Money is where most roofing disputes start. A deposit that was larger than expected, a final payment demanded before the job is finished, a price that grows once the scaffold is up. All of these are avoidable if the payment terms are written down before work begins and both sides keep to them.
A roofing contract does not need to be long. It needs to say what the work is, what it costs in total, the date each payment falls due and the stage that triggers it. It should also tell you about your right to cancel if you signed at home, and say what happens if the job turns out to need more than expected.
This guide follows that order. It explains one total written price, how staged payments work, what to check about VAT, cancellation rights and the urgent-repair exception, how changes are agreed, and where to go if things fail. The advice is general and applies to any roofer. For how we work, see our Andover roofing page; for the warning signs to watch for, read how to spot a dodgy roofer.
What a roofing contract should say
A contract is simply an agreement, and it can be a quote that you accept in writing. What matters is that the important points are on paper and that both of you have a copy. Check for these items before you sign anything.
The parties and the address
The contract should give the full name of the business, its address and a contact number, and the address of the property where the work will be done. A named company or trading name on the paperwork is the starting point for any later complaint.
The work
It should describe the work in plain words: which slopes, what covering, what is stripped and what is kept, what happens to flashings, ridges, gutters and chimneys, and how waste is dealt with. Anything you were promised in conversation should be in the document, because a promise that is not written down is hard to prove. This applies to small items too, such as who removes the old ridge tiles, whether the chimney pots are reused and whether clearing the gutters is included in the work.
The price
It should give a single written total covering all of the work and state whether VAT is in it. It should say who arranges and pays for scaffolding, and for any licence the scaffold needs.
Dates
Include the day work begins, how many days it should take and the main milestones, with a line on what happens if bad weather holds things up.
Where a single contractor works on a home, CDM 2015 obliges that firm to prepare a construction phase plan. Ask to see it before work begins.
One total price, and what it should cover
A good roofing price is a single written total for the entire job. The aim is that you know what you will pay, and that the roofer knows what they have agreed to do. You can ask what the total includes without needing a catalogue of separate sums.
The questions to ask
Ask whether the total includes VAT, scaffolding, the skip and tipping charges, and the removal of old materials. Ask whether it includes work you have not mentioned but that might be needed, such as renewing battens that turn out to be rotten. An honest roofer will say what is in and what is not. If an answer is unclear, ask for it to be written on the quote, so the document and the conversation agree.
What VAT means for the price
The standard rate of VAT is 20%. A roofer who is not VAT-registered does not add it, and one who is registered must. The domestic reverse charge never reaches a homeowner, since it applies only to trades between businesses that sit within the Construction Industry Scheme. Energy-saving materials fitted between 1 May 2023 and 31 March 2027 can be zero-rated, with the reduced 5% rate from 1 April 2027, but that applies to specific materials, not to roof repairs in general.
Comparing quotes
On Citizens Advice's recommendation, collect written quotes from at least 3 traders. Only compare totals once you know each one covers the same scope and the same VAT position. Which? ranges leave VAT out, so set them against a quote with care.
Staged payments and what is fair up front
Paying everything at the start is rarely wise, and paying nothing until the end is rarely practical for a roofer who has to buy materials. The sensible middle is a short list of stages, each tied to something that has actually happened.
A deposit with a purpose
A deposit can reasonably cover materials that have to be ordered specially, such as a particular tile, slate or roof window, and a booking fee for the date. Ask what the deposit buys and when it will be spent. If the answer is vague, ask for it in writing. Judge the size of a deposit against the cost of the materials, not against habit.
Stage payments
On a larger job, payments can follow the work: after the scaffold is up, after the old covering is stripped and the structure checked, after the new covering is fixed, and a final sum after the job is complete and cleared. Each payment should be written against a stage, so everyone can see when it falls due.
The final payment
Keep the last payment for when the work is finished, you have inspected it and the site is clear. Look at the roof from the garden, ask for photographs of the areas you cannot see, and make sure any scaffold has gone before you pay. If you cannot inspect on the day, say so and agree to pay once you have been able to look, usually within a day or two.
Our short answer on roofer deposits adds more, and the guide on choosing a roofer covers how to compare firms.
Cancelling a contract signed at home
A contract agreed in your own home after a roofer has surveyed is treated as off-premises, so a statutory cooling-off period sits behind it. Our guide to spotting a dodgy roofer walks through the 14 days, the extension to 12 months where the trader gave no cancellation information, and the £42 threshold. Here the question is how that right fits with money.
Payment inside the cooling-off period
If the roofer starts early at your request, the request has to be made in a durable medium. A written request protects both sides, and also records the date the work began. A deposit paid in the first fortnight is still part of a contract you may be able to cancel, so keep the paperwork that shows when it was signed.
Cancelling in practice
If you decide to cancel, do it in writing and keep proof of sending. Ask for a refund of any deposit and say when you expect it.
The urgent-repair exception
Regulation 28(1)(e) takes work outside the cancellation right when you summoned the trader specifically to deal with an emergency repair. A roofer cannot create that situation by calling a job urgent. It exists for the customer who rings and asks for help with a leak, and it is the reason a make-safe visit is treated differently from a planned re-roof.
When the job changes
Roofs hide things. Once the covering is off, a roofer may find rotten battens, a damaged rafter, a poorly fixed chimney flashing or old repairs. A change to the plan is not a sign of bad faith, but how it is handled shows whether the contract works.
Agree it in writing before the work
The rule is that a change to the scope or the price is agreed before the extra work is done, in writing, with a short description of what was found. A photograph is the best evidence. Send an email, or sign a one-line variation. Do not accept a verbal request on the day for a sum that has not been fixed.
What the law expects
Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 your roofer must use reasonable care and skill, and finish within a reasonable time if no date was agreed. The Act also supplies remedies if the work is poor, and a trader cannot contract out of those standards. A change of plan does not suspend them.
If a stage is not finished
Do not pay for a stage until it is done. If the roofer asks for the next stage payment while the previous one is incomplete, say so in writing and agree a date. A calm record of dates is a better position than an argument on the drive.
Keep every message, photograph and receipt together, because they are your evidence if there is a dispute. A folder, paper or digital, with the contract at the front, saves a great deal of time later.
If payment or quality becomes a dispute
Most disputes can be settled by a written complaint that sets out the problem, what you want and a reasonable deadline. Keep the tone factual and send it by a method that leaves a record.
Dispute resolution
Section 308 of the 2024 Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act obliges a trader to say what alternative dispute-resolution arrangement is available when a customer is unhappy with the result. The ADR Regulations 2015 are revoked, so ask the trader which route they offer.
Free advice
The Citizens Advice consumer helpline is 0808 223 1133. It can explain your rights on cancellation, on poor workmanship and on payment, and what the next step might be.
Paying safely
Pay by a method that leaves a trace, such as a bank transfer or a card, and get a receipt for each stage, showing the date, the amount, the address and the name of the business. Cash with no receipt gives you no proof of payment.
Before you start
The best time to deal with a dispute is before it happens. Having the scope, price and stages in one document, a record of what was agreed, and photos taken of the roof both before work and once it is done, makes it much easier to settle disagreements fairly.
Read the contract once more before you sign, and ask for anything unclear to be explained in writing.
