Roofing contractors come in all shapes, sizes, and price brackets. Whether you’re roofing your own house or looking to hire roofers to do the job for you, it’s important that you ask yourself – ‘what should I look for when hiring roofing contractors and roofing companies’. Here are five things that can help make sure you get a right roofing company the first time without having to call them back out.
1.) Make Sure Roofers Are Licensed
A roofer should always be licensed appropriately for their area of roofing expertise, which is typically roof construction in some way. A good roofer will never try to skirt regulations or cut corners by not getting licensed appropriately. You shouldn’t have an issue finding out if they are, either by calling your local roofing contractors licensing board.
2.) Warranty, Warranty, Warranty
Any roofer worth their salt can give you a warranty on the roofing work they perform for you. While materials like shingles and underlayment typically come with warranties too (and should be checked to make sure they do), what really matters is the warranty for labor. This will help protect your house should anything go wrong during or after roof installation. A good roofer will know that this is an essential part of winning and keeping customers, so no roofer should balk at providing you one. If they avoid it, keep looking down your list of roofers until you find someone who doesn’t mind offering one up front! And if they try to get away with a short one, get them to lengthen it. There’s no reason roofers should try to get you to agree to a year or less if they know what they’re doing.
3.) References Are Important
When roofers ask you for references after roof installation, this is their way of trying to find out how well you did your due diligence in finding roofing contractors and roofing companies that would work out well. You should do the same when trying to find roofers who will work well for you. Ask for names and numbers from former customers and call them up (starting with those farthest away from where the roofer works) until you find someone willing to share an honest opinion about their experience with the roofer in question.
4.) What’s Their Approach?
Not every roofer works the same way and not all roofing jobs are the same, but some roofers work more efficiently than others and will get you a roof faster than others. You need to know what approach they’ll take toward roofing your house, whether it’s roof replacement or roof installation, so that you can get an idea of how quickly your roof will be done. A good roofer should be able to explain their plan for getting the job done ASAP without compromising quality in any way. They should also have no issue with giving you a rough estimate on cost when they’re talking about time estimates. If they don’t, keep looking for a roofer who does!
5.) Insurance and Workers’ Compensation
Even roofers who work independently need insurance; roofing is a dangerous job after all. You should make sure roofers you’re considering hiring carry both general liability and workers’ compensation (and any additional insurance they might feel like touting) to protect themselves, their roofing crew, and you from any accidents that could arise during roof installation or roof replacement. If they don’t carry this basic insurance, it’s time to find another roofer who does!
Knowing what to look for in roofers will help you avoid those roofers who cut corners or try to pull a fast one over on their customers. It’ll also help you find roofers that will be able to give you the roofing services you’re looking for without any hassles whatsoever.
