If you’re looking to have some work done on your roof, then it’s important to ask any prospective roofer a set of questions before employing their services.

Before asking any prospective roofing company the questions we will list here, be sure to check their website to see if they already provide some of the information you want to know. Any reputable roofing company will freely include information on their site about whether they’re licensed, insured, what they warranties/guarantees entails, etc.

If you can’t find all the information you need from initial research, then you can ask your prospective roofer some or all of the following questions before hiring them:

1. What’s your business’s name and address?

While you should be easily be able to find this out by viewing any reputable roofing company’s website, this is a good question to ask if you’re unsure about the legitimacy of a certain roofer. The simple fact is if they’re a legitimate roofing company, their business will be registered to the address they provide you. This is particularly important to ask if approached by a door-to-door salesman claiming they represent a roofing company. It could be a scam and you need to exercise caution.

2. How long have you been in business?

A roofing company with a long history is usually a safer bet than a company that has no clear history of work. So if your prospective roofer has been in the business for a long time, it will give you greater confidence of their experience - the fact they’re still in business is a good sign. However, the life of a business shouldn’t be the only determining factor. You could also ask...

3. Do you have a portfolio of previous work?

This is a great question to ask a roofer, whether they’re company has been in the business for 20+ years or only a couple of years. If they can offer you some real examples of their past work, you can get a feel for how meticulous and professionally-driven they are. The more impressive their roof work, - whether it’s a restoration, paint job, replacement, etc. - the more confidence you can take in them.

4. Do you have any references I could call up / look at?

While photos of previous work is one thing, being able to get honest feedback from past customers of your prospective roofer is a great way to gauge just how well they did the job - not just the finished product, but throughout the entire process.

Certain roofers may have past customers who have happily agreed to be a reference for them in the future, but this will always be at the discretion of the customer themselves. You cannot ask your prospective roofer to hand you details of former customers who did not agree to have their details handed out.

If the roofer does not have references you can contact, ask them if they have testimonials or if there is somewhere you can view reviews regarding their work online.

5. Do you have liability insurance / workers compensation?

Given that roofing has the potential to leading to damage to your home or the injury of workers, all operating roofing companies must have both professional liability insurance and workers compensation insurance.

Professional liability covers the cost of repairing any unforeseen and unlikely damage to your home that could occur on the job. Workers compensation will cover the costs of financially compensating any worker that could injure himself/herself while working. If a roofing company has both forms of insurance cover, this means you will never have to pay the price for any work-related incident that could occur.

6. How much will the job cost?

Many of the past questions simply exist to build your confidence in the roofer you’re considering. If you decide you would like to proceed with them, then one of your final questions should be about just how much the job will cost. After they’ve taken you through the work they need to do - or what you want them to do - they should be able to give a clear quote on what you’re looking at paying.

Along with how much it will cost, be sure to ask them what payment options are available. By figuring what’s available, both you and your roofer can agree on the best approach for both of you.

If there any other questions you feel are great to ask a roofer before employing their services, be sure to share them with us in the comments below. If you would like to enquire about our services, then call Roo Roofing on 1300 734 148.