How Much Does a Roof Replacement Cost in Cheshire?

Roof replacement is quoted per property rather than per square metre, and the reason is that two roofs of identical area can be very different jobs. The covering is only part of what you are paying for.

The seven things that decide the number

• Roof area. Not floor area — the actual surface of the slopes, which on a steep roof is considerably more than the footprint suggests.
• Pitch. A steeper roof is a larger area and slower to work on. Above about 45 degrees it changes how the job is done.
• Complexity. Hips, valleys, dormers, chimneys and abutments all need detailing, and detailing is where the hours go. A plain gable roof is the cheapest shape there is.
• The covering you choose. Concrete tile, clay tile, fibre cement slate and natural slate sit at very different points.
• Access and scaffolding. A terrace with no rear access is a different scaffold from a detached house with a drive.
• What is found underneath. The single biggest variable, and the one nobody can see until the covering comes off.
• Disposal. A stripped roof produces a serious volume of waste, and it is heavy.

Why nobody quotes a price per square metre

The part that is genuinely unknown until the roof is stripped

Every honest roofing quotation carries some uncertainty about what is under the covering, because nobody can see it beforehand. What a good one does is say so, and set out what happens if something is found.

That last row is worth acting on. Anything that needs scaffolding — chimney work, fascias, soffits, guttering — is dramatically cheaper while the scaffold is already standing than as a separate visit later.

Scaffolding is a real line, not an extra

A full re-roof cannot be done safely from ladders, so scaffolding is part of the job rather than an optional item. What varies is how much: a simple two-storey semi with clear access is straightforward, while a terrace with no rear access, a property on a slope, or one where the scaffold has to bridge a conservatory is not.

If a quotation does not mention scaffolding at all, ask where it has gone. Either it is included and unstated, or it is not included and will appear later.

The insulation that has to be in the price

This one surprises people, and it is not optional. A complete re-roof renews a thermal element, and under regulation 23 of the Building Regulations 2010 that triggers a duty to bring the roof up to current insulation standards.

For an existing dwelling, Approved Document L Volume 1 sets the target at a U-value of 0.16 W/(m²K). In practice that normally means insulation work forming part of the re-roof. A quotation that says nothing about it is an incomplete quotation, and the difference will surface either as a variation later or as a roof that does not comply.

There are two sensible reliefs written into the guidance: a lesser standard where meeting it would cost usable head room, and a reduced requirement where the upgrade would not pay back within fifteen years. Neither permits leaving the roof worse insulated than it was.

What should be on the quotation

• Strip and dispose of the existing covering
• Scaffolding — erection, hire period and dismantling
• New battens, and treated to the right grade
• New underlay, and which type
• The covering itself, named by manufacturer and product
• Insulation, and the U-value being achieved
• Ridge, hip and verge details — and whether dry-fixed or mortar-bedded
• Valleys, flashings and any leadwork
• Making good and clearing the site
• How the work will be certified for building control
• A stated position on what happens if timber defects are found

Where the money can sensibly be saved

• Doing the chimney, fascias, soffits and guttering while the scaffold is up.
• Choosing a covering that suits the roof rather than the brochure.
• Booking outside the autumn rush, when every roofer in Cheshire is busy.
• Being straightforward about access at survey stage, so nothing changes on the day.
• Getting the neighbours' roofs looked at if a terrace is due — one scaffold, several jobs.

And where it should not be

Insurance, the specification and the certification are the three places a cheap quotation usually saves money, and all three are the customer's risk rather than the roofer's.

• Ask to see public liability insurance.
• Ask who erects the scaffold and whether it is independently inspected.
• Ask whether the work will be notified to building control or self-certified under a competent person scheme such as CompetentRoofer or NAPIT.
• Ask what guarantee is offered, by whom, and whether it is insurance-backed.
• Ask for the covering to be named on the quotation rather than described.

What to have ready when you ring

• The property type — terrace, semi, detached, bungalow.
• Roughly when the house was built, if you know.
• What the current covering is, or a photograph of it.
• Whether there are dormers, hips or valleys.
• How the rear of the property is reached.
• Whether anything else needs doing while the scaffold is up.

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