What are conditions and warranties in contract of sale?

The contract of sale of goods contains certain terms/stipulations for fulfillment of that contract.  Such stipulations that are important for fulfillment of the contract are called “Conditions”.  Whereas the stipulations contained in the contract which may not be very essential for fulfillment of the contract are called warranties. Therefore, we may describe that the condition is the essential stipulation of the contract of sale and warranty is an additional stipulation.

The major difference between contract and warranty in contract of sale is that a contract can be cancelled by the other party for breach of condition. Whereas, in case of violation of warranty the other party cannot cancel the contract; he can only claim damages for the breach of warranty.

The fundamental condition of a contract of sale of goods is that it stipulates exact and complete performance of terms by one (first) party which is subject to the obligation to be fully performed by the other (second) party. Usually, one can identify the conditions of the contract that consist words like “if”, “on condition that”, “provided that”, “subject to”, etc.

Warranties are normally assurance given by the manufacturer or seller to the second party (buyer) that the specified facts like quality, fitness and performance etc. about the products. As per the warranty the product will be repaired or defective part will be replaced or product will be completely replaced.