Do some checking before allowing a roofing contractor to work on your home

After last week's hail storm, it seems to be raining roof contractors, but not everyone out there is legitimate. <br/><br/>News on 6 business reporter Steve Berg has some advice on avoiding a rip-off.

Tuesday, April 12th 2005, 6:21 am

By: News On 6

After last week's hail storm, it seems to be raining roof contractors, but not everyone out there is legitimate.

News on 6 business reporter Steve Berg has some advice on avoiding a rip-off. And why you should think twice about who you hire.

Golf ball, even softball-sized, hail left telltale signs of hail damage and there are other signs too. Tulsa homeowner Charles Ray: "I've had several fliers put in my door, my mailbox, and what have you from Edmond and Guthrie and Oklahoma City."

Local roofers Clint Vaughn and Mark Wedel say it happens with every storm. Clint Vaughn with Roofscapes of Oklahoma: "You'll start seeing a lot of, y'know, signs you don't recognize." Mark Wedel with Empire Slate and Tile Company: "in the rights of way, y'know, entrances to your neighborhood, stuck on telephone poles, you'll start to notice a whole lot of those."

Vaughn and Wedel say out-of-town contractors often have signs along busy roads, but not signs in yards, where they've actually done a job. But they say what's really confusing is those out-of-towners will sometimes pay a local company to use their name.

They say check a contractor's driver's license to see if they're local. Check the license plate on their truck. They say they'd even check the white pages to see if the contractor lives here in town. Clint Vaughn: "Some of this stuff might seem like invasion of privacy, in order to protect themselves, or protect their home, I'd recommend doing it."

Out-of-town roofers might do a good job, but even if they do, Wedel says roofs aren't foolproof. Mark Wedel: "And if they're in Texas or they're in Tennessee or down in Florida, it's a little hard to get them back to work on your roof." Charles Ray: "We've got plenty of good local roofers."

There is something else you should do and that is, make sure your roofer has workers compensation and liability insurance. Otherwise, you might be liable if their crew gets hurt.