Roofers

What to put in your job description

• What you can see: a slipped tile, a leak inside, a sagging gutter, moss, a flat roof that holds water.
• Where the leak shows inside, and when it happens (heavy rain, wind).
• The kind of roof: tiles, slates, a flat roof, and roughly how old.
• How many storeys high it is, and whether a scaffold could go up on every side.
• Chimneys, skylights or solar panels on that part of the roof.

Don't put your name, phone number or address in the description: every trade who covers your area reads it. Your name, phone, email and address go only to the trades who take the job (3 at most).

Questions to ask before you hire

• Is the scaffold or access in the price?
• Will you send photos of what you find up there?
• Do you give a written warranty on the work, and for how long?
• If more than a quarter of the roof is replaced, who deals with the Building Regulations?
• Do you have public liability insurance?

Registers and schemes to check

There is no legal register for roofers. Replacing more than a quarter of a roof usually has to meet the Building Regulations; a roofer in a competent person scheme such as CompetentRoofer can sign that off. Trade bodies include the National Federation of Roofing Contractors and TrustMark. We don't check this for you yet.

What the job usually involves

• Repairs: slipped or broken tiles and slates, flashing round chimneys, ridge tiles, leaks.
• Gutters, fascias, soffits and downpipes.
• Flat roofs: felt, rubber (EPDM) or fibreglass coverings.
• Access: ladders for small jobs, scaffold or a tower for most others.
• Re-roofing: stripping the old covering, new felt and battens, then the tiles or slates.

How quotes and visits work

A roofer usually needs to see the roof, from the ground, a ladder or a drone, before giving a fixed price. Ask whether scaffolding is included, and what happens if they find more damage once they are up there. Photos of the problem help.

Ask for a written quote (a fixed price) rather than an estimate (a guess that can change), and for what it includes. If you agree a job in your home, you usually have 14 days to cancel under the Consumer Contracts Regulations; if you want work to start sooner, you may have to pay for what has been done.

Safety

• Don't go on the roof yourself. Falls from height are a common cause of serious injury.
• If water is coming through a ceiling near a light, switch the lights off at the fuse board. A bulging, wet ceiling can come down: keep people out from under it.

Insurance and TrustMark

Ask for public liability insurance before work starts. It covers damage or injury caused by the trade to you, your home or someone else. Ask for the insurer's name and the cover's end date; you can ask to see the certificate.

TrustMark is the government-endorsed quality scheme for work in and around the home. Its registered businesses agree to its code of practice, and you can look them up on trustmark.org.uk.

Guides for homeowners

• How to get three roof repair quotes you can compare
• Planning permission and Building Regulations: the difference
• How to compare quotes from local trades

We take jobs from anywhere in the UK: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Trades choose the postcode districts they cover.

Roofers by town and city

England

Scotland

Wales

Northern Ireland