There is not any such thing as being over protective when it comes to your home and your finances. There are numerous roofing contractors out there that are willing to bend the guidelines to simplify things for themselves, leading to problems for you and your roof. Even honest contractors make mistakes every once in a while. That’s why it’s important to know these 4 simple ways to protect yourself whenever choosing a roofing contractor.
Workers Compensation
Problem: You hire a roofing contractor to repair a leak on your own roof. One of their workers decides never to use proper safety procedures and falls, breaking his leg. The employee holds you responsible to pay his medical expenses, because he was hurt on your property.
Solution: Roofers Compensation is a kind of insurance covering roofing injuries. In case a roofing contractor has workers compensation, any injured employees have entitlement to recover expenses for hospital bills and being unemployed. Make sure that your roofing contractor has workers compensation so that you will are saved the difficulty and expenses of paying those bills yourself.
Liability Insurance
Problem: Your roofing contractor leaves your roof uncovered after removing your shingles. That night there is an urgent storm. Water seeps into your house and damages your sheet rock, carpet plus some nice furniture. Your roofing contractor has liability insurance, but you can find exclusions preventing coverage of the inside of your building. You wind up paying to repair the damages yourself.
Solution: If damage occurs to your house or building that is the fault of a roofing contractor, you want to be sure they have good liability insurance. This will cover anything from broken windows to damaged interiors as mentioned in the situation above. Some contractors have liability insurance, but their insurance company offers so many exclusions that it’s almost like there is no coverage at all. Search for coverage that doesn’t exclude water damage caused by leaving a roof open.
Business License
Problem: You hire a fresh roofing company to focus on your roof. A few months later you notice a leak. You make an effort to contact the business, but can’t find their information. You try to look them up by their business license and you also find that there is never a business license issued for that company. You’re forced to cover the repairs yourself.
Solution: Check in advance that your roofing contractor has a business license. If they don’t have a license, it could be a sign that they don’t know what they are doing. The business could easily disappear or walk out business.
In hawaii of Utah, your roofing company must have a shingle license and an over-all roofing license to install a pitched roof. roof repairs takes a general roofing license.
A general contractor is legally in a position to install a roof without a roofing license should they have an over-all contractor license. However, there have been many cases of contractors branching out and installing roofs themselves when they lack the proper training. This causes problems for building owners in addition to home owners. It is ideal for a general contractor to have a roofing license besides their general contractors license.
In Utah, the quantity for a general roofing licence is S280. The general contractors license is B100.
If your roofing contractor is in the middle of working on your roof and you also find that they will have given fraudulent business license information, (in Utah) you have the option to terminate their service right away. You are not necessary to pay anything to the contractor since they were operating illegally. You can then find a qualified contractor to fix your roof and finish the job.
Lien Waiver
Problem: Your roof has been completed and you pay the contractor. However, a couple weeks later, the contractor’s supplier contacts you requesting a fee for the materials installed on your roof. You discover that your contractor didn’t pay his supplier and that you will be now in charge of that payment. It has happened and can happen to you.
Solution: Be sure to request a lien waiver once the job is completed and before you pay. A lien waiver simply states that when the contractor fails to make his payments to a supplier or employees, you are not responsible to cover them. It really is ultimately in place to safeguard the home or building owner from paying twice. If you receive the lien waiver before you pay, it is conditional upon your payment. However, once your payment has cleared, the lien waver becomes unconditional without any additional paperwork.