Industry experts call for more government oversight to prevent roofing scams

The government of Ontario is being called out after several recent roofing scams.

In a series of reports, CityNews has been telling you about homeowners in Toronto who claim they’ve been cheated by fraudulent roofing companies.

One industry expert points out one thing that could help prevent this. Dave Baughn has been a Roofing Inspector in Ontario for several years and has seen his share of nightmares from customers.

“At least once a week I am contacted by customers after they pay a roofing contractor tens of thousands of dollars only to find the work was not done correctly and has to be redone,” he said.

He’s also watched several stories CityNews has done on recent alleged roofing scams.

“It’s the wild west,” he said. “Homeowners have to be very careful before hiring a contractor.”

A big problem he says — unlike other trades — there’s no licensing requirement in Ontario for roofers.

“None whatsoever. You can get a truck, a couple of guys and go do roofing, that’s it.”

He says that opens the door to scams — and subpar work.

He doesn’t believe a licensing requirement would completely eliminate scams but says they would decrease.

“You would have to show your license to the customer and if you don’t have a license the customer would just say no,” he says. “It gives the homeowner some assurance the roofer has undergone the proper training to perform the work.”

He points to trades like certain electricians who must undergo extensive training to legally operate in Ontario.

According to the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development, to solicit work legally, an electrician must first undergo several hours of apprenticeship work plus education and training.

They are then issued a certificate from the province.

The Ministry, along with Skilled Trades Ontario, lists a number of contracting jobs where this type of training is compulsory.

For a roofing contractor it’s listed as “non-compulsory.” According to the Ministry, “You do not need to be a registered apprentice or a certified journey person to work in a non-compulsory trade.”

According to their website, Skilled Trades Ontario does offer certifying exams and Certificates of Qualification for roofers but it’s not required.

Given the complexity of roof repair, Baughn says the Ministry should reconsider that.

“This is not a job where you can just wake up and decide you want to be a roofer,” he says. “Every job is different from the materials you need etc. There is so much to know before taking on any roofing job.”

Which is why, in Quebec, roofers are legally required to do extensive training before they’re issued a licence and before they can legally perform work. Currently it’s the only province in Canada that requires it.

CityNews reached out to the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development.

A spokesperson did not say if there any plans to revisit this issue.

“The Roofer trade is non-compulsory,” said Harry Godfrey, spokesperson for the Ministry.

“Skilled Trades Ontario is responsible for recommending a trade for compulsory classification and does so on the basis of industry demand and consultations,”  Godfrey added.

Baughn calls that unacceptable.

“It opens the door to people who don’t know what they’re doing.”

In the meantime, he says homeowners can and should do their homework before hiring any roofer.

In past cases CityNews has reported on, the homeowners who fell victim to scams weren’t looking for roofers but were approached by workers with a cold knock at the door.

Police are investigating after workers at a company were going around Toronto saying they noticed problems on different roofs by flying drones in the area. Many of the homes never actually had any issues with the roof and those homeowners are out thousands of dollars.

“Never hire a roofer on the spot who does this,” Baughn says. “They know you probably aren’t going to go on the roof yourself and they’re asking you to trust them because of that.”

The homeowners who fell victim to these alleged scams also paid cash, upfront. Another mistake, Baughn says.

“Never pay cash because if something goes wrong there is no financial record to investigate,” he said.

“You can pay a deposit but only when you get the materials on site — not before. What that does is prove the roofer has enough funds to finance the materials. If they won’t do this, walk away.”

He advises getting at least three quotes, making sure the roofer has proper insurance, with documentation.

“Given the fact there is no licensing requirement means homeowners have to work that much harder to protect themselves,” he said.

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