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Choosing a contractor

How to Choose a Roofer: Checks Worth Making Before Signing

Choosing a roofer is a verification exercise rather than a judgement of character, because everything that distinguishes an established contractor from a doorstep operator can be checked before any money changes hands. Download the sequence for the roofing contractor, work through it in order, then book a survey. This page covers: Public liability insurance · Trading history · Written scope.

Everything that distinguishes an established contractor from a doorstep operator can be verified before any money changes hands. That makes this a verification exercise rather than a judgement of character.

Which of these have you checked?

All 6: Public liability insurance, Trading history, A written scope, References, Scheme registration and Photographic evidence.

Five signs pointing the other way

  • A large deposit Payment demanded upfront, before any materials are ordered.
  • An unsolicited approach Doorstep contact reporting a fault you had not noticed.
  • Pressure to decide today A discount conditional on agreeing immediately. It exists to prevent the checks above, which is what makes it the strongest single sign.
  • No written address A mobile number only, and no registered trading address.
  • Cash-only pricing No invoice, no VAT position and no paper trail.

Every one of the six is checkable before a deposit is paid, including on us. A contractor unwilling to be photographed working is telling you how the work will be evidenced.

How do you check a roofing contractor?

Request the public liability certificate and check it is current, confirm the company registration and trading address, verify any scheme membership on that scheme's own register, ask for recent local references of the same work type, and require a written scope.

  • Public liability insurance has a check of current certificate, adequate limit, covering the work being quoted.
  • A fixed written specification rather than a figure on a card.

What are the warning signs?

Five signs recur: an unsolicited approach reporting a fault you had not noticed, pressure to decide immediately, a large deposit requested before materials are ordered, no written trading address, and cash-only pricing with no invoice.

  • The check of references is recent local jobs of the same type, contactable; the check of scheme registration is verifiable directly on the scheme's own register.

Should you pay a deposit?

Sometimes, for materials. A modest deposit against ordered materials is normal on a large job. A substantial payment before anything is ordered or delivered is not, and staged payments against completed work protect both sides.

The unsolicited approach fails as doorstep contact reporting a fault the owner had not noticed. The warning sign of the pressure to decide is a discount conditional on agreeing immediately. No written address shows mobile number only, no registered trading address.

How do you verify scheme membership?

Ask for the registration number rather than accepting a logo, search that number on the scheme's public register, confirm the trading name matches exactly, and check the registration covers the type of work quoted.

  • Cash-only pricing fails as no invoice, no VAT position, no paper trail.
  • The check of photographic evidence is willingness to document before and after.
  1. Every distinguishing credential can be verified before any payment.

What should you get in writing before work starts?

Get a written scope naming the work and materials, a fixed price with any provisional sums identified, the payment schedule, the expected duration, the guarantee terms, and confirmation of who notifies building control.

  1. An unsolicited approach reporting an unnoticed fault is the classic doorstep pattern.
  2. A pressure to decide immediately exists to prevent verification.
  3. A written scope converts a promise into an obligation.

Urgency is the thing to distrust.

Why pressure to decide is the strongest signal

Every meaningful credential is checkable, so the task is verification rather than judging whether someone seems honest. Pressure to decide today exists specifically to prevent the checks this page describes, which is why it is the strongest single warning sign.

Inviting the checks

Scheme membership is verifiable on the scheme's public register; a logo on a van or website is not evidence. A contractor unwilling to document work before and after is telling you something about how the work will be evidenced.

Public liability insurance, and 4 more

  • public liability insurance
  • written scope
  • competent person scheme
  • insurance-backed guarantee
  • deposit

Read next

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Call the crew 07446 375079 Book a free survey