Hiring A Roofer

If you need maintenance, repairs or full replacement done on your roof, you’re going to have to hire a roofer. As with finding a new contractor in any service business, hiring a roofer can either be very simple or it can be a somewhat frustrating experience to ensure you get the right person for the job. Below we’ll share some tips on where to look when hiring a roofer, some key questions to ask roofers that make your short list, and also how to ask for references and ensure honest

Where to Look when Hiring a Roofer

Since you’re here on the site, the first place you should check when hiring a roofer is the National Roofing Experts Directory. The National Roofing Experts Directory contains full contact details and information listings for roofers in cities and towns across the country, and is an excellent starting point.

If you can’t find a listing in the National Roofing Experts Directory, your next best bet is to do a search on Google for local roofing companies. Google does an excellent job in showing local results for businesses, and a quick search for “(city name) roofer” should offer you a nice selection of local roofing contractors.
Finally, put the call out on your social networks such as Facebook and Twitter, and ask around your circle of colleagues at work. Everyone has to live somewhere, and if someone owns a house it’s likely that they’ve had to deal with a roofing professional at some point.

Once you’ve collected a short list of roofing professionals that you might want to work with, you can start calling them to ask some questions and find out more about their business.

Hiring a Roofer – Key Questions to Ask

When hiring a roofer for the first time, there are a few key questions that you can ask that will help you determine whether or not this is the right roofing professional for you to work with. It’s not necessary to give the roofer an inquisition; many of these questions are ones that the roofer should be used to answering in the course of doing business. Have a conversation with your roofing professional and get these questions answered to ensure you’re safe.

First, ask about the roofer’s experience and what kind of work they have done for other local clients. If you are trying to find a roofer that specializes in a certain type of work, be sure to ask up front what the roofer’s experience level is to ensure you get someone that’s qualified. Explain your situation to the roofer and let them know what work you have to be done, and allow them to fill you in on how they would go about completing the job.

Enquire about the kind of insurance protection the roofer holds, and also what kind of warranty comes with their work. If the roofer is simply doing an annual checkup or some minor maintenance on your roof, the warranty is less of a factor. Adequate insurance, however, is something that every roofing professional should carry. At minimum a roofer should have general business liability insurance, as well as worker’s compensation coverage. If a roofer is working on your home and they get injured, you could be liable unless the roofer has proper insurance coverage.

Ask the roofer about their license or credentials, which are generally required by local or state governments. A roofer should be able to produce some form of license that certifies they are a qualified roofer, even if it’s a certificate from whatever training or schooling they undertook to become a roofer. You can also ask the roofer if they are a member of any of the local or national professional organizations for roofers. The major one is the National Roofing Contractors Association, or NRCA. If the roofer can’t name any of the professional organizations that service their own industry, you might want to consider a different roofer.
Finally, you’ll need to ask for references, and this step is important so we’ll cover it in further detail below.

When Hiring a Roofer for the First Time, Get References

References are one of the best tools to use when hiring a roofer, as they allow you to see some of the work that the roofer has done for previous clients. Before you ask the roofer for references, talk to your local friends and neighbors to see who they have used for past roofing jobs. If you can get a referral to a decent roofer, you’ll be saving yourself a lot of time and effort sorting through different companies and contractors to find someone that fits the bill.

If you can’t get a referral to a trusted roofer, it’s time to ask some of the roofers on your short list for references. Service providers like roofers are used to being asked for references before committing to a job that can potentially cost thousands of dollars, so there should be no problem with getting references which you can check out.

If your roofer doesn’t have any references, it’s probably best to go with a different company. Every reputable roofer should have at least one or two clients that they can point you to for a quick phone call, or perhaps a reference letter or two outlining how good of a job they did.

Hiring a Roofer and Getting Honest Price Estimates

Unfortunately, one of the many challenges involved with hiring a roofer is finding one that will give an honest price quote for the work that needs to be done. There are countless stories of customers that have been ripped off, or charged inappropriate amounts for roofing services when the costs should have been much less. Weeding through potentially shady operators is just one of the steps involved when hiring a roofer, and is necessary to ensure you don’t get burned.

When you’ve found the roofer that you want to hire, one of the easiest ways to clear the person or company is to give a call to the Better Business Bureau. The BBB specializes in keeping tabs on businesses that have caused their customers grief, and one phone call is all it takes to find out everything you need to know about your roofer. Another quick step is to search for the roofer’s company name in a search engine like Google. If people have complained about the roofer, it will likely show up in the search results.

If you get the all clear on your chosen roofer but you’re still unsure about the price, you can always get a quote from a couple of different roofers. If the quotes are similar, you know that you’re safe with the roofer you picked.

Hiring a Roofer is Worth Getting Right

Finding and hiring a roofer that you can trust can be a difficult challenge, but it’s an important one to ensure that you get right. With your roof protecting your home, your family and your livelihood, it’s critical that you find a qualified roofing professional that can provide you maintenance and repair services without hassle. By following some of the tips above, you will make the experience of hiring a roofer a positive one, and with a little luck you’ll find a roofer that you can work with for many years!

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