No roofing licence exists to check
A roofer in the UK does not need a licence to trade. There is no state roofing licence for a householder to ask to see, so the question to put to a firm is what it will commit to on paper, not which card it carries.
When a quote or a van makes a claim of any kind, ask what the claim actually covers, who stands behind it and where the paperwork is. A claim that cannot be backed with a document is just a sentence.
The gap left by the absence of a trade licence is filled in two ways. Permits apply to particular parts of a roof job, such as the scaffold on the pavement. Consumer law applies to the whole of the job, whoever does it. The next two sections cover each in turn.
So the choosing is done by you, from what a firm is willing to put in writing, and your protection comes from the law rather than from a badge. That is a firmer footing than it sounds, provided you keep the written scope, the photographs and the quote together in one place.
Licences and permits that do touch a roof job
Several licences and permits sit around a roof job, even though none of them belongs to the roofer. They matter because someone has to apply, and the right question is who.
| Item | Who applies |
|---|---|
| Scaffold over the pavement | Scaffold firm, via Kent County Council |
| Skip on the road | The skip firm, to Kent County Council |
| Asbestos insulating board | A contractor holding the right asbestos licence |
| Building control sign-off | Depends on the work |
Kent County Council expects the firm that will place the item on the highway to make the application, which is why a householder is not asked to fill in the form. Asbestos insulating board in soffits counts as licensable work unless the job is brief, and licensable work belongs with a contractor who holds the licence. Whether a re-roof needs building control approval turns on the share of the roof and building envelope touched, plus the weight and fire behaviour of any new covering, and the Planning Portal sets out that test. Ask the roofer which route applies at your address, and have the answer written into the scope.
What the law gives you instead
Section 49 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015 sets the standard for services, and it asks for reasonable care and skill. A roofer is held to it as any other trader would be. A re-roof that lets water in within weeks, or a flashing that was never dressed down properly, can fall short of that standard.
Section 52 adds that, where no time was agreed, the work has to be done within a reasonable time. Sections 54 and 57 set out the remedies available when the standard is not met, such as having the work put right.
The law works after the event, which is why the checks below matter before it. They give you something to point to if a dispute begins. For the steps in a dispute, see your rights if a roofer's work is poor.
For general advice at any stage, the Citizens Advice consumer helpline is on 0808 223 1133. Have the quote, the dates and the photographs to hand when you ring, because the adviser will ask what was agreed and what was done.
What to ask for before you say yes
Because there is no licence to check, the paperwork becomes the check. These are reasonable requests to make of any firm:
- A written scope that names the slopes, the parts and the materials, ending in one total price.
- Photographs of the roof as found, and the same views again when the job is done, taken from the same spots so that the two sets can be compared side by side.
- The name of whoever applies for the scaffold, and a line confirming that VAT and the scaffold are in the figure.
- Building control sign-off where the work needs it, with the certificate to follow.
A firm that will not write these down has given you an answer of its own. The checklist in choosing a roofer in Kent goes further, and what a written roofing quote should include covers the quote itself.
With our roofing in Margate and Thanet, the roof gets a proper look before a figure appears, and you are sent photos of your own slopes, so every number in the quote traces back to something visible.
