How to pick a roofer you will not regret

Check the licence yourself

A licence number on a business card is not a licence. Look it up, confirm the name on the licence matches the name on the contract, and check the status is active today.

Compare scope, not totals

Lay the quotes side by side line by line. Underlayment type, ice-and-water coverage, drip edge, valley treatment, ventilation, flashing replacement, decking allowance and warranty. Large gaps in the total are almost always gaps in the scope.

Ask for current certificates of insurance

Insurance certificates expire. A certificate dated eight months ago tells you what was true eight months ago. Ask for one issued this month.

Get everything in writing, including the unknowns

Anything agreed verbally will be remembered differently on day two. In particular, pin down the decking rate, the start date and the clean-up before you sign.

Be careful with the deposit

Never pay in full up front, and never in cash without a receipt that names the company. Progress payments tied to milestones protect both sides.

Prefer somebody you could drive to

Ask where their yard is. Companies that follow storms across state lines do competent work and then vanish, which is fine right up until something needs putting right.

In short

Do the boring checks. They are the entire difference between a roof that is somebody else's problem for ten years and one that is yours.