Raise the roof . . . to the legally mandated limit
A roofing contingency contract is a legally binding document.
There’s usually a grace period after signing, but you should discuss that with your roofing pro.
Make sure you have a termination clause in your contract before signing.
When you’re hiring pros to make major home repairs or renovations, you can expect to sign a contract. Contracts protect you as the consumer and the pros who will be completing the work. Roofing contracts, sometimes known as roofing contingency contracts, are legally binding documents that lock both you and your roofing contractor into an agreement. Let’s take a look at how these roofing contracts work, as well as when and how you can break them without serious consequences.
When you hire a local roofing company, you’ll likely sign a contract or a contingency contract to reserve your project’s start date and spell out the terms of your agreement.
In a standard roofing contract, you and the roofing company are the only parties involved. In a roofing contingency contract, the word “contingency” indicates an insurance company's role in the process.
The contract’s viability is contingent on your insurance provider’s approval of the work. If, for any reason, your insurance claim isn’t approved before the roofing pros start working, the contract becomes void. If your insurer approves the claim, by signing a roofing contingency contract, you agree that these pros are the only ones who will tackle the approved work.
Signing a roofing contingency contract has its pros and cons. Before you sign on the dotted line, ensure you understand every aspect of the agreement.
If you sign a roofing contingency contract, your roofers will be invested in ensuring that your insurance claim is approved. By signing the contract, you give them a chance to take on a project with a guaranteed paycheck, plus it’ll guarantee that the quality of work will be sufficient enough to get approved by the insurance company.
Signing a contingency contract can also speed up the repair or roof replacement process. As soon as you get approval from your insurance company, the work can begin.
Entering into a contract means you and the roofing team agree to work together, but unlike other contracts, it means that your roofers have the right to turn down the job. They may refuse the job if the insurance company doesn’t approve the entire claim or agree to pay the price they have quoted.
Signing a roofing contract means that you agree to let the roofing company handle the entire scope of the approved project, provided they accept it. For example, if a tree falls and leaves a hole in your roof and a crack in your driveway, the roofers have the right to subcontract the pro of their choice to repair your driveway. The roofing pros will talk over subcontractor options with you in most cases, but they aren’t legally required to.
In those cases, you may not have complete power over which professionals complete work on your property. You’ll, of course, choose the roofer, but hiring pros for other portions of the job might be out of your hands.
Prior to signing your contingency contract, discuss the details with your roofer and ensure your roofing contract includes the basics:
Professional’s name
Business address
Contact information for your roofer
Insurance information
A legitimate roofing company will provide copies of their workers' compensation insurance, liability insurance, and an insurance bond.
If the job requires any licenses or permits, the contract should include this information as well as a scope of work, materials list, and projected timeline. The roofing contract should also include detailed descriptions of how any installation is going to take place, the payment schedule, the due dates of any deposits, and a list specifying accepted payment methods.
A good contract also includes a termination clause. A termination clause specifies when or why either party may terminate the contract. It’s important to spend extra time reading this section of the contract to understand your options and how binding your roofing contract really is.
Roofing contracts will often have an expiration date, which means you or your roofer can back out of the agreement if your insurance company takes too long to approve the proposal. Check your contract for this date before signing to understand how long you’re committed to working with that particular roofer.
With that being said, you can often cancel a roofing contract within 72 hours of signing the contract without incurring cancellation fees. You should pay attention to and note the terms and conditions detailed in the contract—or ask your roofing contractor for exact dates—before signing any official documentation.
You can cancel most contracts, including the majority of roofing contracts, within three days of signing with no legal repercussions. Check your contract for the length of the grace period. Aside from that small window, you are legally bound to work with that roofing contractor when you sign a contract.
While you can’t typically walk away from a contract for no reason, there are some situations in which your contract may become null and void. These situations include the following:
Your insurance company denies your claim in full
Your insurance company partially denies your claim
Your insurance company approves your claim but does not agree to pay the quoted fee, and your roofer backs out
Your contract expiration date passes before your insurance company approves the work
Aside from these cases, if you break your contract without grounds, the pro could sue you for loss of profit or contract violation. That’s why it’s essential that you review all aspects of your roofing contract before agreeing to work with a roofing service.
Julia Pelly contributed to this piece.
Proposals, invoices, and estimates are most often used as marketing documents and are not legally binding. Contracts are legally binding documents that detail the service offering, project considerations, and signatures from all parties.
If you signed a proposal for discussion purposes while requesting a quote and you decide to hire them, make sure the contracting party follows through with a legally binding contract to protect both parties.
It’s always a good idea to have a lawyer review any legally binding contract before signing, including roofing contracts. Most contracts have straightforward language that’s easy to understand, but getting advice from an attorney before signing could save you from being locked into a contract you don’t want to move forward with. Having a lawyer review your contract can also help protect you if your roofing professional defaults on their side of the agreement.
Technically speaking, yes, verbal agreements and “handshake deals” can be legally binding contracts that will hold up in court, but the suing party will need to be able to prove that the parties entered into the contract. Even though verbal and handshake deals can be binding, it’s risky to rely on these types of agreements for anything, including roofing projects. Always aim to get your contract in writing, and make sure it includes all terms and that you don’t agree to additional terms that don’t appear in the contract.
Your best course of action if a contractor breaches a roofing contract is to hire an attorney to carry out legal proceedings. You can often sue for breach of contract, and you might want to consider filing a complaint with the Better Business Bureau (BBB) and your state’s licensing regulator or the attorney general. You’ll also want to find a reliable contractor to fix or complete the work the original roofer neglected to complete, but only after documenting what the first contractor did or didn’t do.
