Roofing Services

Questions to Help You Choose a Trustworthy Roofing Professional

Selecting a roofer can turn into a stressful ordeal. You may already be dealing with water damage or a leaking roof, your insurance company, and more. Now, to top it off, you have to find and sift through roofing services providers in your area to find one who’ll do the job right, without raking your poor wallet over the coals. 

If you’ve never needed roof repairs before, or if you’re a first time home owner, this process can be very intimidating. 

But it doesn’t have to be. Here are a few questions to ask roofers that will help you feel confident in your decision.

Are you licensed? In Colorado, roofers are ot required to have a state license specific to roofing or contracting. However, we are required to carry a state business license. Be sure to ask any contractor you’re considering to share their business license information with you. 

Do you carry general liability insurance? This type of insurance covers damage that might be done to your property during the course of the work being performed. Ask to see an insurance certificate so you won’t be responsible for fixing damage someone else is responsible for.

Do you use subcontractors? Some contractors hire subs to handle roofing work. If this is the case with your roofer, get verification that the subs are covered under workman’s comp and general liability insurance. You may want to get lien waivers as well, in case the contractor stiffs the subs. 

Elements does not use subcontractors.

What do you do with the construction debris? Replacing a roof (or performing extensive repairs) can produce a lot of junk. Shingles, old plywood, nails, damaged flashing and so forth. Whoever you hire to replace your roof should be bringing their own container for disposal. Shady contractors will often expect the homeowner to supply a container or deal with the trash once the job is complete. 

At Elements, we don’t consider the job complete until your property is free of construction trash, and looks as good or better than when we arrived on site.

Where is your office, and are you local? Make sure your contractor has a physical location. There are fly-by-night roofing companies that operate out of a PO box, that they can abandon after getting paid for shoddy work. Plus, even if the work done is adequate, if your contractor isn’t local, and you have issues with your roof after the project, they may not be available to correct their mistakes or make repairs in a timely fashion.

Do you provide a written estimate? A detailed, written cost estimate is your best friend in any construction or home improvement project. Don’t sign or agree to anything until you know and have in writing the cost of removing the old roof, the cost for the new roof (including materials and labor costs) and any other needs that can be anticipated to arise during the construction process. If the estimate is thorough, there shouldn’t be any surprise costs at the end of the job.

What happens if it rains or storms while you’re working on my roof? To complete a roofing job safely and on time, good weather is a godsend. So if it rains or snows, or gets dangerously windy, work may have to stop temporarily and resume when the weather improves. Make sure your roofer has a plan to secure the job site and protect your home in case of inclement Colorado weather.

How do you take care of the driveway and yard while you’re working? Roofing projects can require a lot of equipment to do the job safely, efficiently and quickly. That equipment can be tough on your driveway and your property if precautions aren’t taken. Ask where trucks, tools, ladders, dumpsters and so forth will be parked while on the job, and how they’ll make sure none of these damage your property. Ask what they’ll do if there is damage to the property as well.

We pledge to leave your home, yard, driveway, and property neater when we leave than when we arrived.