed by a written workmanship guarantee — and that's only one of three protections you get. Here's exactly who covers what, what's included, what isn't, and how a claim works, with no fine-print surprises. Serving Geelong, the Bellarine & Surf Coast.
Three protections at once — and we never merge them into one big number
A lot of surfacing ads promise a single headline like "10-year guarantee". The honest picture is more useful: you're protected by three separate things, each from a different giver, each covering something different. Knowing which is which means a claim goes to the right place and isn't knocked back on the wrong grounds.
| Protection | Who gives it | What it covers | How long |
|---|---|---|---|
| Our workmanship guarantee | Terralume Surfaces | The way we install it — bond to a sound base, the edges, joints and falls we set, and mixing and curing done to method. | 5 years |
| Manufacturer product warranty | The resin & stone maker (e.g. StoneSet, Vuba) | The materials themselves performing to the maker's published spec — for example against premature delamination, excessive loose stone, or resin discolouration. | Their terme.g. StoneSet states 10 years — on their own terms |
| Australian Consumer Law | The law — can't be excluded | That our services are done with due care and skill and our goods are of acceptable quality. Applies on top of the two above. | A "reasonable" period set by law |
Why we keep them separate. The manufacturer's longer product figure is theirs, on their terms — it doesn't extend our 5-year workmanship cover, and our cover doesn't shorten your rights under the law. Merging them into one "10-year guarantee" sounds better in an ad and helps no one when something actually needs fixing.
What our 5-year guarantee covers — and what it honestly doesn't
This is the part we give directly. During the five years we'll rectify, at our cost, genuine defects caused by our workmanship or by materials we supplied. We're upfront about the edges of that, because a guarantee you can't read isn't much of a guarantee.
What's covered
- Debonding or lifting of the surface from a sound base, where the cause is an installation fault.
- Edge or restraint failure we're responsible for — an edge we laid that lifts or separates without outside cause.
- Joint failure in a movement or day-work joint we formed.
- Excessive stone loss beyond normal early-life shedding, caused by an install fault like the wrong resin ratio or under-cure.
- Drainage falls we set not draining as they were specified to.
What's not covered
- Natural colour change from UV and weather. We use UV-stable aliphatic resin to minimise it, but no resin surface is immune — gradual change is normal.
- Ground movement — cracking or ponding caused by the slab, sub-base or soil moving (reactive clay is common across the region), tree roots, or drainage not set by us.
- Misuse, neglect & accidents — chemical spills, heavy point loads on a pedestrian surface, impact, or not following the care guide.
- Third-party damage, or a surface cut into or overlaid by others without our written approval.
- Normal characteristics — minor early-life stone loss, slight trowel and texture variation in a hand-laid product, fair wear and tear.
The honest line on cracking. Resin-bound is flexible and joint-free, so it resists cracking far better than rigid concrete — but no outdoor surface is entirely crack-proof, and movement in the ground beneath it isn't something a workmanship guarantee can promise away. Where we set the falls and they don't drain, that's on us; where the earth moves, that's what the exclusions are about.
How a claim works — and the timeframes we hold ourselves to
Email us at [email protected] with the job number, what you've noticed and when, and a few clear photos. These are our service targets — not a cap on your legal rights.
- 1We acknowledge your claim.Within 5 business days of receiving it
- 2We inspect on site, with reasonable access.Within 20 business days, weather permitting
- 3You get a written outcome — covered defect, excluded matter, or normal variation — and, if it's covered, a rectification plan.Within 10 business days of the inspection
- 4We rectify a covered defect, scheduled for suitable laying weather.Within a reasonable time of the agreed plan
Rectifying a resin-bound defect is usually a cut-out-and-replace of the affected area. Because natural stone varies between batches and the surface weathers after it's laid, a repaired patch may not colour-match exactly — we'll use reasonable endeavours to blend, but we won't pretend an invisible repair is always possible.
The law sits above anything we write
Our goods and services come with guarantees that cannot be excluded under the Australian Consumer Law. You're entitled to a replacement or refund for a major failure, and to have a non-major failure put right in a reasonable time. Our written guarantee is given in addition to those rights — it never limits them.
In Victoria, residential building work can also attract protections under the Domestic Building Contracts Act 1995 (Vic) and the Building Act 1993 (Vic). Disputes about domestic building work can go to Domestic Building Dispute Resolution Victoria and, if needed, the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT); general consumer issues to Consumer Affairs Victoria. None of these are limited by our guarantee.
Plain-English summary only — your full contract and warranty documents take precedence over this page. Product figures, like the manufacturer's warranty period, are indicative and confirmed on the manufacturer's current terms.
The guarantee can move with the home
Where transfer is agreed, the balance of the unexpired five years can pass to the new owner — the clock doesn't restart. Notify us in writing within 30 days of settlement with the job number, the surface must have been paid for in full and not altered by others, and it transfers once. The manufacturer's product warranty has its own separate transfer rules.
Guarantee questions, answered straight
The questions we hear most about how the cover actually works.
Is it really a 5-year guarantee, in writing?
Yes. Every Terralume install comes with a 5-year written workmanship guarantee on how we prepare and lay the surface, handed to you in plain language rather than implied. It sits alongside the manufacturer's product warranty on the material and your rights under the Australian Consumer Law.
I've seen a 10-year guarantee advertised elsewhere. Do you offer that?
Our workmanship guarantee is 5 years. The longer figures you see, like 10 years, are usually the resin manufacturer's product warranty, on their terms, not the installer's. We tell you which is which rather than merging them into one big number, because that distinction matters when something actually needs fixing.
What happens if my driveway cracks?
Resin-bound is flexible and joint-free, so it resists cracking far better than rigid concrete. If a fault in how we laid it is the cause, that is covered. If the ground or slab beneath it moves, and reactive clay is common across the region, that is an excluded ground-movement issue rather than a workmanship defect. We inspect and tell you honestly which it is, and your legal rights apply either way.
If I miss something in the care guide, do I lose all my protection?
The care conditions keep the workmanship guarantee valid, so following them matters. But your rights under the Australian Consumer Law cannot be excluded and apply regardless. If you are unsure whether something is normal or a defect, contact us first and we will advise.
Can the guarantee transfer if I sell the house?
Where transfer is agreed, the balance of the unexpired five years can pass to the new owner. Notify us in writing within 30 days of settlement with the job number, the surface must have been paid for in full and not altered by others, and it transfers once. The manufacturer's product warranty has its own separate transfer rules.
Want it all in writing for your project?
Book a free site visit and we'll talk through the spec, the base and exactly what's covered before you sign anything — then put a fixed written quote in front of you, backed by the 5-year workmanship guarantee. Serving Geelong, the Bellarine & Surf Coast.