Guide
Choosing a roofing contractor
Choosing a roofer is the part of this that homeowners have the least practice at, and the part that decides the outcome.
Get it looked at
Three questions, and up to three Rancho Palos Verdes contractors. Free either way.
You are on the list.
No provider in Rancho Palos Verdes is taking requests through this service yet. We are lining them up, and yours is kept until one can.
- Nobody gets your details yet. Your request stays with us and is not passed to any company.
- One email when someone can help. When a provider covering your area can take it on, we email you once and ask whether you want that company, by name, to contact you.
- Deleted after 90 days. If nobody can take it on, or you do not say yes, your contact details are deleted 90 days after your request.
- You decide, or you do not. There is nothing to cancel and nothing to pay us.
Nobody will call you about this request unless you say yes to a company by name.
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.
Be careful with the deposit
Never pay in full up front, and never in cash without a receipt that names the company. Progress payments tied to milestones protect both sides.
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.
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.
Compare scope, not totals
A cheaper number for less roof is not a better price. Ask the lowest bidder which items on the other quotes they have left out, and why they think you do not need them.
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
Three quotes, three licence checks, three certificates of insurance. It is a dull hour that routinely saves five figures.
Related questions
How quickly will someone call?
Usually within the hour during working hours. If you marked the job as an emergency it goes to the front of the queue and is normally picked up faster than that.
What time of year is best to re-roof in Rancho Palos Verdes?
Here, the long dry run from May to October is the easy window. November through March is when the phone rings hardest, which means less flexibility on dates and less room on price.
How much deposit is normal?
Ten to thirty per cent is ordinary, and is often used to order material. A demand for full payment up front is a reason to walk away.
Get the roof looked at
No cost. We email you once when a provider near you can take it on.