Are you worried that your roofer might cut corners by outsourcing the job to a third party you’ve never even heard of? Are you concerned that a subcontracted crew might not care as much about the long-term quality of your roof?
You're not alone. Many Seattle-area homeowners don’t realize that some of the biggest roofing companies in Washington (and across the country) routinely subcontract their roof installations. This can create a serious disconnect between the company’s reputation and the actual crew doing the work.
At RoofSmart, we’ve replaced far too many roofs that were supposed to last 20+ years but failed in under 10, all because the original installer lacked the experience, training, or integrity to do it right. We believe that you deserve to know who will really be working on your roof.
In this article, we’ll show you how to spot whether a roofing company uses subcontracted crews, explain why companies do it, and walk you through the potential risks involved so you can make the most informed decision for your roof.
What are the signs that my roofer uses subcontracted roofing crews?
Some companies hire roofing crews to work directly for their company, while others subcontract crews from other companies to do their roofing work. If you don’t know where to look, it can be hard to tell what your roofing company does.
There are some key indicators that your roofing company uses subcontractors for roofing. These can be found using public information searchable using the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries Verify tool.
Here’s what to look for:
- Out-of-State Ownership: Right up top on the L&I website, it says who the owner is and what their address is. You can easily see if the company is based in Washington State or somewhere else. A company not based in the state likely uses local subcontractors. This is not uncommon with national companies that have locations all over the U.S.
- Low Employee Count: The L&I website also lists how many employees a company has. This gives you a sense of how many crews a roofing company might have. For example, this roofing company’s account lists that they have 7 to 10 employees:
This is a company that operates in Washington, but its owner is based in Ohio. They have locations all over the U.S. So, if they're one of the largest home improvement companies in the country, then why do they have seven employees?
It doesn't mean that none of those are installers. It would mean they had one installation crew (typically, a crew is 4 to 5 people). But a large company with few employees is a potential sign of subcontracting.
This is why it’s also important to talk to the roofing company and ask them how many roofing crews they have. If it’s 2 or more, but they only have 7-10 roofing crews listed, then they’re subcontracting their roofing crews. You can also directly ask them if they use subcontractors.
- Subcontractor Names in Violation Reports: You can also check for evidence of subcontractors by checking if they’re named in safety violation reports. For example, this company has a violation for not ensuring that their subcontractor was tied off while working on the roof:
This is clear evidence that this company was using a subcontractor for their roofing work.
Why do roofing companies use subcontracted roofers?
So, if you’re going to expand your company or establish a business in a new state, why use subcontractors instead of hiring crews to work for your company? Well, the quick, easy answer is that it saves the company money.
Bigger roofing companies choose to subcontract their roof work because it:
- Cuts down on mandatory costs: So if you've got a subcontractor, you just pay them a flat fee for the work. You don't have to cover any of their taxes, any of their payroll taxes, or any of their workers' comp. This also means that the subcontractor isn’t covered under their liability insurance (they’ll have their own). These fees all add up over time and can become incredibly expensive, especially for big companies that are trying to expand and increase profits. They’re not responsible for any of those fees.
- Maintains their brand and reputation for less money: When a well-known, large company hires a subcontractor, it’s a way for them to continue to advertise based on their reputation in the industry while using cheaper labor. You’re hiring a company based on the quality you think they’ll deliver, but they’re actually sending in a different company to do the work for them.
What are the risks of choosing a company with subcontracted roofers?
So what does all of this mean for your roof? Is it bad to hire a company that uses subcontractors?
Just because your roofing company uses subcontractors doesn’t automatically mean that they’re going to do a bad job. However, there are some potential risks that you should consider:
- Lack of Accountability: Subcontractors have no long-term reputation at stake because they are working under the name of the company that you hired. This can incentivize speed over quality because they are focused on getting paid. Doing a great job might not matter as much to them because you might not even know the name of the subcontractor’s actual company. There's no relationship, there's no loyalty, there's no reputation. All the things that you care about when you're hiring somebody, they don't have any of that. You think you’re getting a top-quality option, but you might end up with the cheapest possible contractor (without saving you any money).
- Poor Warranty Support: You might get a solid warranty from your roofing contractor, but you're hiring a company to do work that they couldn't do in the first place. So if there's a problem, they can't fix it. They're going to have to subcontract to somebody else to fix it. Or they're going to hope that the guy who did crappy work the first time will go fix it the second time. Not a great position to be in.
- Lack of awareness about local roofing issues and practices: If you’re in Washington State, and the company you hired is based in Ohio, then there’s a decent chance that they have no idea how to meet the unique roofing concerns that apply to homeowners all over the Seattle area. We live in a unique environment, and the weather here is pretty different from Ohio. There’s a chance that the local roofing company they hired as subcontractors will be able to better address your concerns, but not if they’re just looking to get the job done as quickly as possible.
What should you look for in a truly qualified roofing contractor?
Now that you understand the potential risks of hiring a company that uses subcontracted roofing crews (like lack of accountability, warranty complications, or misaligned priorities), it’s more important than ever to ensure you’re hiring a contractor who stands behind their work with their own in-house team.
But how can you tell if a roofing contractor is actually qualified, not just licensed? What credentials, experience, and practices should you look for before trusting someone with your home?
We break it all down in our next article so you can confidently choose a roofer who’s reliable, experienced, and committed to doing the job right: Is Your Seattle Roofer Actually Good? Here’s How to Tell Before It’s Too Late
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