The short answer
A roofer may reasonably ask for a deposit when materials have to be ordered specially, such as particular slate, stone tiles or made-to-measure lead and flashings. It should be modest, written into the quote and tied to the cost of those materials. Be wary of any request for cash, a large share of the price before work begins, or payment for work not yet done.
Why a deposit can be reasonable
A roofer who orders materials is spending their own money before they see any of yours. For ordinary items, such as common concrete tiles or standard battens, a merchant will supply on account and there is little reason to ask the customer for anything early. The picture changes when the job needs something that is bought specially and cannot easily be returned.
Examples are not hard to find. Natural slate in a particular size and colour to match an existing roof may be ordered from a quarry or a reclamation yard. Stone tiles for a period house can have a long lead time. Lead sheet is cut and sometimes pre-formed for a chimney or a parapet gutter, which is a lead gutter sitting against a high wall, and made-to-order pieces are no use to the next customer. In those cases a deposit that covers the cost of the special materials is fair, because the roofer would otherwise carry the loss if you changed your mind.
The logic is simple. A deposit should reflect a real cost the roofer has to meet before the job, and it should be explained. If a roofer cannot say what the money is for, that tells you something.
What a fair arrangement looks like
There is no fixed rule on how much a deposit should be, and nobody can set a single figure for every job. A sound arrangement has a few features, whatever the amount.
- It is written down. The quote states the amount, what it is for and when it is due.
- It is tied to materials. The deposit relates to the cost of items ordered, not to the roofer's general running costs.
- It is modest compared with the whole price. You should never be paying most of the job before a tile is touched.
- Later payments follow progress. For a longer job, stage payments, for example after the strip and after the new covering is on, keep the balance of power even.
- The balance is due at completion. Final payment follows a walk-round and your being satisfied the work is finished, with the site cleared.
For a small repair, many roofers ask for nothing until the job is done. For a large re-roof, a materials deposit and a couple of stage payments are common. If a firm is asking for something quite different, ask why, and see whether the explanation makes sense. Our list of items a quote should state includes payment terms, so you can check the arrangement is on paper.
Red flags to take seriously
Some requests for money should make you stop. The most important is a demand for a large sum, or all of it, before work begins. A roofer who needs the full price in advance to afford the materials is either short of money or not planning to finish.
Others to watch for:
- A request for cash only, with no receipt or invoice.
- A deposit asked for on the doorstep after an unsolicited visit.
- Pressure to pay today to secure a price or a start date.
- A figure that changes between the conversation and the paperwork.
- A reluctance to put the amount, the purpose and the dates on paper.
- A request for a bank transfer to a personal account that does not match the business name on the quote.
None of these proves bad faith on its own, but together they should slow you down. Our guide to checking out a roofer covers the other warning signs, from the address to the paperwork.
If you feel rushed, say that you will pay the deposit once you have received the quote by email and had time to read it. A genuine roofer will wait a day for you.
Protecting yourself if you do pay
If you agree to pay a deposit, a few habits reduce the risk. Pay by a traceable method, such as a bank transfer or a card, instead of cash, and keep the confirmation. Where possible, pay a business account that matches the name on the quote. A card payment may give you extra routes to recover the money if something goes wrong, so it is worth asking your card provider about the position for your own case.
Keep every piece of paper: the quote, the acceptance, the receipt and any messages that refer to the work or the start date. Photograph the roof before work begins, so there is a record of what it looked like.
Agree a start date, or at least a window, and ask what happens if the roofer cannot meet it. If materials are ordered specially, ask to see the order or the delivery note. A roofer who is open about it will usually be happy to oblige.
If things go wrong, write to the roofer, set a reasonable deadline and keep the record. Citizens Advice is a good first stop for general guidance, as this page is not legal advice.
How the deposit fits with the guarantee and the rest of the job
A deposit is only one part of the money trail. The payment you make at the end matters just as much, because that is the moment you can check the job before you part with the balance. Do not hand over the final sum until you have looked at the work, or at the photographs of it, and have the guarantee in your hand. The page on a workmanship guarantee sets out what it should say.
For work that is spread over several weeks, a staged plan helps both sides. The roofer is not out of pocket, and you are not paying too far ahead of the work. Ask for the stages to be named in the quote, such as after scaffold and strip, after the new covering, and on completion.
It is also worth thinking about the point of the deposit in the bigger picture. A small repair, or a regular tune-up of the kind described in a roof maintenance checklist, will often need no deposit at all. A big, special-order job might. Payment terms are agreed on paper after our survey, so you know what is due and when. Our home page explains how to ask for a survey.
