As featured on KXAN Studio 512
How to Spot a Bad Roofing Company (and Tell When a Roofer Is Lying)
You can't climb up and inspect the work yourself, so roofing runs on trust. Here are the eight things bad roofers say most often in Austin, the truth behind each one, and how to check any roofing company in about 15 minutes.
By Austin Roofing Company • Updated October 2026
Austin's Most Trusted Roofing Company
5-star rated service since 2008
The short answer
A bad roofing company makes claims you can't check and pushes you to sign before you try. A good one puts everything in writing: the damage in photos of your own roof, an itemized estimate, a per-sheet decking price, and two separate warranties. Check every roofer the same way: a registered Texas business, years of local reviews, a real street address, a manufacturer directory listing, and neighbors who will vouch for them. Any roofer who claims a Texas roofing license or offers to cover your deductible fails on the spot.
8 Things Bad Roofers Say, and How to Check Each One
Every line below is something Austin homeowners hear at the door, on the phone, or across the kitchen table. Each one comes with the truth and a check you can run yourself.
"I'm a licensed Texas roofer."
The truth: The State of Texas does not issue a roofing license. A 2025 bill to create one, HB 3344, stalled in the Texas House and never became law.
How to check: Ask which agency issued the license and for the number. There is no state agency to name. What a roofer can prove is insurance, local history, and manufacturer certification, so ask for those instead.
"Your insurance will pay for a whole new roof."
The truth: No roofer decides your coverage. Your insurance company does, after its adjuster inspects the roof and reads your policy.
How to check: Treat any promise of a payout made before the adjuster visits as a sales line. Ask the roofer to show you the damage in photos instead, then let the claim run its course.
"We'll take care of your deductible."
The truth: Texas law makes it illegal for a contractor to waive, rebate, or absorb your deductible, and requires you to pay it. Contracts of $1,000 or more that involve an insurance settlement must carry a notice saying so.
How to check: Look for the deductible notice in the contract. If a roofer offers to "eat" or "handle" the deductible, end the conversation.
Source: Texas Department of Insurance: Roofing and insurance, know the law
"You've got hail damage all over the roof."
The truth: Sometimes true. Sometimes the photos come from a different roof, or the "damage" is normal wear.
How to check: Ask for photos that show your house in the frame: a wide shot of the slope with your vents or chimney, then the close-up. Ask for the damage in writing, slope by slope. Get a second inspection before you sign anything.
"It comes with a lifetime warranty."
The truth: Two different warranties hide behind that phrase. The manufacturer covers the shingles. The roofer covers the installation, and that workmanship warranty has its own term.
How to check: Ask for both warranties in writing, with the workmanship term stated in years. "Lifetime" with no paperwork covers nothing.
"We're certified by GAF" (or Owens Corning, IKO, Malarkey).
The truth: Manufacturer certification is real and checkable. Each manufacturer lists its certified contractors on its own website.
How to check: Search the company name in the manufacturer's contractor directory. If the company is not listed, the certification does not exist.
"We found rotten decking. That's another $4,000."
The truth: Rotten decking is real, and nobody sees it until the old roof comes off. The lie is the open-ended price.
How to check: Before you sign, get a per-sheet price for decking written into the estimate. During the job, ask for a photo of every sheet replaced. Nothing gets added without your approval.
"This price is only good today."
The truth: Roofing materials do not change price overnight. Same-day deadlines exist to stop you from comparing bids.
How to check: Take the written estimate and compare it with two others. If you already signed at your door, Texas law gives you until midnight of the third business day to cancel a home solicitation sale over $25.
Storm season adds its own set of warning signs, from door-knockers to out-of-state plates. Our Texas roof insurance claim guide lists them. For the decking and estimate side, our Austin roof replacement cost guide shows every line a legitimate estimate includes.
The 15-Minute Background Check for Any Roofer
You can check any roofing company in Texas from your phone before you let it on your roof. Run all seven steps; one failure is enough to keep looking.
- 1 Business record. Search the company name on the Texas Comptroller's free taxable entity search. It shows whether the business is registered and its right to do business in Texas. Texas Comptroller
- 2 Review history. Sort Google reviews by newest, then scroll back. A real local roofer has reviews spread over years, from named customers, mentioning real neighborhoods.
- 3 Better Business Bureau. Look up the rating and read how the company answered complaints. How a roofer handles a problem tells you more than the score. BBB
- 4 Street address. Put the address into a map. A real office beats a P.O. box, a mailbox store, or an out-of-state address.
- 5 Manufacturer certification. Find the company in the GAF, Owens Corning, IKO, or Malarkey contractor directory.
- 6 Permit history. In Austin, the City's public permit search shows building permits by address. A roofer who pulls permits has nothing to hide from the city. Austin Build + Connect
- 7 Your neighbors. Ask the people on your street who replaced their roofs, who did it, and whether that company came back when something needed fixing.
A roofer who passes all seven still has to pass the inspection itself. A 10-minute look from the driveway that ends in "you need a new roof" is a sales pitch. Our free roof inspection page shows what a real inspection covers, side by side with what a sales pitch looks like.
What an Honest Roofer Hands You
The most important parts of your roof are the ones you'll never see from the ground: the decking, underlayment, valleys, flashing, and the seal around every vent. A roof can look brand new from the driveway and still leak in three years. An honest roofer closes that gap with paper and photos:
- A written inspection report with photos of your roof. Wide shots and close-ups, so you can tell it's your house.
- An itemized estimate. Tear-off, underlayment, flashing, ventilation, and the shingle named by manufacturer and product line.
- A per-sheet decking price, written in before work starts.
- Two warranties, both in writing. The manufacturer's on materials and the roofer's on workmanship, each with its term.
- Photos of the work before it gets covered, and a final quality-control inspection before the job is called done.
If a roofer can't produce these, the problem is not the paperwork. The problem is what the paperwork would show.
Run the Same Checks on Us
We wrote this guide expecting you to use it on Austin Roofing Company too. Here is what you'll find:
- Local since 2008, headquartered at 807 Brazos St #403 in downtown Austin, with an office in Round Rock. Meet the family that runs it on our about page.
- A 5.0-star Google rating from named local customers, and an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau.
- Certified by four shingle manufacturers: GAF (Certified Plus), Owens Corning (Preferred), IKO, and Malarkey. See our GAF directory listing.
- General liability insurance, and no claim to a roofing license that Texas doesn't issue.
- Every job documented in photos and video, from inspection to the final quality-control inspection, and the photos go to you.
- Decking priced per sheet in the written estimate, photographed, and never charged without your approval.
- A 10-year workmanship warranty on top of the manufacturer's Limited Lifetime warranty, the two separated in writing.
- Featured on KXAN Studio 512 and CBS Austin, explaining roof costs and insurance claims. Watch the segments on our press page.
And ask your neighbors. Chances are someone on your street already knows us.
Questions About Vetting a Roofer, Answered
How can you tell if a roofer is lying?
How do I check if a roofing company is legitimate in Texas?
Does a roofer need a license in Texas?
Is it illegal for a roofer to pay my insurance deductible?
Can I cancel a roofing contract in Texas?
What should I do if a roofer scammed me?
Get a Second Opinion You Can Check
Another roofer said you need a new roof? We'll inspect it free, photograph what we find, and tell you plainly whether you need a repair, a replacement, or nothing at all.
See what a real inspection covers on our free roof inspection page.