Wiseman-Hughes, Summit Award

In October 2004, Wiseman-Hughes Enterprises was awarded the prestigious Summit Award for Outstanding Customer Service and Buyer Satisfaction from Professional Warranty Corporation (PWC). Presenting the award to Sean Hughes was William Kenny, National Marketing Director for PWC.

A well-regarded Chicagoland homebuilder with over four decades of experience in this market, Wiseman-Hughes is the area's first builder to earn this prestigious award, given annually to a limited number of builders across the country. Wiseman-Hughes has successfully met the housing needs of over 15,000 families in Chicago's Southwest and Western suburbs.

"The Summit Award is presented to those companies that have demonstrated the highest level of customer satisfaction over time," says Kenny, "and Wiseman-Hughes unquestionably meets that standard. They have enrolled over 800 homes in our program over the last three years; during this time, we have heard from less than 1% of their homebuyers. Also in that time, no Wiseman-Hughes home has ever required our formal involvement in providing dispute resolution services. Likewise no claim has been lodged involving any Wiseman- Hughes home in this period. This is a truly outstanding record of customer service and satisfaction. This ability to satisfy is obviously prevalent throughout the entire company."

PWC is a ten-year insured warranty program that is provided on all Wiseman-Hughes homes. The PWC program allows the member builder to offer a ten year limited warranty fully insured by a member company of Zurich U.S., an A.M. Best A rated insurance carrier.

The insured warranty program provides help in establishing the buyer-builder relationship by stating performance standards for warranty work, if required. The insurer stands behind the builder's warranty performance promises during the first two years, and assumes the builder's liability for the structure during years three through ten. Low cost binding arbitration through an independent third party is available throughout the ten-year term to resolve any potential disagreements under the warranty.

"The security of the Zurich name is the main reason we are proud to be affiliated with PWC," says Hughes. "We take pride in the quality of every product that goes into our homes, including our warranty. Ten years is a big promise to make, but with the security and professionalism of PWC and the reputation of Zurich, we know we are giving our customers the best protection in the industry and another name in addition to Wiseman-Hughes they know they can count on.

Summit Award Article, PDF (192k)