Most advice about hiring a roofer stops at the questions. The questions are the easy part. What tells you something is the shape of the answer, so each one below comes with what you want to hear and what should worry you.
1. Can Your Insurance Agent Send Me The Certificate Directly?
Good answer: yes, with the agent's name, and it arrives that day. It shows general liability and workers compensation, both current.
Bad answer: a PDF from their own files, or "we are fully insured, do not worry about it." Texas does not require most private employers to carry workers compensation, so on a roof this is a real question, not a formality.
2. What Is Your Physical Address, And How Long Have You Been At It?
Good answer: a street address in the metro and a number of years you can corroborate against review history and the business record.
Bad answer: a PO box, an out-of-state address, or a company registered a few months after the last hail event. Warranties are only as good as the company's continued existence.
3. Will The Estimate Be Itemised?
Good answer: yes, and it lists tear-off and layers, decking replacement at a stated price per sheet, the exact underlayment and shingle by manufacturer and product, flashing and every penetration, ventilation, permit, clean-up, and both warranties.
Bad answer: one number. A lump sum cannot be compared with another lump sum, which is generally the point of quoting that way.
4. What Happens If You Find Rotten Decking?
Good answer: a price per sheet agreed in advance, a photograph of what was found, and your approval before it is replaced.
Bad answer: vagueness. This is the single most common source of a final bill that does not match the quote, because nobody knows what is under the shingles until the shingles are off.
5. Who Is Actually On My Roof, And Who Supervises Them?
Good answer: a clear statement of employed crews or subcontractors, plus a named supervisor on site daily and a way to reach them.
Bad answer: "our guys." Subcontracting is normal in roofing. Unsupervised subcontracting is where flashing and ventilation details quietly disappear, and those are the details that decide whether the roof leaks.
6. What Does The Workmanship Warranty Cover, And For How Long?
Good answer: a specific term, in writing, with what voids it and whether it transfers to a buyer. They should also explain the difference between this and the manufacturer's material warranty without being asked.
Bad answer: "lifetime," with nothing on paper. Most roof failures are workmanship rather than material, so this is the warranty that matters and the one most often left verbal.
7. How Do You Work With My Insurance Company?
Good answer: we document the damage the way an adjuster needs to see it, we meet them at the property, and we give you the photographs. The claim is between you and your carrier.
Bad answer: an offer to handle the whole claim, or to cover your deductible. Negotiating a claim on your behalf is adjusting, and it requires a licence in Texas. Absorbing a deductible is fraud, and it is your policy on the line as much as their business.
Two Extra Signals
Ask for the last three Richardson addresses they worked on. An established local company can give them without checking. And notice whether they are willing to leave without a signature. Every legitimate roofer will. The pressure to decide tonight only ever benefits the person applying it.
What To Do With The Answers
Ask all seven of two or three companies. You will usually find the answers sort themselves quickly, and the price stops being the deciding factor once you can see what each number actually buys.
Ask Us All Seven
Free inspection, photographs of everything, and an itemised written estimate. We will answer every question above before you commit to anything.
Call (214) 437-7353 Richardson roofing services
