There is not any such thing as being over protective when it comes to your home as well as your finances. There are several roofing contractors out there which are willing to bend the rules to simplify things for themselves, leading to problems for you and your roof. Even honest contractors make mistakes every occasionally. That’s why it’s important to know these 4 simple methods 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 employees decides not to use proper safety procedures and falls, breaking his leg. The employee holds you responsible to cover his medical expenses, because he was hurt on your property.
Solution: Roofers Compensation is really 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 out of work. Be sure that your roofing contractor has workers compensation so you 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 unexpected storm. Water seeps into your home 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 interior of your building. You end up paying to fix the damages yourself.
Solution: If damage occurs to your home or building that is the fault of a roofing contractor, you intend to be sure they have good liability insurance. This will cover anything from broken windows to damaged interiors as stated in the situation above. Some contractors have liability insurance, but their insurance company offers so many exclusions that it is almost like there is absolutely no coverage at all. Look for coverage that doesn’t exclude water damage resulting from leaving a roof open.
Business License
Problem: You hire a new roofing company to work on your roof. A few months later you see a leak. You try to contact the company, but can’t find their information. You make an effort to look them up by their business license and you also find that there was never a business license issued for that company. You are forced to cover the repairs yourself.
Solution: Check in advance that your roofing contractor has a business license. If they don’t possess 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 a general roofing license to set up a pitched roof. A flat roof installation only takes a general roofing license.
An over-all contractor is legally able to install a roof without a roofing license if they have a general contractor license. However, there were lots of cases of contractors branching out and installing roofs themselves if they lack the proper training. This causes problems for building owners and also home owners. It is perfect for a general contractor to possess a roofing license besides their general contractors license.
In Utah, the quantity for a general roofing licence is S280. The overall contractors license is B100.
If your roofing contractor is in the middle of working on your roof and you also find that they have given fraudulent business license information, (in Utah) you have the option to terminate their service right away. You are not required to pay anything to the contractor because they were operating illegally. After that you can find a qualified contractor to repair your roof and finish the work.
Lien Waiver
Problem: Your roof has been completed and you also pay the contractor. However, a couple weeks later, the contractor’s supplier contacts you requesting a fee for the materials installed on your own roof. You discover that your contractor didn’t pay his supplier and that you will be now in charge of that payment. energy efficiency has happened and can eventually you.
Solution: Make sure you 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 aren’t responsible to cover them. It is ultimately in place to safeguard the house or building owner from paying twice. If you have the lien waiver before you pay, it really is conditional upon your payment. However, once your payment has cleared, the lien waver becomes unconditional without any additional paperwork.