6-Month Limited Rod Warranty
Our quality control team inspects every barva kopel rod by hand before it leaves the factory. Each rod passes a load test at its model's rated load, and every guide wrap is checked to make sure the guides are secure.
What's covered
Every barva kopel rod carries a 6-month limited warranty against defects in materials and workmanship. Coverage starts on the date the rod was first bought from us or an authorized dealer.
This includes blank breakage caused by a defect, and defective guides, guide inserts, wraps and reel seats.
If your rod has a covered defect, we'll replace it with the same model, or a comparable model if it has been discontinued. A replacement rod is covered for the rest of the original 6 months. We don't offer repairs.
The warranty applies to the original owner only: the person who bought the rod, or the person who received it as a gift.
What's not covered
- Breakage from accidents, misuse or high-sticking (see If you break a rod below)
- Damage caused by modifications to the rod, or by repairs done by others (replacing a guide yourself or through a rod repair shop doesn't affect coverage for the rest of the rod)
- Damage from fishing with line heavier than the model's rated line (listed in each model's specs), or from a non-BFS reel with its drag set above that rating
- Using a tip section and butt section from different models (the model is printed on each tip section next to the ferrule, so check that both halves match before you fish)
- Accidental damage to guides (see Guides below)
- Stripped reel seat threads or locking nut from over-tightening, based on our inspection of the photos or the rod
- Normal wear, such as grip wear or guide wear from line
- Damage from improper transport or storage
Guides
If you accidentally damage a guide, you can fix it yourself or take it to a local rod repair shop. Need the part? Email info@barvakopel.com with your rod model and the guide position, counted from the tip, and we'll send you the part number and size.
Register your rod
Registering your rod is optional, but it makes any claim faster because your details are already on file. Your warranty applies whether or not you register: your order number or receipt is enough. If you received the rod as a gift, you can register it yourself using the giver's order number or store name. Register your rod here.
If you break a rod
Compared with carbon, a UD glass blank generally stretches further before it breaks, so it handles bending and impact better. That's why most breaks are caused not by defects in materials or manufacturing, but by how a rod is stored, transported, handled or used. Common examples are slipping on a rock while wading, a fall from a bank, poking the tip hard against the bottom to free a snagged lure, or reeling in while the line is wrapped around the tip or a guide, which can snap the tip. Before you reel, check that your line runs freely through every guide.
To learn how a blank fails and, most importantly, how to prevent breakage, read our Note Preventing Rod Breakage.
A broken blank usually can't show how the break happened. So unless a defect caused it, breakage isn't covered by our warranty. But accidents happen, and we'll offer you a replacement at a reduced price to keep you on the water. Contact us and we'll quote the price before you pay anything.
How to make a claim
Please contact us directly, wherever you bought your rod. Dealers don't handle warranty claims.
Send us a message through our Contact page and choose Warranty as the subject. Please include:
- Your name and email
- Your order number or receipt (gift recipients: the giver's order number or store name)
- The rod model
- Photos of the problem and of the full rod
We'll review your claim and reply with next steps. If we approve it, we'll email you an authorization with the return address. Please don't send anything before you receive it. In the United States, you'll send the entire rod back to us, and we pay shipping both ways: we'll include a prepaid shipping label with your authorization, and we pay to ship your replacement. We'll ship your replacement as soon as we can after your rod arrives.
Outside the United States
You don't need to send the whole rod. After you receive our written approval, cut off the tip section just above the ferrule, where the model is printed, and mail that piece to the address in our authorization email. Please don't cut the rod before you're approved.
We pay shipping both ways on approved claims: the piece you send us and your replacement rod. Our authorization email explains how. Any import duties, taxes and customs fees in your country are your responsibility.
Who provides this warranty
This warranty is provided by barva kopel, Foothill Ranch, CA 92610, United States. Email: info@barvakopel.com. Rods sent without our authorization won't be processed and will be returned at the sender's cost, including any duties, taxes and associated fees.
This warranty gives you specific legal rights, and you may also have other rights which vary from state to state. Outside the United States, this warranty is in addition to, and does not affect, your rights under local consumer law.