What to check before you sign

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

You want general liability and workers compensation, both current, and ideally sent directly from the insurer rather than as a photocopy. If an uninsured worker is hurt on your roof, the exposure can land on your homeowner policy.

Get everything in writing, including the unknowns

Anything agreed verbally will be remembered differently on day two. In particular, pin down the decking rate, the start date and the clean-up 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.

Check the licence yourself

A licence number on a business card is not a licence. Look it up, confirm the name on the licence matches the name on the contract, and check the status is active today.

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.

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.