Trying to find a reputable roofing company to replace your roof or carry out repairs can be more time-consuming than you think. It’s common knowledge that the roofing industry is littered with rogue traders. These unscrupulous traders are quite happy to charge you large sums of money for poor quality work. If you don’t know what to look out for, you could very well be their next victim. It pays to do a little research about a particular roofing company before hiring them to do the job. Below you will find a few good tips you should take into account before hiring a roofer.
If you want to skip all of the hard work of trying to find a trustworthy roofer, you can head on over to the Roofing Association and find one there.
How many years have they been in business?
There is no way you would trust someone to fix your car if you knew they’d only been on the job for a few weeks. The same applies to hiring a roofer who is new to the job and has no track record of roof replacements or repairs. One of the most important factors you should consider before choosing a roofing company is how many years they have been in business and how much experience they have. An established roofing company will have many years of experience under their belt and are aware of all of the common mistakes and pitfalls to avoid. Whatever you do, don’t let price be the deciding factor of which company you choose. You know the saying, pay peanuts and get monkeys.
Make Sure There Insured
Believe it or not, some roofing companies say they have public liability insurance when they don’t. A roofing company that doesn’t have at least public liability insurance in place is likely to be a rogue trader. No self-respecting roofing contractor will risk their business and their reputation for the sake of not having insurance. Always make sure that the company you decide to go with has insurance in place. If someone was to fall and injure themselves on your property, you could be liable! Choose wisely.
Past Paperwork
In the service industry, reputation is everything. If a roofer racks up a lot of negative reviews, it’s only a matter of time before they go out of business. Unfortunately, once the reputation of one of these shady businesses has been destroyed, they close it down and open a new one. It happens a lot in the roofing industry, and they seem to get away with it.
People are savvier these days, and they are willing to invest some time to weed out the bad apples. Taking the time to read reviews is a step in the right direction but be wary of companies that have nothing but five star ratings. No matter what industry, every business is likely to get at least one disgruntled customer. Don’t fall for fake reviews.
Ask the company if they can provide you with any references from recent jobs they have completed. If they are confident in their skills and they have nothing to hide, it shouldn’t be a problem, should it?
Don’t Just Look at the Price.
One of the oldest tricks in the book is to come in low and end up high. This means a roofing company may give you an unbelievably cheap quote, and as the job progresses, the costs keep rising. This is a scam, and you need to avoid it at all costs.
The easiest way to avoid falling for this scam is to get quotes from multiple roof companies and compare them. If one of the quotes is far lower than the others, and it seems too good to be true, it probably is. Experienced roofing companies have a good idea about how much jobs cost and what is involved.
Rogue traders and new, inexperienced roofers are likely to give low prices just to get the job. You have been warned.
Make Sure You Get a Guarantee
Whoever you choose, make sure you get a guarantee on the work. You don’t want to have to call them out again in a few weeks because your roof is leaking, and having to pay twice. You want a guarantee on the materials and the workmanship. Any reputable roofing company will gladly offer you a guarantee and will back it up if necessary.
