All you need to know before hiring a roofer

The roof is just like an intermediary that separates your home from the outside environment; a damage to it is a threat to your comfort. A damage to your roof will definitely call for an immediate fix because no one wants to experience living in a roofless home as it can be as demeaning as it can be dangerous. Obviously, there will be a need to call a roofer – like Boss roof-siding – to have the problem fixed. It’s no news that there are quite a number of customers that have recorded pretty bad encounters with some roofing companies; making it important for you to have some information up your sleeves so you wouldn’t be part of that statistic.

Here are All You Need To Know Before Hiring A Roofer:

Understanding What Your Roofing Warranty Entails Is Key

It is no news that the manufacturers of roofs give warranty on their products, while this is an amazing privilege, they are conditions that could void your warranty if care isn’t taken.

They are:

• Improper installation: if your roofing contractor fails to oblige the right installation practices as specified by the manufacturers in their manual, thereby causing a damage to the roof, the manufacturers might take out the warranty privilege in such case.
• Pressure washing: it is not advisable to wash your roof by pressure washing as it can compromise the quality of the roof. Doing otherwise means you are violating the terms of your warranty.
• The layering of a new roof on an existing one – this common practice among roofers can counter the terms of your warranty too.

The aforementioned are the common misguided actions that could nullify your roof’s warranty. Be sure to understand the details of your warranty, and ensure your roofer abides by the instructions to avoid nullification of your warranty.

Beware Of Fraudsters

Sometimes, some of these roofing contractors are there to prey on unsuspecting customers, that before the customers would realize the extent of the damage done, it would have blown out of proportion. One fine example of this happening is when a roofing contractor approaches a homeowner after a storm to inspect their roof. Of course, every normal person wouldn’t mind this as it could be for their own good, considering the fact that the storm could have placed a dent on the roof and only a roofing contractor would know what’s wrong for sure.

Before climbing onto the roof, they normally give the homeowner a contract to sign – that is supposedly a contract asking for your approval for inspection – but in reality, the implication of signing that contract could mean that you are giving them the go-ahead to reach your insurance company on your behalf. The next thing they do at that point is to fabricate some sort of fault about the roof that would warrant the insurance company to disburse some funds to them. Before you can find a way to stop them, the damage would’ve eaten deep; it is just a smooth operation.

So, it is advisable to read all contracts properly before allowing anyone on your roof or better still, refrain from allowing anybody to get on your roof without a prior fixed appointment. This should take out the chance of you being duped by these fraudsters parading themselves as roofers.

Pay Attention To The Paperwork

This definitely counts when trying to spell out All You Need To Know Before Hiring A Roofer. It is quite similar to the second point up there but somewhat different. A lot of customers are often found wanting on this; in the course of operation, they portray a lackadaisical attitude towards cross-checking of every paperwork there is to make sure all is well. The paperwork usually made up of three documents:

• Building permits: most towns have a strict policy for the possession of building permits, to enable the roofing contractor to follow the building code.
• A written contract – this is where all agreement as regards the costs, products etc., are being documented.
• Insurance Letter – this letter comes from the contractor’s insurance company and it ensures that whatever goes wrong to any of the workers or any welfare-related issue of the workers, would be covered by the roofer’s insurance company and not you.

It’s for your own good to be attentive to all that paperwork, regardless of how stressful or demanding it can be, because it will enable you to take out the possibility of being scammed by any fraudulent roofing contractor.

Don’t Go Completing Payment Before The Work is Done

This is basically common sense. Normally, I wouldn’t think of spelling this out matter-of-factly if I haven’t heard of some unfortunate situations where the customers were asked to pay in full, upfront, which led to an unfinished roofing project because the roofers ran away as soon as they got paid. Sometimes, the signs are glaring, only some people fail to see it. Only a roofer of questionable character will keep hounding the customer for full payment when the project is not yet finished.

Truth is, for a reputable company, that is dedicated to staying in business, they would even suggest starting doing the project without being paid in full because they are out to establish trust with the customer and they are sure they have no ulterior motives to scam the customer.

A little cynicism sometimes helps, it is already a red flag for a roofer to start hounding you for full payment before starting the job, if you are faced with such, don’t employ them.

Maintenance Is Of Utmost Importance

Many roofers out there are not so concerned about the welfare of their customers; instead, they are concerned about their pockets. A fine way to prove this is how some of them are always quick to throw the option of replacement to your face when you call them up to have a problem fixed on your roof; instead of also suggesting a repair.

The truth is proper maintenance will make your roof last longer. But this truth is something most roofers won’t tell you because they want to charge you higher for roof placements; some will even tell you they don’t they do maintenance and repair just to make you reconsider changing the roof.

Having a professional roofer to check your roof routinely, will help you counter foreseeable problems with your roof before it gets blown out of proportion and in the long run save you the cost of unwarranted roof replacement.