19.
COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

Legal Matters

The Company has lawsuits, as well as other claims, pending against it which are ordinary routine litigation and claims incidental to the business. Management has evaluated the merits of these lawsuits and claims and believes that their ultimate resolution will not have a material effect on the Company’s consolidated financial condition, results of operations, liquidity, or competitive position.

Purchase Commitments

The Company fulfills requirements for raw materials under both purchase orders and supply contracts. In the year ended December 31, 2025, the Company purchased reclaimed wood fiber requirements under purchase orders and long-term supply commitments. All of the Company’s scrap polyethylene, aluminum and stainless-steel purchases are under short-term supply contracts that average approximately one year, for which pricing is negotiated as needed, or under purchase orders that do not involve long-term supply commitments.

The wood and polyethylene supply contracts generally provide that the Company is obligated to purchase all wood or polyethylene a supplier provides, if the wood or polyethylene meets certain specifications. The amount of wood and polyethylene the Company is required to purchase under these contracts varies with the production of its suppliers and, accordingly, is not fixed or determinable. As of December 31, 2025, the Company has purchase commitments under material supply contracts of $25.9 million for the year ending December 31, 2026, and a total of $34.3 million for the years ending December 31, 2027 through 2028. Our purchase commitments do not currently extend beyond 2028.

Product Warranty

The Company warrants that for the applicable warranty period its Trex products, when properly installed, used and maintained, will be free from material defects in workmanship and materials and its decking, cladding, fascia and railing products will not split, splinter, rot or suffer structural damage from termites or fungal decay.

Products sold on or after January 1, 2023: The warranty period for residential use is 50 years for Transcend® decking, 35 years for Select® decking and Universal Fascia, and 25 years for Enhance® decking and Transcend, Select, Enhance and Signature® railing. The warranty period for commercial use is 10 years, excluding Signature railing and Transcend cladding, which each have a warranty period of 25 years. The Company further warrants that Trex Transcend, Trex Enhance and Trex Select decking and cladding and Universal Fascia products will not fade in color from light and weathering exposure more than a certain amount and will be resistant to permanent staining from food and beverage substances or mold and mildew, provided the stain is cleaned within seven days of appearance, for the warranty period referred to above. If there is a breach of such warranties, the Company has an obligation either to replace the defective product or refund the purchase price.

Products sold prior to January 1, 2023: The warranty period is 25 years for residential use and 10 years for commercial use. With respect to Trex Signature railing, the warranty period is 25 years for both residential and commercial use. The Company further warrants that Trex Transcend, Trex Enhance, Trex Select and Universal Fascia products will not fade in color more than a certain

amount and will be resistant to permanent staining from food substances or mold, provided the stain is cleaned within seven days of appearance, for the warranty period referred to above. If there is a breach of such warranties, the Company has an obligation either to replace the defective product or refund the purchase price.

The Company maintains a warranty reserve for the settlement of its product warranty claims. The Company accrues for the estimated cost of product warranty claims at the time revenue is recognized based on such factors as historical claims experience and future claims experience. To estimate our future claims experience, the Company utilizes actuarial techniques to determine a reasonable possible range of amounts to be paid related to defects covered by our product warranty. The actuarial techniques consider claims received, claims closed, and the corresponding amounts paid. Estimates for these elements are quantified using a range of assumptions derived from claim history and consideration of additional factors influencing claim counts or costs incurred to settle claims in order determine the best estimate of future claims for which to record a related liability. Management reviews and adjusts these estimates, if necessary, based on the differences between actual experience and historical estimates.

The Company monitors claims activity each quarter for indications that its estimates require revision.

The Company uses the best and most complete underlying information available and a rational methodology to determine its warranty obligations. The Company considers all available evidence to assess the reasonableness of all key assumptions underlying its estimated warranty obligations. During the fourth quarter of 2025, the Company utilized an actuary for the first time to review data on its product warranty. This resulted in a change to the methodology in which the Company estimated its product warranty liability. The reserve increased during the period, largely due to the refined methodology, which decreased the Company’s income before income taxes by $6.0 million, decreased net income by $4.4 million, and reduced diluted earnings per share by $0.04.

The Company’s analysis is based on currently known facts and a number of assumptions, as discussed above, and current expectations. Projecting future events such as the number of claims to be received, the number of claims that will require payment and the costs associated with settling claims could cause the actual warranty liability to be higher or lower than projected, which could materially affect the Company’s financial condition, results of operations or cash flows. The Company estimates that a 10% change in the expected future claims activity may result in approximately a $3.0 million change in the estimate of its product warranty reserve.

The Trex product warranty reserve activity consisted of the following, and is included in Accrued warranty and Non-current accrued warranty in the Consolidated Balance Sheets (in thousands):

 

 

Year Ended December 31, 2025

 

 

Trex Product Warranty

 

Beginning balance, January 1

 

$

22,835

 

Provisions and changes in estimates

 

 

14,954

 

Settlements made during the period

 

 

(8,049

)

Ending balance, December 31

 

$

29,740

 

 

 

Year Ended December 31, 2024

 

 

Trex Product Warranty

 

Beginning balance, January 1

 

$

22,178

 

Provisions and changes in estimates

 

 

9,725

 

Settlements made during the period

 

 

(9,068

)

Ending balance, December 31

 

$

22,835

 

 

As of December 31, 2025 the Company's reserve of $29.7 million is within the estimated range of possible loss associated with product warranty claims. The Company’s estimate of the range of possible loss for product warranty claims associated with product sold through December 31, 2025 is between $24.8 million and $45.6 million. The company utilized an actuary in calculating a range of possible loss for product warranty claims. Actual experience could exceed the range due to uncertainty associated with the future number of claims expected to be closed with some payment and estimates of the costs associated with servicing those claims.

 

Industrial Revenue Bonds

In October 2021, the Company announced plans to add a third manufacturing facility located in Little Rock, Arkansas (Little Rock). Construction on the new facility began in the second quarter of 2022. In connection with the construction of the new facility,

during 2024 the Company and Little Rock entered into an agreement in which Little Rock agreed to issue up to $450 million of its industrial revenue bonds (IRBs) for the purpose of constructing a manufacturing facility. Under the agreement, the Company transferred ownership of the facility to Little Rock and simultaneously leased the related asset from Little Rock. The Company is also the purchaser of the IRBs and, therefore, is the bondholder as well as the borrower/lessee of the Little Rock facility purchased with the IRB proceeds.

 

As a result of the agreement, the Company was able to reduce the cost of certain state and local tax expenditures for twenty years. The Company has a purchase option included in the lease agreement for below the fair value of the asset, which prevents the transfer of the asset to Little Rock from being recognized as a sale. Furthermore, the Company has not derecognized the transferred asset and continues to recognize it in property, plant and equipment in the Consolidated Balance Sheets. The Company has the right and intends to set-off any obligations to make payments under the finance liability, with proceeds due from the IRBs. The liability and IRB asset are equal and are reported net in the Consolidated Balance Sheets. As of December 31, 2025, the gross asset and liability associated with the IRBs was $450 million.

About Commitments Disclosures

Commitments and contingencies disclosures catalog a company's off-balance-sheet obligations and legal exposures — purchase commitments, guarantee arrangements, pending litigation, and regulatory proceedings. These items represent potential future cash outflows that may not appear as liabilities on the balance sheet until they become probable and estimable.

Key signals: litigation reserves and disclosed loss ranges quantify management's estimate of legal exposure, but unquantified "reasonably possible" losses often represent the larger risk. Watch for changes in language around pending cases — shifts from "remote" to "reasonably possible" or increases in estimated loss ranges signal deteriorating outcomes. Unconditional purchase obligations and take-or-pay contracts create fixed cost structures that reduce operational flexibility. Guarantee arrangements for subsidiaries or joint ventures can create cascading obligations. Compare the total commitment schedule against projected free cash flow to assess whether the company can meet its obligations without additional financing.