How to Hire a Roofer

What makes hiring a roofer different

Two things, and they compound each other.

You cannot inspect the work. With a bathroom you can see the tiling. With a roof, you are relying entirely on someone's word about what they found, what they did, and how well they did it. That asymmetry is why this trade attracts more dishonesty than most.

Roofing problems are invisible until they are expensive. A poorly done repair can look fine for two years, then show up as a damp ceiling. By then the roofer may be untraceable.

The result is a trade where the ordinary checks matter more, not less, and where photographic evidence is not optional.

Doorstep approaches, the single biggest risk

The pattern is consistent: someone was working nearby, noticed slipped tiles or a problem with your chimney, and can sort it while they have the scaffolding up. There is often urgency, a cash preference, and a price that rises once work begins.

Sometimes the roof problem is invented. Sometimes it is real and hugely overpriced. Either way, you did not seek this person out and you have no way of verifying what they claim to have seen.

If someone tells you your roof needs work, get an independent opinion from a roofer you approached yourself. That advice costs you nothing and is the single most useful thing on this page.

Registrations and accreditation

The NFRC (National Federation of Roofing Contractors) is the main trade body, with members assessed against roofing standards. CompetentRoofer is a government-authorised competent person scheme that lets registered contractors self-certify re-roofing work against the Building Regulations, rather than going through building control. Verify membership on the scheme's own register, not from a logo.

Substantial re-roofing can be notifiable under Building Regulations, particularly where a significant proportion of the roof covering is replaced or where insulation is affected. Ask who is handling that.

Also check working-at-height arrangements and that public liability cover is live. Roofing carries genuine risk to people below.

What a good roofing quote looks like

• Scaffolding itemised separately, with who is providing it and how long it is hired for
• The specific materials, tile or slate type, membrane, battens, flashing material
• Whether the felt or membrane is being replaced, not just the covering
• What happens to the old material and its disposal
• Whether any timber repair is included, and what happens if rot is found
• The guarantee, its length, and whether it is insurance-backed

The timber point matters. Nobody can see the condition of roof timbers until the covering comes off, so a quote that pretends otherwise is either optimistic or setting up a mid-job price rise. A good roofer says what a rate for replacement timber would be.

Deposits and payment stages

Materials are a substantial part of a roofing job and are usually ordered up front, so a deposit is normal, around 15-20% is reasonable. Scaffolding is often paid separately and early. Much beyond that has no material justification.

Sensible stages: materials and scaffold, strip and repair, covering complete and watertight, then final on scaffold removal and clearance.

Hold the final 10% until the scaffolding is down and you have seen the completed work photographed. Once the scaffold goes, getting anyone back up is expensive.

What usually goes wrong

• Work paid for that was never done, the reason photographs matter
• Additional timber "found" at inflated prices
• Repairs sold when a section only needed a few tiles
• Guarantees from companies that dissolve
• Scaffolding costs appearing after the quote was accepted

Questions to ask a roofer

• Can you photograph the roof before you start and show me what you have found?
• Is the membrane being replaced, or only the covering?
• Who is providing the scaffolding and is it in this price?
• What is your rate if you find rotten timber, and how will you evidence it?
• Is the guarantee insurance-backed, and who underwrites it?
• Will this work need building control notification?