The short answer
A modest deposit against a written quote can be reasonable. Large sums up front, or cash, are the risk. Ask for payments in stages that follow visible progress, a final balance only once you are satisfied, and pay by a traceable method. If you signed at home after a survey, a cooling-off right usually applies, but not to an urgent repair you requested.
Stages that follow the work
No rule sets the size of a roofing deposit, and we do not suggest a number. What matters is how closely payment follows work done. The safest pattern is a small deposit, if one is asked for at all, then instalments tied to progress you can see, and a final balance once the roof is finished and you are happy with it.
A re-roof has natural milestones: materials delivered and access up, the old covering off and the structure confirmed sound, the new covering on, and clean-up complete. Whatever the milestones, the quote should state them, together with the sum due at each.
Why stage it? Money paid early is held by the contractor before the work exists. If the firm stops trading, walks away or does poor work, a big early payment is hard to recover. Staging keeps your money and the job moving together.
Be wary of a demand for a big sum to buy materials. Suppliers often extend credit to firms they know, and a smaller deposit should cover an order. Pressure for money before any written quote exists is a worse sign still.
Pay by bank transfer or card, which leaves a record, and keep it with the quote. Our page on what a roof replacement quote should include lists the written terms to look for.
Your right to change your mind
A contract signed in your living room after a roofer's survey visit counts as off-premises. For a service, the normal cancellation window is 14 days, counted from the day after you sign. The right applies to a service costing £42 or more, and a trader who leaves out the required information about it can extend your time.
Asking for work to start within the 14 days should be done in writing, since an early start can affect what you recover if you cancel.
One exclusion matters for roofers. Where you specifically called a trader out for an urgent repair, a roof pouring water now for instance, the cooling-off right does not apply to that visit. A planned new roof, quoted after a survey, is a different thing.
Our page on how long a roof replacement takes shows the stages that payments can follow.
For free advice about a contract, the Citizens Advice consumer helpline is 0808 223 1133. This page is general information, not legal advice.
Whatever your cancellation rights, the best protection is not to hand over more than the work to date justifies.
Warning signs before you pay
Some things should make you pause before any money moves.
- A big deposit, or full payment, demanded before work starts.
- A request for cash, or for payment into a personal account that does not match the firm.
- No written quote, or one that is vague about work and price.
- Pressure to sign today, or a price that vanishes if you wait.
- No address, no business name, or reluctance to give contact details.
- Uncertainty about who will actually do the work.
Citizens Advice says to get written quotes from at least 3 traders. A firm that is confident in its price expects to be compared and does not rush you.
You also have rights once work is done. The Consumer Rights Act 2015 (section 49) says the work must be done with reasonable care and skill, a duty a contract cannot remove. The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 also expects the firm to name any dispute-resolution arrangement you could use.
Keep the quote, messages, receipts and dated photographs. If a dispute arises, they are your evidence.
A staged plan, a clear quote and a traceable payment are the three habits that protect a customer.
How payment works with us
The roof comes before the price. A survey with photographs and measurements of your roof comes first, and the quote follows as a single total in writing.
The quote shows what is done and what is paid, and when. Read it, compare it with others and ask about anything unclear. Nothing is asked of you until you have had time to do that, and nobody should hurry you. That includes a booking fee, a materials payment or a promise to hold a price.
If you sign at home, you are told in writing about the right to cancel, and the terms are explained on request, including what happens to any payment already made if you cancel within the period.
Large cash sums up front are not how a job should start, and a receipt goes with every payment. If something about the plan worries you, say so before you sign.
The roof replacement hub sets out the whole sequence of a new roof, from the first survey to the finished job.
