Choosing a contractor
Reading a Roofing Quote: What an Itemised Breakdown Shows
Two roofing quotations for the same house differ mainly because they cover different work, and the only way to compare them is line by line rather than total by total. Search the entry for the roofing quote, compare it against what is on your own roof, then book a survey. A checklist of the eleven lines a complete quotation contains lets a reader audit any submission, including ours.
Two quotations for the same house differ mainly because they cover different work. Eleven lines make a complete one, and comparing them line by line is the only comparison that means anything.
All 11, in full: Scope, Materials, Access, Waste removal, Timber allowance, Ridge and verge, Roofline and rainwater, VAT, Guarantee, Payment schedule and Provisional sums.
A quotation with no timber allowance either becomes a variation later or the decayed timber gets covered over. Low totals frequently reflect excluded scaffold, excluded battens or excluded disposal rather than better value.
3 related pages cover this in more depth: New Roof Cost in Birmingham, roof repair cost birmingham and questions to ask a roofer.
What should a roofing quote include?
A complete quotation names the scope by area, the materials by type, the access equipment and its hire period, waste removal, a timber allowance, the ridge and verge fixing method, roofline inclusions, VAT, the guarantee, and the payment schedule.
- Scope exactly what is being replaced, repaired or left alone, by area
- Materials covering type, underlay, battens, fixings, named by product where relevant
- Access scaffold or tower, its hire period, and any licence required
Why do two quotes for the same roof differ so much?
Quotations differ mainly because they cover different work. One excludes scaffold, batten renewal or disposal where another includes all three. Comparing totals without comparing scope produces an apparent saving that disappears during the job.
- Waste removal disposal of stripped covering, priced by volume
- Timber allowance a stated provisional sum for rafter and batten repairs found on strip-off
- Ridge and verge the fixing method specified, mortar or mechanical
What is a provisional sum and why is it there?
A provisional sum is a stated allowance for work that cannot be priced until the covering is off, principally rafter and batten repairs. Its presence indicates honest pricing; its absence means the cost appears later as a variation.
- Roofline and rainwater included or excluded, stated explicitly
- VAT shown separately, with the rate stated
- Guarantee term, what it covers, and whether it is insurance-backed
What is commonly left out?
Scaffold, waste disposal, timber repairs, ridge and verge upgrades, roofline and rainwater goods, and VAT are the items most often excluded. Each is a real cost that appears somewhere, whether or not it appears on the quotation.
- The provisional sum is an allowance for work that cannot be priced until the covering is off.
- Payment schedule staged against completed work rather than by date
- Different totals usually reflect different scopes, rather than different margins.
How should payments be staged?
Payments are staged against completed work rather than against calendar dates: a materials deposit, a stage payment at an agreed point of completion, and the balance on satisfactory completion of the whole job.
- A provisional sum prices work that cannot be seen until the covering is off.
- A quote with no timber allowance either becomes a variation or covers over the problem.
- A staged payment against completed work protects both parties.
The cheapest quote is often the shortest one.
Comparing on scope rather than total
A checklist of the eleven lines a complete quotation contains lets a reader audit any submission, including ours. A quote with no provisional sum for timber will either become a variation later or the decayed timber gets covered over.
Getting an itemised quotation
Low totals frequently reflect excluded scaffold, excluded battens or excluded disposal rather than better value. Staged payments tied to completed stages rather than calendar dates protect the owner if progress stalls.
Provisional sum, and 5 more
- provisional sum
- scope
- access hire period
- insurance-backed guarantee
- staged payment
- variation
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