Table of Contents
Why This Checklist Exists
Bucks County and Montgomery County see contractor fraud complaints spike every spring and after every significant storm. The Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office lists home improvement fraud among the top consumer complaint categories in the state — year after year.
The contractors who generate those complaints don’t advertise that way. They arrive with low estimates, professional-looking materials, and pressure to sign quickly. The seven questions below are the filter. A legitimate contractor answers every one without hesitation. A problem contractor either can’t answer or pivots away from the question.
Ask all seven before you sign anything.
Question 1: Are You Registered as a Home Improvement Contractor with the Pennsylvania Attorney General?
What you’re looking for: An active HIC (Home Improvement Contractor) registration number, issued under the Pennsylvania Home Improvement Consumer Protection Act (HICPA).
Pennsylvania does not require a statewide roofing or chimney license. But HICPA requires registration for any contractor performing home improvement work valued at $500 or more. The registration requires the contractor to provide proof of insurance and maintain a bond.
The right answer: The contractor gives you their HIC number immediately. You can verify it at the PA Attorney General’s public database at no cost.
The red flag: “We don’t need that for this kind of work,” or vagueness about what state they’re registered in. If a contractor tells you Pennsylvania doesn’t require registration for their type of work, that statement is false and is itself a warning sign.
Why this matters beyond compliance: An unregistered contractor has no bond requirement and no accountability mechanism under Pennsylvania law. If the work is defective or the contractor disappears, your legal remedies are significantly harder to pursue.
Question 2: Can You Provide a Certificate of Insurance — and Can I Call Your Insurer to Verify It?
What you’re looking for: A current Certificate of Insurance showing active general liability coverage (minimum $1 million per occurrence) and workers’ compensation coverage for all on-site personnel.
Do not accept the COI without verification. Call the insurer’s number — from the insurer’s website, not from the certificate itself — and confirm the policy number is active and the limits are current.
The right answer: The contractor produces the COI immediately and has no objection to you calling the insurer. They may even expect it.
The red flag: Delays in producing the COI, a certificate showing a policy period that expired, pressure not to call (“it’s fine, we’re insured”), or a policy that covers only the owner with no workers’ comp for laborers.
Why this matters: If an uninsured worker is injured on your property, your homeowners insurance becomes the primary coverage. If the contractor damages neighboring property and is uninsured, you may bear liability. This is not a technicality — it is direct financial exposure to you as the property owner.
Question 3: What Warranties Do You Offer, and What Exactly Do They Cover?
What you’re looking for: Two separate warranties with clear terms — a manufacturer materials warranty and a contractor workmanship warranty.
These are different products covering different failure modes:
| Warranty Type | What It Covers | What It Doesn’t Cover |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturer Materials Warranty | Defects in the roofing or chimney materials themselves | Installation errors, improper ventilation, damage from other causes |
| Contractor Workmanship Warranty | Labor defects — improper installation, missed flashing details, inadequate sealing | Material failures, Acts of God, homeowner-caused damage |
| System Warranty (where offered) | Both materials and labor together, issued by the manufacturer when a certified installer is used | Requires certified installation — ask if the contractor is manufacturer-certified |
The right answer: The contractor explains both warranties, provides the terms in writing, and can tell you whether they are manufacturer-certified for the product line being installed (which unlocks enhanced warranty coverage from brands like CertainTeed, GAF, and Owens Corning).
The red flag: A verbal warranty with no written documentation, a workmanship warranty under 2 years, or a contractor who is unfamiliar with the manufacturer warranty terms for the product they’re selling.
Question 4: Are You Familiar with Bucks County Permit Requirements, and Who Pulls the Permit?
What you’re looking for: The contractor pulls the permit. Not you. The contractor.
In Pennsylvania, roofing and chimney work above certain thresholds requires a building permit in most Bucks County and Montgomery County municipalities. Requirements vary by township — Warminster, Doylestown Borough, and Newtown Township each have distinct thresholds and inspection requirements.
A contractor who knows this will tell you whether a permit is required for your specific scope of work, pull it under their HIC registration, and schedule the required inspection.
The right answer: “Yes, we handle permit pulling. Here’s how the process works for your municipality.”
The red flag: “You don’t need a permit for this,” without verification. “You can pull it yourself.” Or complete unfamiliarity with local permit requirements.
Why this matters: Unpermitted work is a disclosure requirement at resale in Pennsylvania. If a buyer’s home inspector discovers unpermitted roofing or chimney work, you may be required to obtain retroactive permits — which can require invasive inspections of the completed work. Insurance claims on unpermitted structures can also be denied.
Question 5: How Do You Handle Unexpected Damage Found During the Job?
What you’re looking for: A clear, written protocol — not a verbal promise.
Every roofing and chimney project in Pennsylvania has the potential to uncover something unexpected: rotten decking beneath the shingles, a cracked liner that wasn’t visible from the firebox, deteriorated framing at the eave line. How a contractor handles discovery determines whether your final bill matches your estimate.
The right answer: “If we find additional damage, we stop work, show you the problem directly, give you a written change order with the scope and added cost, and get your signature before we proceed. We don’t make assumptions about what you want.”
The red flag: “We’ll handle whatever we find and settle up at the end.” Or a contractor who cannot tell you what their discovery protocol is. This is how scope creep and unauthorized charges happen.
What to put in the contract: Include a clause specifying that no additional work beyond the quoted scope will be performed without a written, signed change order. This is standard practice with professional contractors and should not be a point of negotiation.
Question 6: What Does Your Site Protection and Cleanup Protocol Look Like?
What you’re looking for: Specific answers about how they protect your landscaping, siding, windows, and HVAC equipment during tear-off, and exactly how they handle debris removal.
A roof tear-off generates thousands of pounds of debris, thousands of nails, and significant dust. A chimney rebuild generates brick fragments, mortar dust, and liner debris. The question is not whether this debris will land on your property — it will. The question is whether the contractor has a system for managing and removing it.
The right answer: A specific protocol. Tarps or plywood protecting landscaping and A/C units. Magnetic nail sweepers making multiple passes of the lawn. A dumpster on-site (not a pile in your driveway). A final walkthrough with you before they leave.
The red flag: Vague assurances. “We clean up after ourselves.” A contractor who has never been asked this question before. Any indication that the final site condition is not part of their standard work scope.
Question 7: Can You Provide Three Local References From Jobs Completed in the Past 12 Months?
What you’re looking for: Three actual references — homeowners in Bucks County or Montgomery County — with phone numbers, who completed projects comparable to yours within the last year.
Not a Google review page link. Not a Houzz profile. Three names and phone numbers of homeowners you can call.
The right answer: The contractor produces three references without hesitation. You call at least two of them. The questions to ask: Did the crew show up when scheduled? Was the final invoice close to the estimate? Did anything unexpected happen, and how did the contractor handle it? Would you hire them again?
The red flag: References outside the region (“we do most of our work in New Jersey”), references that are more than 18 months old, references who cannot remember the contractor when you call, or a contractor who cannot produce three references at all.
Why local references matter specifically: Contractors who are new to a market, working outside their normal territory, or following a storm event into a new county often have no local reference base. This is a direct indicator of a transient operator who will not be reachable when a warranty issue arises.
The Threshold Test
A contractor who answers all seven of these questions clearly and without defensiveness is demonstrating the baseline level of accountability you should expect. These are not trick questions. They are the minimum standard.
If a contractor becomes evasive, dismissive, or uses price pressure to move you away from due diligence — that response is the answer to all seven questions simultaneously.
Get everything in writing. Read the contract before signing it. Confirm that the payment schedule, warranty terms, permit responsibility, and change order protocol are all documented — not discussed verbally and assumed.
Verbal agreements are enforceable in Pennsylvania under certain conditions, but proving their terms after a dispute is expensive and uncertain. The contract is the document that matters.
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Frequently Asked Questions
- Does a roofing contractor in Pennsylvania need to be licensed?
- Pennsylvania does not issue a statewide roofing license — unlike electricians or plumbers. However, all contractors performing home improvement work are required to register as Home Improvement Contractors (HIC) with the Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office under the Home Improvement Consumer Protection Act (HICPA). Any contractor who cannot provide an active HIC registration number is operating outside the law. Verify registrations at the PA Attorney General's online database before signing any contract.
- How do I verify a contractor's insurance in Pennsylvania?
- Ask for a Certificate of Insurance (COI) directly from the contractor, then call the issuing insurance company to verify the policy is active and the coverage amounts match the certificate. Do not accept a COI without verifying directly with the insurer — certificates can be fabricated or show lapsed policies. Minimum acceptable coverage in Pennsylvania is $1 million general liability and workers' compensation covering all on-site crew members, including subcontractors.
- What is a fair payment schedule for a roofing job in Bucks County?
- A standard payment structure is 10–30% deposit at contract signing, the balance due on final completion after a walkthrough. For larger projects ($20,000+), a three-payment schedule — deposit, mid-project milestone, and final payment — is reasonable. Any contractor requiring more than 30% upfront, requesting cash payment, or asking for full payment before work begins is demonstrating a significant red flag. Pennsylvania's Home Improvement Consumer Protection Act provides recourse, but prevention is substantially easier than recovery.