The roofing industry generally puts a premium on integrity. However, there are scammers out there who give the trade a bad name. To protect yourself against them, All States Home Improvement talks about common roof scams and ways to avoid them:
1. Unreasonable Down Payment Requirement
If your contractor asks for about 30% to 50% of the job total upfront, say no and take your business elsewhere. First of all, no roofer should oblige you to put down that much. The spirit of giving a down payment is to show that you’re a serious customer. The legal maximum in some states is around $1,000 or 10% of your roofing project’s total cost, whichever is less. You should never prepay more than that.
2. Verbal Agreement Only
Reluctance to involve a written contract is a major red flag. No matter how nice your prospective contractor might be, you should never take his or her word for it. If the other party insists on having just a verbal agreement, you have a telling sign of a scam.
3. No Change Order Clause
Running into hidden problems isn’t unusual, but there must be a procedure in place for processing change orders. Good roofing contractors have a provision for just that. If yours doesn’t, ask him or her to include it. If the other party, for whatever reason, refuses to add a fair and clear change order guideline, don’t sign on the dotted line.
4. Door-to-Door Tack
Storm chasers are the notorious roofers that knock on people’s doors offering repairs in the wake of rough weather. While not all of them are disreputable, hiring one can be risky. Many of them are fly-by-night companies that don’t honor warranties. Storm chasers usually operate from city to city, so it can be hard to get them to fix problems due to workmanship defects.
If you notice or suspect storm damage, call a local roofing contractor instead. With an experienced local company like All States Home Improvement, you can verify their credentials and research their past projects. This way, you can exercise your due diligence well.
Since 1992, All States Home Improvement has been the roofing authority in Wichita, KS. We have been certified by leading brands and won a long list of awards because of the impeccable service we bring to the table. To protect yourself from disreputable companies, turn to an established contractor like us. Fill out our contact form to schedule your free, no-obligation consultation at your convenience.
