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Drafting general terms and conditions for roofers involves translating the fixed risks of roofing work into clear clauses: warranty on workmanship and materials, liability for leakage and consequential damage, postponement due to bad weather conditions, additional work, and payment. Additionally, you arrange for applicability and provision of the terms and conditions, ensuring they are actually enforceable. Below, you will find details on what should be included for each section and where the pitfalls lie, so that you obtain a set that suits roofing and repair work, rather than just any contractor.
The short answer
- Warranty: labor and materials separately, with duration and exclusions.
- Liability: limit to repair/contract sum, exclude consequential damages where possible.
- Weather conditions: right to suspend work in case of rain, frost, and wind.
- Additional work: unforeseen work (rotten roof boarding) may be invoiced separately.
- Payment: installments, down payment, interest, and collection costs for late payment.
- Applicability: declare applicable and provide in a timely manner.
Before you draft general terms and conditions for roofers
Start with your own work. A roofer who primarily installs flat roofs with bitumen or EPDM faces different risks than someone who works on pitched roofs with tiles or mainly performs repairs. The terms and conditions must reflect this practice — otherwise, they contain clauses that do not fit or lack precisely the provisions you need.
Identify where things can go wrong for you: leaks after completion, warranty disputes, non-paying customers, work delayed by frost. Each of these risks is assigned a clause.
Warranty on workmanship and materials
Split the warranty into two parts. You provide a warranty yourself on your own work (the method of application), with a clear time limit. For the material, you refer to the supplier's manufacturer's warranty.
- Duration: State how long the warranty on the work lasts and that the material warranty follows the manufacturer's term.
- Exclusions: no warranty in the event of interventions by the customer, faulty maintenance, damage caused by third parties, or storm/hail exceeding a certain force.
- Notification: report defects in writing within a reasonable period, otherwise the claim lapses.
Liability: limiting leakage and consequential damage
This is the core clause. Without limitation, you can be held liable for the full consequential damages of a leak: soaked ceilings, damaged contents, and business interruption for a corporate client.
- Limit your liability to the re-execution of the work or to a maximum of the contract sum.
- Exclude consequential damage to the extent permitted by law.
- link the upper limit to the amount your insurance pays out.
Pay attention to the boundary with consumers: a clause that completely removes your liability is on the “grey” or “black” list (Articles 6:236-237 of the Dutch Civil Code) and may be unreasonably burdensome. Limiting liability is permitted; completely excluding it vis-à-vis a private individual is risky.
Weather conditions and force majeure
Roofing work cannot proceed during rain, frost, or strong winds — often for safety and quality reasons. Include a clause giving you the right to suspend the work in unsuitable weather, without being in default or liable for a delay penalty.
In addition, ensure that the completion date shifts in line with weather conditions and, if applicable, with waiting times for materials. This prevents disputes if a project runs behind schedule due to a wet period.
Record additional work
As soon as you open up a roof, you sometimes encounter hidden defects: rotten roof boarding, faulty insulation, or a damaged substructure. Without an additional work clause, you may have to repair this at your own expense.
Stipulate that you are permitted to perform unforeseen necessary work and invoice it separately, preferably after notifying the client. For consumers, price increases due to additional work must be transparent — so notify the client in advance and record the additional cost in writing.
Payment and security
- Payment term: for example, 14 days after invoice date.
- Down payment or installments: down payment at the start and an installment upon completion, especially for larger roofs.
- Late payment: statutory (commercial) interest and collection costs in accordance with the scale of the Collection Costs Standardization Act.
- Suspension: the right to suspend warranty work as long as outstanding invoices have not been paid.
Example: A roofer installs a flat roof costing €12,000. With a 30% down payment at the start and the remainder upon completion, you limit the risk of having to wait for your money after the job is finished.
Applicability and provision
The best clauses are worthless if the conditions do not apply. Therefore, declare them applicable to every quotation and order confirmation, and provide them in a timely manner: send them along with the quotation, or submit them digitally before the conclusion of the contract (Articles 6:233-234 of the Dutch Civil Code). Merely referring to them on the invoice is too late — in that case, the client can invalidate the stipulations.
Honest recommendation
Drafting a contract revolves around two things: covering real roofing risks (leakage, weather, additional work) and ensuring the terms and conditions are applied correctly. If you get those two in order, you have a set that will last for years.
When do you *not* need a lawyer? For a standard roofing company with typical assignments, you can work perfectly well with a proven industry template that you tailor to your own practice. A lawyer is particularly useful if you work for business clients with their own purchasing terms and conditions, if you want to have consumer clauses checked against the grey/black list, or after a dispute regarding liability. For daily quotations, a good, up-to-date set suffices.
Read more: what are general terms and conditions for roofers, have general terms and conditions for roofers drawn up , or view the general terms and conditions for roofers.
Frequently Asked Questions
Warranty on workmanship and materials, liability for leakage and consequential damage, postponement due to adverse weather conditions, additional work, payment, and the provisions regarding applicability and delivery. Each fixed risk associated with roofing work is assigned its own clause, tailored to your type of work.
Split the warranty: provide a warranty for your own work with a clear term, while refer to the manufacturer's warranty for the materials. Include exclusions for interventions by the customer, faulty maintenance, damage caused by third parties, and storms exceeding a certain force, plus a duty to report defects.
Limit your liability to the re-execution of the work or to a maximum of the contract sum, exclude consequential damages to the extent permitted by law, and link the upper limit to the payout of your insurance. You may not exclude liability entirely towards consumers; that could be unreasonably burdensome.
Roofing work cannot proceed during rain, frost, or strong winds. A weather clause gives you the right to suspend the work without being in default or risking a delay penalty, and allows the completion date to shift in line with the weather days. This prevents disputes in the event of delays.
Include a clause allowing you to carry out unforeseen necessary work, such as rotten roof boarding or defective insulation, and to invoice this separately, preferably after notifying the customer. For consumers, the additional cost must be transparent and documented in writing in advance.
A payment term (e.g., 14 days), a down payment or installment payment for larger roofs, statutory interest and collection costs for late payment, and the right to suspend warranty work as long as invoices remain outstanding. An initial down payment limits your payment risk.
Only if you declare them applicable to the quotation and order confirmation and provide them in a timely manner: send them along with the quotation or offer them digitally before the conclusion of the contract (Art. 6:233-234 BW). Merely referring to them on the invoice is too late and renders the clauses voidable.
