A Checklist For A Quality Roofing Contractor
All roofing contractors are not alike. It is important to prequalify roofing contractors to get the job done right the first time. Doing a little work upfront will save you hours of distress and potentially thousands of dollars later.
Fly-by-night contractors are typically uninsured and work with cheap, untrained and ill-supervised laborers. They will often use your roof as a training exercise to figure out how to put a roof on and will come to you later asking for more money to finish a job that isn’t correct to begin with. By shopping professional, local, established roofing contractors, getting multiple estimates from companies with a proven track record and weighing your material options, you can get a quality roofing system, professionally installed at a fair price and add value, security and comfort to your home.
We cannot stress enough – you need to understand the nature of low bids. No one likes to pay more than they have to, especially when it is a large investment like a roofing system. A low bid can seem really attractive and it can be significantly less than other bids from your vetted professional roofing contractors. The simple truth is, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Roofing systems are expensive because the hard cost of the materials, the trained, professional labor required in a proper installation and the insurance required to cover workers and protect homeowners from litigation. There’s no (right) way around this.
So what qualities and requirements should you look for in a contractor? Use our handy checklist to make sure you choose a true professional.
Checklist For a Qualified Roofing Contractor:
- Permanent place of business, telephone number, tax id number & business license
- Proof of insurance – liability coverage & workers’ compensation certificates
- Licensed and bonded
- Ensure the contractor is financially stable
- Company has proven track record, client references & a list of completed projects
- Detailed, written proposal with descriptions of the work & specifications, approximate starting and completion dates and payment procedures
- Contractor is a licensed or approved applicator with manufacturer
- Contractor should be able to explain his project supervision, quality control procedures, size of the crew and estimated project completion time
- Contractor demonstrates a commitment to professionalism with appropriate industry associations
- Check with Better Business Bureau or Department of Professional Regulation for possible complaints filed against the contractor
- Contract & roofing warranties offered for labor and materials
