Roofing FAQs

It depends on the job, the roof and how the roofer reaches it, which is why we do not publish a price list. Our cost guides set out researched 2026 UK ranges by job type if you want a sense of scale before you call.

Access, nearly always. Reaching the damage from a ladder is a completely different job from erecting a tower or scaffolding an elevation, and that decision moves the price more than the repair does. It does not make either roofer wrong. Ask what access each quote assumes before deciding one is a mistake.

Get the gutters cleared. It is the cheapest job on this site, an overflowing gutter produces a stain indoors that looks exactly like a roof leak, and it rules out the most common false alarm before you pay for anything else.

Often yes. Water tracks along timbers and appears metres from where it got in, so guess-patching frequently fails and the second visit costs as much as the first. A survey is a fraction of a repair, and many roofers credit the fee against the work if you go ahead.

Repair where the damage is local and the rest of the covering is sound. Replace where tiles are failing across whole slopes, the timbers are sagging, or you have paid for three separate repairs in a few years. On the post-war estates here, that third case is common.

Five to seven days on a three-bed semi in concrete tile, six to nine in clay and seven to ten in natural slate. A four-bed detached runs eight to twelve days. Scaffolding stays up throughout and weather delays are normal.

Usually not for a like-for-like replacement on a standard house. It is different in conservation areas and on listed buildings, where changing material or appearance can need permission. Stoke-on-Trent has 22 conservation areas. Check with the city council's planning team, because the rules differ by area and we will not guess at yours.

Treat it as urgent, and establish the cause before paying for repairs. North Staffordshire sits on a coalfield, and where damage is caused by coal mining subsidence the Mining Remediation Authority, formerly the Coal Authority, has duties under the Coal Mining Subsidence Act 1991.

Emergency work to stop water getting in, often yes. Proper repairs need a dry roof, for safety and because mortar and adhesives will not set. In a storm, expect a temporary fix first and the real repair once the weather clears.

Buildings insurance generally covers storm and sudden accidental damage, not wear, age or lack of maintenance. Note the date, note which storm it followed, photograph it from ground level, and get a written roofer's report linking the damage to the weather.

There is no standalone roof repair grant in the UK. Real routes are a Disabled Facilities Grant where roof work is part of an adaptation, council discretionary assistance, listed-building funding, and insurance for storm damage. Our roof repair grants guide goes through each.

No. We pass your enquiry to a roofing firm covering your area and they quote you direct. We do not carry out roofing work.

No, and we will not pretend otherwise. We do not inspect or approve the firm we pass enquiries to. Ask for proof of public liability insurance, an itemised written quote and a proper address, and never pay in full up front.

Nothing. There is no charge and no obligation, and you are free to take the quote and do nothing with it.

All six towns of Stoke-on-Trent, the Newcastle-under-Lyme borough, and out into the Staffordshire Moorlands. see all service areas

Usually the same day or the next working day. Between September and February, when storm damage peaks and roofers are busiest, it can take longer. Say if water is actively coming in and we will flag the enquiry as urgent.

Roughly where the problem is, when you first noticed it, and whether anything has changed recently such as a storm. If you can safely photograph it from ground level, do. None of it is required, but it makes the quote you get back more useful.