How to Choose a Vermont Metal Roofing Contractor
Vermont does not license roofers, so the usual advice ("check their license!") is useless here. What Vermont has instead is a residential contractor registration with real teeth, plus verifiable insurance, manufacturer training, and contract requirements. This guide is the full version of the checklist we print across this site: every check, every link, and the questions that separate snow-country metal roofers from generalists with a brake.
The legal landscape in one paragraph
Under 26 V.S.A. Chapter 106 (Act 182 of 2022), a person must register with the Secretary of State Office of Professional Regulation before contracting with a homeowner for residential construction worth more than $10,000 in labor and materials, a definition that explicitly includes roofing. Registration requires liability insurance of $1 million per occurrence and $2 million aggregate and a written contract before work or deposit. The requirement has been in force from April 2023, and the Attorney General took enforcement action against unregistered contractors in May 2026. There is no state roofing license, and anyone claiming one is telling you something useful about themselves.
The five checks, in order
- 1
Look the business up with the Secretary of State
Search the Office of Professional Regulation lookup for the business name. Residential contractors taking projects over $10,000 in labor and materials must be registered; the registration confirms the business exists, attests insurance, and gives you a name to hold accountable.
Find a Professional lookup - 2
Ask for current insurance certificates
Registered contractors must carry liability coverage of at least $1 million per occurrence and $2 million aggregate. Ask for a certificate of insurance naming you as certificate holder, plus confirmation of workers compensation for everyone on the roof.
Registration requirements (SOS) - 3
Ask what trains them on the panel system
Panel manufacturers run installer training and certification: Englert requires documented experience, insurance, and references for its certification, Sheffield Metals runs contractor support and technical training, and Drexel Metals operates the DM-ARM program. Match the training to the system on your quote.
Englert courses and certifications - 4
Get the written, itemized contract the law expects
For registered projects Vermont requires a written contract before work begins or a deposit is taken. A quote worth signing itemizes panels and gauge, finish, underlayment, flashing, snow retention, decking contingency, and disposal.
26 V.S.A. Chapter 106 - 5
Ask the three snow-country questions
What ground snow load is my roof designed for and where does that figure come from? How will snow retention protect entries, walkways, and gutters? Are the panels and clips rated for thermal movement across Vermont temperature swings? Fluent answers separate metal roofers from generalists.
VT Division of Fire Safety snow load map
Red flags
- Cannot be found in the Secretary of State lookup for a project over $10,000
- Asks for a large deposit without a written contract, which the statute requires on registered projects
- Quotes a lump sum with no gauge, finish, underlayment, or snow retention line items
- Answers the snow load question with a shrug instead of a figure and a source
- Claims a Vermont roofing license, which does not exist
What good looks like
- Registered with the Secretary of State, found in the lookup in thirty seconds
- Sends insurance certificates before being asked twice
- Names the panel system, its manufacturer, and the training behind it
- Quotes your town’s snow load figure with its source, unprompted
- Puts everything, including the decking contingency, in a written itemized contract
The contractors we connect homeowners with are asked to meet these same objective standards, and we encourage you to run every check on them anyway; that is what the checks are for. Start with a free quote via the contact page, read the standing seam installation page to speak the quote's language, or check your town's snow load in the snow load guide.