How does a homeowner know when a roofer is lying to them? Tom Martino has a joke he likes to tell: their lips are moving. It gets a laugh, but after 45 years as Colorado’s leading consumer advocate and host of the longest running radio troubleshooter show in America, Tom has heard just about every line a dishonest roofing salesperson can deliver. And there is a lot of truth behind the punchline.
We sat down with Tom to talk through the most common lies roofers tell homeowners, especially here in Colorado where hail season brings a wave of door knockers every year. Some of these lies are pushy sales tactics. At least one of them is against state law. All of them are reasons to show a contractor the door.
Here are the five biggest red flags Tom shared, and what each one really means.
This is the one Tom flags first, and it may be the sneakiest trick in the roofing industry. A salesperson shows up and says you need to sign something before they can inspect your roof. They will not call it a contract. They will call it an authorization.
What is really happening: that "authorization" is a contract. By signing it, you may be legally committing to hire that company before they have told you what the work costs, what materials they will use, or when they will start. Some homeowners discover they owe a cancellation penalty to a company they never intended to hire.
The pressure tactics that come with it are lies too. Tom points out that these salespeople often claim you are required by law to sign, or that you will be held responsible if they get injured on your roof. Neither is a reason to sign anything. A legitimate roofing company will inspect your roof and give you a written estimate with no signature required and no strings attached.
Tom’s advice: do away with them altogether. Any company that needs your signature just to look at your roof is not a company you want on your roof.
Some roofers will tell you that handing over the first check before any work begins is simply how the industry works. Tom’s take on this one is blunt: even if it were true that some companies operate this way, paying a roofer up front is a bad idea. In his words, it’s dumb.
Roofing is one of the most common industries for contractor fraud in Colorado, and the classic scam follows the same script every time: collect a deposit after a hail storm, then disappear. A homeowner who has paid nothing has lost nothing if a contractor vanishes. A homeowner who paid up front is out thousands of dollars and still has a damaged roof.
This is exactly why Excel Roofing’s policy has always been the opposite of "first check up front." Our slogan is not just a tagline: you don’t pay a cent until you’re content. The work gets done, you approve it, and then you pay. Any contractor who demands money before a single shingle comes off should be treated as a red flag, no matter what they claim the industry standard is.
This one sounds like a favor. A roofer offers to waive, absorb, or rebate your insurance deductible so your roof replacement costs you nothing out of pocket. What could be wrong with that?
Everything. As Tom says plainly: that is a lie, and it is against state law. Colorado law specifically prohibits roofing contractors from paying, waiving, or rebating insurance deductibles. A contractor who offers to do it is telling you, in their very first conversation with you, that they are willing to break the law and commit insurance fraud on your behalf.
Think about what that means for the rest of the job. If they will lie to your insurance company, they will lie to you about materials, workmanship, and warranties. And the money to cover that "free" deductible has to come from somewhere, which usually means inflated invoices to your insurer or corners cut on your roof.
A roof replacement almost always requires a building permit, and pulling that permit is the contractor’s job. When a roofer tells you a permit is not necessary, Tom is direct about it: that is a lie.
Skipping the permit is not a shortcut that saves you money. It usually means one of two things: the contractor is not licensed to pull permits in your city, or they do not want a municipal inspector looking at their work. Either way, you are the one who carries the consequences. Unpermitted roof work can create problems with your insurance coverage, complicate the sale of your home, and leave you with no inspection record proving the roof was installed to code.
A legitimate roofer builds the permit into the process, handles the paperwork, and welcomes the inspection.
The last lie shows up after the contract is signed, when the roofer who was so attentive during the sales pitch suddenly becomes impossible to pin down. Don’t worry, we’ll get to you. Tom’s experience after four and a half decades of consumer complaints: that is usually a lie.
Storm chasers in particular are notorious for overselling after a hail event, collecting more jobs than their crews can handle, and then stringing homeowners along for weeks or months. Some start a job, disappear for days at a time, and leave a home exposed to weather in the middle of a tear off.
Tom put it this way in our conversation: a good roofing company, like Excel Roofing, starts a job and finishes the job. They do not come back every three or four days, or every three or four weeks. When you are vetting a contractor, ask for a start date and an expected completion window in writing, and ask recent customers whether the crew showed up when promised.
Every lie on Tom’s list has an honest mirror image. Use this as your checklist when a roofer is standing on your porch:
Tom has spent 45 years helping Colorado consumers solve problems, and his help line is available around the clock. If you have a consumer problem, roofing related or otherwise, you can call 303-MARTINO, which is 303-627-8466. During show hours the number connects to the live broadcast, and after hours it goes to voicemail and his team calls you back.
As we joked with Tom during the interview: lawyers are expensive, and Tom will help you solve your problems for free. Just don’t call him cheap.
No. Colorado law prohibits roofing contractors from paying, waiving, or rebating a homeowner’s insurance deductible. A contractor who offers to cover your deductible is proposing insurance fraud, and it is one of the clearest signs you are dealing with a dishonest company.
Consumer advocate Tom Martino advises against paying roofers up front, even when they claim it is an industry standard. Paying after the work is complete protects you if a contractor disappears or does poor work. Excel Roofing never collects payment until the job is finished and the homeowner is satisfied.
No. Reputable roofing companies provide free inspections and written estimates with no signature required. Documents presented as an "authorization" to inspect your roof are often binding contracts in disguise, and claims that the law requires your signature are false.
In nearly all Colorado cities and counties, yes. Full roof replacements require a building permit, and pulling the permit is the contractor’s responsibility. A roofer who says you do not need a permit is either unlicensed or avoiding inspection, and unpermitted work can cause insurance and resale problems for you later.
Verify that the company has a local physical address and an established history in Colorado, confirm they are licensed to pull permits in your city, read recent reviews, and ask for references from completed local jobs. Be especially cautious with door to door salespeople who appear right after a hail storm and pressure you to sign anything on the spot.
Excel Roofing has been serving Colorado homeowners since 1993, and we built our reputation on the exact opposite of the tactics Tom describes. Free inspections, no pressure, permits on every job, and you don’t pay a cent until you’re content. If a storm has you wondering about your roof, or another contractor has told you something that does not sound right, give us a call. We’re on top of it.