The short answer: Never sign a front porch agreement, and never pay any money up front. Those two rules will keep you out of almost every roofing scam we have seen in more than thirty years in this business.
Excel Roofing was founded in 1993, and we have served more than 55,000 customers across Colorado and Wyoming. In that time I have helped a lot of homeowners dig out of a mess left behind by a bad contractor. Almost every one of those messes started the same way: a high pressure pitch at the front door and a signature given too fast.
Here is how the most common roofing scams work, and exactly how to avoid them.
Red flag number one: the front porch agreement
Without a doubt, the biggest red flag is the person who knocks on your door, climbs up to inspect your roof, and then pressures you to sign an agreement right there on the porch. Their number one goal is to walk away with your signature, and the document they hand you is usually not what they say it is.
The pitch sounds harmless: just sign this authorization so I can meet with your insurance adjuster. It might do that. But the same page often has a lot more buried in it:
- An authorization that requires you to turn over your first insurance check to their company
- A full roofing contract
- A cancellation fee of 20 - 25% percent
- A requirement that you pay money up front
- Metal panel roofs. The supplier often needs payment to fabricate the panels before they will produce them.
- Custom materials and special orders, like custom tile or windows. These work the same way.
Do not let a salesman you met five minutes ago rush you into signing something you have not read and do not fully understand. This is almost always step one in how a homeowner ends up stuck with a bad contractor.
Take your time, because this is a big decision
If you need a new roof, take your time. Choose the contractor you feel most comfortable with, the one you believe will do the best job on your home. You are about to spend tens of thousands of dollars on a major home improvement, and a door to door scammer should not get to rush that call. Any contractor who will not give you time to think is telling you something important about how they do business.
The biggest scam in roofing: paying money up front
So what is the single biggest scam in roofing? Collecting money up front.
There have been countless roofers in the news who collected tens of thousands of dollars from homeowners and then simply disappeared. Once your money is gone, you have almost no way to get it back. Paying up front is almost always a bad idea.
I have heard every excuse for why you should pay before the work is done. Here are the two most common, and why neither one holds up.
Excuse one: I need the money to buy materials
This is a huge red flag on its own. Any good roofer already has credit with the supply houses. We do not need your money to order shingles. A contractor who says they cannot buy materials without your cash is telling you they do not have the credit or the track record that an established company has.
Excuse two: just pay when the material arrives
This one sounds innocent. It is not. What happens if the roofer installs those shingles incorrectly? I promise you this happens every day in both Colorado and Wyoming. Roofs get installed badly. If you have already paid, you are stuck with a bad job and no leverage to make it right. Your unpaid balance is the only real leverage you have, so do not give it away.
The second scam: the cancellation fee
The second major scam is the cancellation fee. Roofers bury these in their contracts on purpose, and they do it to hold you hostage.
Here is how it plays out. A smart homeowner does their research after signing, realizes this is not a contractor they want to work with, and tries to get out. And they get told: sure, just pay me 15 percent of the contract and I will let you out. On a roof replacement, that can mean thousands of dollars.
Never sign a contract with a cancellation fee buried in the fine print.
When is it actually okay to pay up front?
There are real exceptions to the rule about paying money up front. Sometimes an advance payment is genuinely necessary:
The common thread is that these items are made to order. Once they are manufactured for your home, they cannot be returned, so the supplier wants payment first. That is a legitimate reason for a deposit on materials, and it is very different from a contractor asking for a pile of cash before a single shingle is touched.
Your checklist for avoiding a roofing scam
Here is the simple version. Do these four things and you will avoid nearly every scam out there.
- Only accept bids from reputable contractors. A reputable roofer has been in business a long time, has lots of reviews, and has an actual office. Do not do business with Chuck and a truck.
- Read the fine print. Never sign anything with a cancellation fee, or anything that requires you to hand over your first insurance check to the roofer.
- Stick to your guns. Do not pay a dime until the job is complete and you are satisfied.
- Never sign on the porch, and never pay up front. The two rules we started with.
Why homeowners call Excel Roofing
If you need a new roof, I would like you to call Excel Roofing. Our motto is simple: You Don't Pay A Cent Until You're Content. And we never charge cancellation fees.
To learn more about our products and services, visit our Learning Center. And when you are ready, give us a call to schedule a time for us to come out, or use our easy online scheduler to pick the day and time that works best for you.
We're On Top Of It.
Frequently asked questions
What is the number one roofing scam to watch for?
Paying money up front. Countless roofers have collected large deposits and then disappeared without doing the work. A reputable contractor does not need your money before the job is done, so you should not pay a dime until the work is complete and you are satisfied.
Should I sign a roofing agreement on my front porch?
No. The front porch agreement is the most common way homeowners get trapped with a bad contractor. That authorization often hides a full roofing contract, a cancellation fee, a requirement to hand over your first insurance check, and a demand for money up front. Never sign on the spot.
Is it ever okay to pay a roofer up front?
Only for made-to-order materials that cannot be returned, such as metal panels, custom tile, or custom windows, where the supplier needs payment to fabricate them. That is different from a contractor asking for cash before any work begins, which is a red flag.
Why do some roofers say they need money to buy materials?
It is an excuse, and a red flag. Any established roofer already has credit with the supply houses and does not need your money to order shingles. A contractor who cannot buy materials without your cash is showing you they lack the track record of a real company.
What is a roofing cancellation fee and why is it a problem?
It is a fee buried in the contract, often around 15 percent, that a contractor charges if you try to cancel. They use it to hold you hostage after you sign. On a roof replacement that can be thousands of dollars, so never sign a contract with a cancellation fee in the fine print.
How do I know if a roofing contractor is reputable?
A reputable roofer has been in business a long time, has plenty of reviews, and has an actual office you can visit. Read the fine print before signing, and do not pay anything until the job is finished. Avoid the door to door operator working out of a truck.
Does Excel Roofing charge a cancellation fee?
No. Excel Roofing never charges cancellation fees. Our motto is You Don't Pay A Cent Until You're Content, so you do not pay until the work is complete and you are satisfied.
