12 Questions to Ask a Roofer

Michigan requires a residential builder license, or a maintenance and alteration (M&A) contractor license from LARA, for residential work. Roofing is one of the listed M&A trades, and an M&A license has to name it. The main exemptions homeowners need to know are jobs under $600 in total labor and materials (a bigger job can't be split into small contracts to dodge that) and owners working on their own homes. Crews working under a licensed contractor's contract don't need their own license, so check the company you sign with.

A good answer is a number given without hesitation, plus the pocket card LARA requires contractors and salespeople to carry. Ask for the Michigan residential builder license number and look it up on LARA's site. Red flag: "we're licensed" with no number, or a number that doesn't come up. An unlicensed contractor can't sue you to collect payment for licensed work and can't put a lien on your property unless it was licensed during the work, but those protections don't get your roof built right.

LARA says your contract should include proof of liability insurance and workers' compensation. The Attorney General's advice is sharper: when a contractor says "insured", ask "insured for what?" Contractor insurance usually covers injuries on the job site, not poor workmanship, unfinished work, or damage to your property or a neighbor's.

A good answer is a certificate of insurance with the company's name on it and a clear explanation of what it covers. Red flag: a verbal "we're fully insured" and nothing on paper.

Under Michigan's workers' compensation rules, a private employer has to carry coverage once it has one employee working 35 or more hours a week for 13 or more weeks in the past 52, or three or more employees at one time, part-time included. A sole proprietor is never an employee of their own business, so a one-person roofer with no employees doesn't need it.

So the good answer depends on who's coming. If a crew will be on your roof, ask for proof of coverage. Red flag: a crew of four and an owner who says workers' comp doesn't apply.

In Grand Rapids, re-roofing an existing house takes a residential building permit, and the applicant must be the owner-occupant or hold a State of Michigan residential builder license (or have written authorization from a license holder). Contractors also have to register their license with the city. LARA says the contract should state that the contractor will pull all required permits.

The good answer is "we do." The Attorney General warns to be wary if a contractor asks you to pull the permit, because that is often a sign the contractor is unlicensed or unwelcome at the local building department.

LARA's guidance lists what the contract should include: the license number, a statement that the contractor will pull all required permits, proof of liability insurance and workers' compensation, the warranty terms, and a right-to-cancel clause. Under the Construction Lien Act, a contractor has no lien rights on a home unless the work was under a written contract, with changes in writing too, and the contract has to state the licensing requirement and give the license number.

The Attorney General adds two things to watch in form contracts: blank spaces or check-boxes (one might grant a lien, for example), and arbitration clauses, which can affect your rights and remedies. Red flag: a one-line estimate someone wants you to sign as the contract.

The Attorney General's building and remodeling advice is to pay for only part of the work up front, saying about one-third of the contract price should generally suffice. After storms, the AG repeats it: never pay cash, never pay in full up front, and pay by credit card so you have dispute rights. DIFS lists asking for payment in advance, in cash or through a peer-to-peer payment app as a warning sign.

A good answer is a modest deposit, a written schedule tied to the work, and a check or card. Red flag: the full amount before the materials arrive, or "cash gets you a better price."

Michigan's Construction Lien Act requires the contractor to give you a sworn statement listing every subcontractor, supplier and unpaid laborer, with the amounts owed, whenever payment is due or requested, or whenever you ask for one. A false sworn statement given to defraud is a crime. When a lien claimant is paid in full it must give a full unconditional waiver, and on request a partial unconditional waiver for partial payments. A waiver only counts for payments actually made, and the law doesn't allow lien rights to be waived in advance of the work.

The good answer is "yes, with every payment." One Michigan detail: on a home, if a supplier or sub has served you a notice of furnishing, you can't rely on its waiver unless it came to you directly from that company or you verify it in writing, by phone or in person.

The Michigan Residential Code (R908.3.1.1) bars a re-cover, or overlay, when the existing roof already has two or more layers of any roof covering, is water-soaked or deteriorated, or is slate, clay, cement or asbestos-cement tile. The code defines a roof replacement as removing the old roofing down to the deck.

A good roofer will tell you how many layers are on the house now and whether the deck needs work once it's exposed. Red flag: a low bid that turns out to be shingles over shingles on a roof that already has two layers.

Michigan's version of the residential code requires an ice barrier statewide. Under R905.1.2 it runs from the eave edge to at least 24 inches inside the exterior wall line, and on slopes of 8:12 or steeper at least 36 inches up the slope from the eave. It can be two layers of underlayment cemented together or a self-adhering polymer-modified bitumen membrane. Grand Rapids reproduces the 24-inch rule in its own roofing handout.

A good answer names the product and says how far up the roof it will run on your house. Red flag: a roofer who treats the ice barrier as an optional upgrade.

There are usually two warranties on a new roof. The manufacturer's covers the materials. The roofer's covers the installation, and the Attorney General points out that a contractor's insurance usually doesn't cover poor workmanship, so the workmanship warranty is what you have if the install is the problem.

LARA says the warranty terms belong in the contract. A good answer puts both in writing, with how long each lasts and what voids them. Red flag: "lifetime warranty" said out loud and never written down.

The Attorney General suggests checking a contractor's complaint history with LARA, the BBB and the Attorney General's office, and getting two or three written estimates. LARA's Residential Builders' Section takes calls at 517-241-9309.

A good roofer gives you its full company name and license number so you can look. Red flag: a business name that changes between the truck, the estimate and the contract.

The Attorney General says to resist "now or never" pitches, and DIFS lists rushing you to sign as a warning sign of contractor fraud. If you do sign at home with a salesperson, Michigan's Home Solicitation Sales Act generally lets you cancel a sale over $25 until midnight of the third business day after signing, in writing.

The good answer is "of course." Red flag: a price that expires when the salesperson leaves your driveway.