Is Your Roofer Insured? Why $20 Million Public Liability Matters

It’s easy to focus on price when you’re comparing roofing quotes. But there’s a question that matters far more than a few hundred dollars either way: is the roofer properly insured? Roofing is working at height, over your home, often with pressure washers, paint and power tools. When something goes wrong, the difference between an insured and uninsured roofer can be tens of thousands of dollars — out of your pocket.

What public liability insurance actually covers

Public liability insurance protects you and your property if the roofer causes damage or injury while working on your home. On a roofing job, that can include:

• Damage to your home — a dropped tool through a skylight, overspray on your car or the neighbour’s, water damage from a roof left open before a storm, cracked tiles or a damaged solar system
• Damage to a neighbour’s property — high-pressure cleaning and overspray don’t respect fence lines
• Injury to a third party — a passer-by, a neighbour, or a visitor hurt by falling debris

Without cover, any of these becomes a dispute between you and the roofer — and if they can’t or won’t pay, you may be left chasing it through the courts.

Why the amount matters — and why we carry $20 million

You’ll see roofers advertise “$5 million” or “$10 million” public liability. So why $20 million? Because on a suburban street, the worst-case scenarios aren’t small. A fire that starts from hot works and spreads, serious injury to a third party, or major structural water damage can run well past $10 million once you add legal costs. Carrying $20 million cover means the policy comfortably covers the realistic worst case — not just the everyday mishaps.

What about injuries to the roofer themselves?

This is the one homeowners forget. If an uninsured, unregistered worker falls off your roof, you can potentially be drawn into the liability as the property owner. A legitimate roofing business carries the right cover for its workers so that their injuries are their insurer’s problem, not yours. This is also why proper fall-arrest and height safety matters — it’s not red tape, it’s what keeps everyone off the hook.

How to check a roofer is genuinely insured

Don’t take “yes, we’re fully insured” at face value. It takes two minutes to verify:

1. Ask for a Certificate of Currency. This is a one-page document from the insurer showing the policy type, the insured amount, and the expiry date.
2. Check the dates and the amount. Make sure the policy is current and the liability figure is what they claimed.
3. Confirm the name matches. The business on the certificate should match the business quoting you.
4. Check registration too. In Victoria, roof plumbing (guttering, flashings, downpipes) must be done by a registered plumber. Ask to see it.

A reputable roofer will hand this over without hesitation. If someone gets defensive or “will send it later,” treat that as your answer.

The false economy of the cheap, uninsured quote

The quote that’s suspiciously cheap is often cheap because it skips insurance, registration and proper safety gear. That saving disappears the moment anything goes wrong — and roofing, done at height in Melbourne weather, gives plenty of opportunity for things to go wrong. Paying a little more for a covered, compliant roofer is buying peace of mind, not just a roof.

We’re fully covered — and happy to prove it

Every job we do is backed by $20 million public liability insurance and the correct registrations. Ask us for our Certificate of Currency before we start — we’ll send it straight over. That’s how it should work.

Request a free, fully-insured roof assessment →