It is natural to wonder whether a roof is cheaper in winter. The thought runs that roofers are quieter, that anyone willing to work in poor weather should be willing to take a lower price, and that the best deal sits just after the autumn rush. It is a reasonable guess, but nothing national measures it, so a percentage offered for doing the job in January rests on one roofer's order book and not on a rule.
What we can say is where the calendar does and does not matter. The cost of a re-roof comes from the area and complexity of the roof, the covering chosen, how it is reached and what lies beneath the old tiles. Season reaches the price only indirectly: through how far ahead roofers are booked, how many working days the weather allows, how long a scaffold stays up, and a couple of fixed dates in the rules.
We take each of those in turn, give the published cost ranges for a new roof with their sources, and set out what changes if the roof is replaced in winter. The aim is to help an owner in Farnborough or a nearby village pick a start date on evidence and not on a hunch about the quietest month.
What the published prices say about the calendar
The cost guides for a new roof give a figure for the job as a whole, and none of them splits it by month.
| Source | Figure |
|---|---|
| Which?, Nov 2025 (ex VAT) | £7,000 to £21,000 for replacing the entire roof |
| HomeBuilding, Sep 2025 | £10,000 to £15,000, plain concrete tiles, 65 m² three-bed semi, incl. labour, scaffolding and insulation |
| HomeBuilding, Sep 2025 | up to £18,000 for the same house in Welsh slate |
| MyJobQuote, Oct 2026 | around £5,250 |
What the table tells you
The spread is wide, and the gap between sources is larger than any plausible seasonal swing. A figure of £7,000 against £21,000 for the same kind of house reflects how big the roof is, what covers it and how each guide defines the job. If a roofer offers a discount for winter, it is small beside those differences, so the covering and the specification matter far more than the month.
Why a month cannot be priced
A saving for booking in a particular month would depend on an individual roofer's order book, which changes from year to year and from week to week. What we can describe is what moves the price, and the price you receive from us follows a survey of your roof and does not rest on a season.
These ranges are typical UK figures from named guides, never Fortis Roofing Farnborough prices. Our roof replacement cost guide goes into what drives them, and the roof replacement page describes the work.
Demand, booking and lead times
If the calendar does move the price, it does so through demand. When many people want roofing at once, good roofers book up and a start date slips. When fewer do, you may find an earlier slot or more room to choose.
Why good weather draws demand
Roof work depends on dry spells, so owners tend to think about roofs when the weather is fine and put them off when it is not. Enquiries bunch up in fine weather, and a roofer who is careful about quality books work ahead and does not cram it in. How strong that effect is varies from firm to firm.
What to ask a roofer
Ask when a job could start and how long the quote stays open. A roofer who can start next week with no questions about your roof may not have looked at it. A roofer who is booked for several weeks is often one worth waiting for.
Quote validity
A quote is a price for a specified piece of work, and materials costs change. Ask how long the figure holds, and whether it changes if the start moves.
Booking early for flexibility
If you have no leak and plenty of time, booking a start date a few months out gives the roofer time to order materials and arrange access, and gives you the choice of a season. If you do have a leak, the weather is not a reason to wait. Our post on the longest-lasting roof covering helps you choose what to specify while you wait.
Weather windows in north-east Hampshire
A roof needs dry days to be opened safely, and the climate record shows how many of those there are.
What the Met Office records
Averages from the Met Office station at South Farnborough run from 1991 to 2020. Yearly rainfall is about 715 mm, falling across around 118 days of 1 mm or more, with about 53 air-frost days. The wettest month in the rows we read is January. Those figures say nothing about how windy or exposed the town is, so we draw no conclusion on that.
What it means for planning
Days with at least 1 mm make up roughly a third of the year, so a roof job will meet some wet weather whatever the month. Roofers plan for it by opening only as much roof as can be closed in a day, and by watching the forecast. A re-roof is not stopped by a shower but a wet day is not used to open a slope.
Frost
Frost matters to some materials and to safety. A roof with ice on it is not worked on, and mortar and sealants have temperature limits set by their makers. That is a reason to plan ridges and verges around the weather.
Light
Short winter days mean fewer working hours, so a job takes more calendar days. That does not necessarily mean higher cost, but it means a longer time with the scaffold up. Our answer on rain during a roof replacement explains what we do when the weather turns.
Scaffold time and licences
Scaffold is one of the few costs that follows the calendar in a visible way, because it is charged for the time it stands and, in some places, for each licence period.
Why a longer job costs more
The scaffold stays up for the length of the job. If winter weather stretches a job from days into weeks, the scaffold hire runs on. Scaffold cost comes from the job in hand and not from a price list, so ask each roofer how long the scaffold should stay up and whether the figure allows for bad weather.
The licence if it is on the pavement
Scaffold left on the public highway is licensed under the Highways Act 1980 s169, and in Rushmoor and Hart the highway authority is Hampshire County Council. Hampshire County Council says the scaffolding firm applies for its customer, and it charges £211.90 for the first 2 weeks and £72 for each further 2-week block. Hampshire County Council also asks for 10 clear working days of notice and offers no extensions, so an overrunning job needs a new application.
What this means for timing
A job planned for a period of settled weather finishes sooner and uses fewer licence periods. A job planned for a wet month risks more. In that sense the cost of a winter job can be higher, not lower, even if the roofer's rate is the same.
Elsewhere
Surrey, Bracknell Forest, Windsor and Maidenhead and Wokingham have their own rules and charges. Where those rules differ, we arrange it with the scaffolder and give you the charge for your street. Our scaffolding for a new roof answer covers access in more detail.
A VAT date and a regulation date worth knowing
Two fixed dates are the only ones we can point to that change what a roof costs or what it must meet. Both concern insulation and energy rules, and neither is seasonal.
VAT on energy-saving materials
The standard VAT rate is 20%. For energy-saving materials such as insulation, installations made between 1 May 2023 and 31 March 2027 are zero-rated, and the rate reverts to the reduced 5% from 1 April 2027. That applies to the qualifying insulation and not to the whole roof job, and it is not a general rate for roof repairs. If your re-roof includes new insulation and you are choosing between a start before April 2027 and one after, have the quote say which VAT treatment it assumes.
Approved Document L
The 2026 edition of Approved Document L takes effect on 24 March 2027 for ordinary dwelling work. Until then the 2021 edition applies. Your building control body confirms which one governs your job and when.
Grants
No national grant pays for a new roof. Insulation schemes exist, with ECO4 running to 31 December 2026, but eligibility depends on the household and nothing is assured. Read the scheme page before building a plan on one.
Why this matters
A fixed date is a better reason to move a start than a hunch about the season. If you are close to a date, ask the roofer how it affects the quote.
If you must replace a roof in winter
Sometimes the roof cannot wait. A leak, a storm or a failed section will not respect the calendar, and a re-roof in winter is entirely possible with the right sequencing.
Making safe first
If the roof is leaking, the first job is to stop the water. If water is getting in, we begin with a temporary repair to stop it, and plan the permanent work for the right window. MyJobQuote gives an emergency call-out as typically £150 to £300, and extensive storm repairs at £1,200 or more (October 2026). Waiting for a quieter month while a leak carries on can cost more than any saving.
Working in sections
In winter the opened area is smaller. Each one is covered before dark and we move on only when the forecast allows, so nothing stays exposed overnight.
Materials
Some materials and fixings suit cold weather better than others. Dry-fix ridge and verge systems avoid mortar that needs to cure, which can help. Ask the roofer to explain what they will use.
Telling your insurer
If the damage is from a storm, contact the insurer first, then arrange a temporary repair and hold on to the photos and receipts. Your policy's own definition decides whether it counts as a storm.
Booking the permanent work
Once the roof is safe, book the re-roof for the best window you can get. Our survey tells you how urgent it is, and the written price follows.
