What Happened to Hanson Roofing Tile?

Founded in 2000, Hanson Roof Tile was a US-based company that manufactured concrete roof tiles for single and multi-family housing, custom homes, and re-roofing applications. With plants in California, Arizona, Florida, and Texas, the company's headquarters were in Deerfield Beach, Florida. Hanson Roof Tile products came with a 50-year warranty.

The Hanson Roof Tile product, the concrete tile, is described in company marketing materials as not only being maintenance free but also “structurally superior and last(ing) longer than other traditional roofing materials." They have other advantages: not rotting when used in wet climates and not suffering damage as a result of the elements such as heat or sunlight. The tiles are also non-combustible. This durability is the reason why the manufacturer promised that the tiles would last a lifetime, which could be up to 100 years (Source).

Long-lasting though the Hanson roof tiles may have been, but attempting to find HansonRoofTile.com today shows that the company is no longer in business. Apart from wanting to know what could have happened to the company, customers may also want to know what happens to any warranties they hold. Would they still find replacement tiles if a tile got damaged? We took some time to find answers to these questions.

The History of Hanson Roof Tile

Hanson Roof Tile, Inc. was born after Pioneer Roofing Tile merged with the Hanson PLC group of companies in 2000. The website HansonRooftile.com went live in 2002 (Source). The site provided information about the company and its products, where customers could find branches, and some contact information.

From the website, visitors could find links to the various organizations linked to the construction industry. The website didn't experience any significant transformation until November 2006 when other categories were introduced, including the:

• Technical bulletins: Technical information on standard roofing maintenance procedures.
• Material safety data: Safety information for Hanson Roof Tile products, including hazards, safety precautions, user guidelines, accident response procedures, and symptoms of overexposure.
• News: Hanson's news and press releases.
• Photo gallery: Images of Hanson's products.

A Series of Acquisitions

In 2016, HansonRoofTile.com began to redirect to ForterraRoofTile.com, a site that is also no longer available. At the same time, Hanson Roof Tile announced that it had changed its name to Forterra (Source).

In our attempts to find out what happened to Hanson Roof Tile, we established that Forterra sold its roof tile business for $10.5 million in April 2016. It's not clear to whom the tile business was sold to (Source).

A few weeks later, Forterra was acquired by a private equity firm-Lone Star Funds for $1.4B (Source). However, just two months after its acquisition, Entegra Roof Tile indicated, in Name Change Amendment filled on 16th June 2016, that it was the new owner of Forterra Roof Tile (Source). A year later, Entegra merged with Boral and returned to the name Boral (Source).

This dizzying maze of acquisitions doesn't leave a clear answer to the question of why the website no longer works.

What Happens to Hanson Roof Tile Warranties?

What happens to someone who holds a warranty from the company? According to Harry Malhi, a spokesperson for the Ontario Ministry of Government and Consumer Services, “Customers are advised to research the company offering the warranty before making a purchase." He adds, "customers should keep tabs of who is mandated with the responsibility of honoring the warranty in the event that the company shuts down or goes out of business”.

This statement implies that the answer to Hanson warranties lies in the agreement between the customer and the manufacturer at the point of sale. Without this knowledge, no one can say with absolute certainty what should be done. Therefore, customers who may need to claim from their warranties will have to revert to the agreement they had with the salesman to see how they can initiate their claims.

Malhi adds: “In case a company you have a warranty with shuts down, you need to conduct your due diligence to see if a new company is now responsible for enforcing the warranty” (Source). What this means is that Hanson customers may want to consult Boral to see if they are responsible for the warranty. Boral contact information can be found here.

Can you still buy Hanson Roof Tiles?

A quick search on the internet shows that there are no Hanson Roof Tiles for sale. One of the best ways to deal with broken Hanson roof tiles is to repair them. You can find a quick guide on how to fix a discontinued tile here.

Does insurance cover discontinued roof tiles?

Insurance carriers generally prefer that homeowners install mismatching roof tiles than for the insurer to pay for a complete roof replacement (Source). In most cases, coverage depends on the age of the roof and your area of residence, among other factors. The surest way to know what's covered or what's not is to consult your insurance provider.

Most insurance policies cover roof damage resulting from vandalism or fire and natural disasters such as tornadoes and hurricanes. The same applies to hail, wind, and rain damage. However, when it comes to discontinued tiles, you may need to specifically enquire with your insurer when you sign your insurance agreement. If you didn’t do this at that point, you may need to revisit your policy.