What to check before you sign

Be careful with the deposit

Ten to thirty per cent is normal, often to order material. Full payment before work starts is not, and in several states it is not even legal. Hold the final payment until you have walked the job.

Prefer somebody you could drive to

Ask where their yard is. Companies that follow storms across state lines do competent work and then vanish, which is fine right up until something needs putting right.

Check the licence yourself

Every state that licenses roofing contractors publishes a free lookup. It takes two minutes and tells you whether the licence is current, who holds it, and whether there are complaints against it. Do it even when somebody has already vouched for them.

Get everything in writing, including the unknowns

The contract should say the material and the layers, who pulls the permit, the per-sheet price for replacing bad decking, what happens to the old material, the payment schedule, and the workmanship warranty. The decking clause is the one people forget and the one that moves the price.

Compare scope, not totals

Lay the quotes side by side line by line. Underlayment type, ice-and-water coverage, drip edge, valley treatment, ventilation, flashing replacement, decking allowance and warranty. Large gaps in the total are almost always gaps in the scope.

Ask for current certificates of insurance

Insurance certificates expire. A certificate dated eight months ago tells you what was true eight months ago. Ask for one issued this month.

In short

Do the boring checks. They are the entire difference between a roof that is somebody else's problem for ten years and one that is yours.