How do I choose a roofing contractor?
Choose on verifiable licensing and insurance, on local track record you can actually check, and on the completeness of the written scope - not on price alone and never on an unsolicited door knock after a storm. Get three comparable bids by asking every contractor the same questions, and verify the licence yourself rather than accepting a number on a flyer.
Verify first, compare second
Start with things you can check independently. Whether roofing requires a licence where you live, and whether this contractor holds it - some states license roofing specifically, others do not license it at all, and knowing which you are in tells you how much the claim is worth. Then liability and workers' compensation certificates, requested from the insurer rather than accepted as a photocopy.
Then local track record. A contractor with a physical local address, work you can look at nearby, and a trading history that predates the last storm is a materially different proposition from one whose presence in your area began this month. Our metro hiring guides carry the local licensing rule and where to verify it, because that is the part that changes at state lines.
Post-storm rules, and payment discipline
Storm-chasing outfits follow hail, canvass hard and leave. The defence is simple and costs nothing: do not sign anything at the door, do not let an unsolicited inspector on your roof, and get any assessment corroborated by someone you contacted yourself. Be especially wary of an offer to cover your deductible - that is not a discount, it is generally fraud, and it makes you a participant.
On payment, a modest deposit with the balance due on completion is normal. Large up-front payments, cash-only terms, and pressure to decide today are the recognised warning signs, and they are warning signs precisely because the work is done in a day or two and the failures appear a year later. The contractor still being reachable then is the thing you are paying for.
The bid you want is rarely the cheapest or the dearest. It is the one whose written scope tells you what will actually happen to your roof.
Treat an unsolicited post-storm approach as a sales call rather than an inspection, and verify independently before signing anything.
OUR TAKEBasis: A judgement grounded in the observed competitive picture: of the results for the hail-damage question, twelve of sixteen were roofing or restoration contractors whose revenue depends on the homeowner concluding that damage exists.
Related questions
- How do I check whether a roofer is licensed?
- Through the issuing authority directly rather than through the contractor. Which authority that is depends on your state, since some license roofing specifically and others regulate it under general contracting or not at all - our metro hiring guides carry the local licensing body and the verification route for each area we cover.
- How many roofing quotes should I get?
- Three is the usual advice and it holds, provided they are comparable. Three numbers for three different scopes tell you nothing. Ask every contractor the same written questions - new flashing, decking rate, disposal, permit, warranty - so the quotes describe the same job.