How to Check an Oregon Roofing Contractor License

Who licenses roofers in Oregon?

The Construction Contractors Board. It licenses residential and commercial contractors, and it is the record the homeowner checks.

A roofer may hold a licence of the right kind for the work, or may not. The Board's record shows which, and the homeowner does not need to know every internal class to ask whether the record covers this roof.

Why is the roofing class left to the Board's site?

Because the classes are set and changed by the Board, and the sources available to this site disagree on them.

A figure on a licence page that turns out to be wrong is worse than no figure, so this guide does not state a class. Ask the roofer which class covers the scope, and check the answer on the Board's site.

If the roofer's answer depends on a particular class, ask for the basis in writing and keep it with the contract.

• Ask which class covers the scope
• Check the class on the Board's site
• Keep the basis in writing

What about bond and insurance?

The sources disagree on the bond and the insurance minimums, so this guide states none. Ask for proof of insurance and any bond in writing.

A roofer should show proof of insurance for the job and any bond the Board requires for the class. Check the figures on the Board's record rather than taking a roofer's word for them.

Keep the proof with the contract. If a claim is later made, the proof shows who was insured for the work.

• Proof of insurance in writing
• Any bond checked against the Board's requirements
• The proof kept with the contract

What if the roofer will not give a number?

Do not sign or pay. A roofer who cannot be checked cannot be relied on, whatever the quote says.

Where a number is refused or a licence is said not to be needed without a reason, the homeowner has no check to rely on. The Board is the place to take a licensing concern.

Keep the quote and the record of the number given, because those make a concern specific.

• Do not sign until the number is verified
• Keep the quote and the record
• Raise licensing concerns with the Board

How should the record be kept?

The number, the name, the class, the date of the check and the result, filed with the contract, the scope and the insurance proof.

Re-check the record if the job runs for many weeks, since a licence can change status. A dated check on the day of signing is the strongest answer to a later question.

A file with the licence, the scope and the insurance together is the simplest protection for a homeowner.

• The number, name, class and date kept together
• A second check if the job runs long
• The file kept with the contract

Reading the Board's record

The record shows the licence status, the name and, where it is shown, the classes the licence covers. Read each field, and do not assume that a licence number alone answers every question.

The status should read as active on the day of the check. The name should match the name on the quote, and any difference must be explained. The class should be read against the scope, not against the roofer's general description of their work.

Print or save the record with the date, so the reading can be shown to anyone who later asks.

• Status active on the day of the check
• Name matched to the quote
• Class read against the scope

What to do if a roofer changes names

A change of name is not unusual in trade businesses. The homeowner asks for the change in writing and checks the record under both names.

A roofer who has recently changed the business name should show the change on the record and in writing. Check the licence under the new name and, where the record shows it, under the old one, so that the history of the licence is clear.

If the record cannot show the link between the names, the homeowner should not sign until the roofer provides an explanation the Board's record supports.

• Ask for the change in writing
• Check under the new and old names
• Do not sign until the link is shown

Verifying subcontractors

A roofer who uses a subcontractor for flashing, decking or electrical work should name the subcontractor on the quote and show the subcontractor's own licence where one is needed.

Each subcontractor's licence is checked on the Board's record in the same way, and the dated results are kept with the contract. A subcontractor with no licence where one is required is a risk to the whole job, and the homeowner should ask the roofer to explain it before work begins.

• Name each subcontractor on the quote
• Check each licence on the record
• Keep the dated results with the contract

Why the record is checked more than once

Because a licence can change status during a job, and a check at the start does not show a change in the middle.

A licence that is active at the start of a job can lapse or change during it. Check the record again at the midpoint of a long job, and at the final payment. The dated results show that the roofer was properly licensed at each stage that money changed hands.

• Check at the start
• Check again at the midpoint of a long job
• Check again before the final payment

Keeping the check useful for an insurer

An insurer may ask whether the roofer was licensed on the day of the work, so the dated check is kept with the insurance file.

If a claim later involves the work, the insurer may ask who did it and whether they were licensed at the time. A dated check on the Board's record, kept with the insurance papers, answers the question directly.

• Dated check kept with the insurance papers
• Answers the question of licence on the day
• Kept with the claim file if one is made

What the homeowner should carry to the check

The roofer's name, the licence number as written on the quote, the scope, and a note of the date.

Bring the quote and the scope to the check, so the name and number can be matched exactly. A check against a number copied from a business card is weaker than one against the number on the signed quote. Note the date and the result on the quote itself.

• The name and number as written on the quote
• The scope beside the check
• The date and result noted on the quote

When a check result is unclear

Ask the roofer to explain it in writing, check again later, and do not sign until the result is clear.

An unclear result is not a pass. Ask the roofer to explain it in writing, check the record again after a few days, and do not sign or pay a deposit until the answer is clear. The Board is the place to take the question if it remains unresolved.

• An unclear result is not a pass
• Ask for the explanation in writing
• Check again before signing

How to explain the check to a roofer

Say you check every roofer's number on the Board's record before any deposit, and that the check is a routine step, not a suspicion.

Most roofers expect the check and will show the number readily. Describe the check as routine: the number is checked on the Board's record, the date is noted, and the result goes on the file. A roofer who objects to the check has given a reason to look harder.

• Describe the check as routine
• Note the date and result on the file
• An objection is a reason to look harder