The cheapest quote is often more risky. Ask yourself if a company offers a low quote. Is this going to make your home more comfortable or cause you headaches down the line?
This is the real story of 3 neighbors who had two different Ottawa roofing companies. To keep their identities secret, the names have been changed. John, David and Jessica lived in detached homes at Ottawa's West end. John and Jessica had been neighbours since the community's inception around 15-18 years ago. David just bought his winter home, knowing that it would need a roof in spring.
After a short conversation about group discounts, the trio decide to get quotes from each other and then see who is most competitive. They all receive quotes and then share them with one another. Although most quotes are similar, one quote is much cheaper than the other. John and Jessica quickly take the lowest quote from the list, fearing that it could cause them headaches. David decided that a roof was just a roof. The contractor didn't want a large deposit so David felt it safe. He also wanted to save nearly $1500.00. He thinks John and Jessica might be a bit too worried.
John and Jessica chose the company with a better reputation that offered longer warranties. David chose the other company, and all three roofs were completed by summer 2015. Both had no problems with their roofs, except for the 2018 windstorm that caused most of David's roof to fall off. John and Jessica did not lose any roofing shingles but were unable to see the entire roof. David may have made mistakes, but it doesn't mean that he was a bad contractor.
David tried to contact his contractor to get him back, but the warranty offered for wind speeds up to 110 MPH was not enough. Even though winds were less than 100 KM/H, it would still be covered. David was unable to reach his contractor, and he kept making false promises. John & Jessica called their Roofing Contractor to verify that all was well.
David was forced to pay John & Jessica $500.00 to their contractor for emergency water proofing. David hoped that his contractor would resolve the problem, but after 2 weeks, the contractor did not return, and ignored all David's calls. David called his insurance company, which sent an adjuster who investigated the cause of the damage. The adjuster discovered that most of David's shingles were 'high-nailed', which means poor workmanship. David had to re-roof his entire roof because insurance refused to pay for the damage.
