What should I ask before hiring a roofer?
Most people don’t buy a roof often enough to know what a good one looks like. You get two or three estimates. One is cheaper. One sounds more professional. They all promise to take care of you.
That sounds good. But it doesn’t really tell you anything.
Here are the questions I’d ask if this were my house, and what a good answer sounds like.
Are you insured, and can I see it?
Ask for proof of general liability and workers’ compensation insurance, and ask to have the certificate sent to you by their insurance agent, not handed over as a photocopy. If someone gets hurt on your property and the contractor isn’t covered, it can end up being your problem.
Do roofers need a license in Kentucky?
No. Kentucky has no roofing license. Anyone with a truck and a ladder can call themselves a roofer here, and there’s no state board checking who’s qualified.
That puts the vetting on you. A license wouldn’t tell you much anyway, so look at the things that do: proof of insurance sent from their agent, a local address you can drive to, references in your town from past years, how long they’ve been in business, and a written contract that spells out the whole job before anything starts.
Who will actually be on my roof?
The person giving you the estimate often isn’t the person doing the work. That’s not automatically bad. But you should know who is.
Ask whether the crew is their own or a subcontractor, and who is responsible for the whole job. Ask who you call if something looks wrong while the crew is there.
What exactly are you installing?
“Architectural shingles” isn’t an answer. Ask for the brand and the product line. Then ask about the parts you won’t see once the job is done:
- What underlayment goes down?
- Where does ice and water shield go?
- Is the flashing being replaced or reused?
- What happens if the decking underneath is bad, and how is that priced?
That last one matters. Most estimates can’t know the condition of the decking until the old roof is off. A good contractor tells you up front how replacement decking is handled and priced, so there’s no surprise halfway through. For comparison, here’s what goes into one of our roof replacements.
Will you look at my attic ventilation?
Ventilation affects how long a roof lasts. A roof without enough intake and exhaust runs hot in Kentucky summers and traps moisture in winter. Ask whether they’ll look in the attic and what they plan to do about intake and exhaust. If they don’t mention ventilation at all, that tells you something.
How do you clean up?
Nobody wants roofing nails in the driveway six weeks later. Ask how they protect landscaping, whether they run a magnet over the yard and driveway, and whether cleanup is written into the contract.
What happens if something goes wrong?
Even good roofers get callbacks. What matters is how they handle them.
Ask what the workmanship warranty covers and for how long, and how it’s different from the manufacturer’s warranty on the materials. Ask who you call a year from now. If the answer is “don’t worry about it,” worry about it.
Will you tell me if I don’t need a new roof?
This is a good one to ask any roofer, including us. A lot of roofs with some wear or a little storm damage don’t need replacing yet. If yours doesn’t, we’ll tell you, and you should expect the same honesty from anyone you’re considering.
Do you understand insurance claims?
If there’s any chance this is a storm claim, ask. A roofer who understands how claims work can document the damage properly, meet the adjuster, and explain the estimate you get back.
Then listen for what they promise. Nobody can promise your claim will be approved or tell you what your carrier will pay. The adjuster decides that. And anyone who offers to cover your deductible is offering to break the law in Kentucky.
I was a State Farm agent and then owned an independent insurance brokerage, 15 years in insurance altogether. Now I own UNDERCOVER. We handle communication with your carrier if you want us to, we meet the adjuster, and we document everything we find. What’s covered is up to your insurance company.
What should a good estimate include?
Get it in writing and make sure it spells out tear-off and disposal, the shingle brand and line, underlayment, ice and water shield, flashing, ventilation, how decking is handled, cleanup, and both warranties. If two estimates don’t list the same things, you’re not comparing the same roof.