The 5 Credentials That Actually Matter When You Hire a Dallas Roofer
Read the advertising from half a dozen Dallas roofing companies and you will notice most of them say the same three words: licensed, bonded, insured. It sounds like a standard, and homeowners reasonably treat it as one. In Texas it is not.
That leaves a real problem for anyone choosing a roofer here. The phrase everyone uses is the phrase that means the least, and the credentials that genuinely separate one contractor from another are the ones nobody explains, because most companies do not hold them. This guide is the five things worth checking, what each one actually requires, and how to verify it yourself in a few minutes without taking anyone's word for it. If you would rather skip ahead, Arrington's credentials are listed on our certifications page, and you can reach us on (214) 698-8443.
Start Here: Texas Does Not License Roofers
This is not an opinion or a technicality. The Roofing Contractors Association of Texas, the body that runs the state's voluntary programme, puts it about as bluntly as an industry association can: "The Texas Department of Licensing & Regulation (TDLR) does NOT currently administer licensure for roofing contractors. Anyone can call themselves a roofer in Texas and they are not required to be knowledgeable, insured, licensed, or even registered with the state."
So when a roofing company advertises itself as licensed in Texas, one of two things is true. Either they hold a voluntary credential and are describing it loosely, or the word is doing no work at all. Neither is necessarily dishonest, but neither tells you what you were hoping it told you. We wrote about the policy background in why Texas does not require a roofing licence and what it means for homeowners. This piece is the practical follow-on: given that the state will not vet anyone for you, what do you check instead.
The Five Credentials Worth Checking
1. The manufacturer certification, and specifically which tier
This is the most useful single credential and the most widely misunderstood, because manufacturers run several levels and the marketing rarely distinguishes between them.
Take GAF, the largest shingle manufacturer in North America. A contractor can be GAF Certified, which is the entry level, or GAF Master Elite, which GAF reserves for the top 2% of roofing contractors in the country. The gap between those two is not a badge design. To reach Master Elite a company has to show proof of insurance, hold an A+ business rating, have operated for at least seven years, and submit consumer reference letters. A company three years old cannot hold it at any price.
CertainTeed, the other major manufacturer, works the same way. The SELECT ShingleMaster credential is held by fewer than 1% of roofing contractors in the United States, and earning it requires a minimum of five years in business, a credentialed workforce covering at least half of all installers, a Shingle Quality Specialist on staff, a Business Fiscal Responsibility exam passed by the owner, current insurance, and a customer satisfaction rating of 4.0 or higher. "ShingleMaster" on its own is a lower credential, and "Master Shingle Applicator" describes an individual installer rather than the company.
How to verify it: do not accept a logo on a website. Both manufacturers publish contractor locators on their own sites where you can search by company name and see the actual designation on file. It takes about a minute and it is the single highest-value check on this list. Our own designations are documented on our GAF Master Elite and CertainTeed SELECT ShingleMaster pages.
2. An RCAT licence, the closest thing Texas has
Since the state issues nothing, RCAT runs a voluntary licensing programme, and a contractor who has bothered to get one has cleared a real bar. Applicants must have been a principal in a Texas roofing company for at least two continuous years, carry general liability cover of $500,000 for commercial work or $300,000 for residential, provide workers' compensation coverage or file the appropriate form, and pass a business and safety exam plus a residential or commercial roofing exam with a score of 70% or better on each. Renewal is annual and requires eight continuing education hours.
That is not nothing. It is a genuine credential and worth asking about. The nuance is that because it is voluntary and privately administered, its absence does not mean a contractor is unqualified, and its presence does not mean the state has vetted them. Treat it as one data point among several rather than the answer on its own.
3. A certificate of insurance that comes from the insurer, not the roofer
Every roofing company in Dallas will tell you they are insured. Very few homeowners check, and the check is easy.
Ask for a certificate of insurance and ask that it be sent directly from the agent or carrier with your name listed as certificate holder. A PDF forwarded by the contractor tells you what the policy looked like whenever that PDF was made. A certificate issued by the carrier tells you the policy is in force today, which is the only version that matters if something goes wrong on your roof next month.
You are looking for two things. General liability, which covers damage to your property, and workers' compensation, which matters more than most homeowners realise: if an uninsured crew member is injured on your roof, the exposure can land on your homeowner's policy. Ask for the coverage amounts rather than a yes or no. Arrington carries a $2 million general liability policy, and we would rather you confirm that with our carrier than take it from this page.
4. BBB accreditation with a date attached
An A+ BBB rating is common enough among roofing companies that on its own it separates very little. The useful question is not the letter, it is how long.
Storm-chasing outfits that follow hail across the country and dissolve after a season do not accumulate decades of accredited history in a single metro. A rating held continuously for twenty or thirty years in the same market is evidence of something a new rating cannot fake, which is that the company was here through several hail cycles and is still answering the phone. Arrington has been BBB accredited with an A+ rating since 1995. Look for the accreditation date, not just the grade.
5. Who actually stands behind the warranty
Roof warranties come in two parts and they fail in different ways. The manufacturer warranty covers the materials. The workmanship warranty covers the installation, and the overwhelming majority of roof problems are installation problems rather than material defects.
Here is the part worth understanding: a contractor warranty is only as durable as the contractor. If the company that installed your roof is gone in four years, a ten-year promise in their paperwork is worth very little. This is exactly where manufacturer tier and warranty quality connect, because the strongest warranties are only available through the top certification levels.
GAF's Golden Pledge warranty, which only Master Elite contractors can offer, extends workmanship coverage for up to 25 years and includes the full cost of tear-off, disposal and reinstallation if an installation defect is found. CertainTeed's SureStart PLUS, available through SELECT ShingleMaster contractors, runs non-prorated for up to 50 years covering materials, labour, tear-off and disposal. Non-prorated is the word to look for, because it means coverage does not quietly shrink each year. Ask which warranties a contractor is actually able to offer you. The answer tells you their certification tier whether or not they volunteer it.
What "Licensed and Insured" Is Really Telling You
Nothing on this list requires you to be suspicious of anyone. Plenty of good roofers in Dallas advertise loosely because everyone else does, and the phrase has drifted into meaning "we are a legitimate business" rather than making a specific claim.
But it is worth knowing what it cannot tell you. It cannot tell you the company has been through a manufacturer's vetting. It cannot tell you the policy is current. It cannot tell you anyone passed an exam. In a state where anyone can print business cards and call themselves a roofer, the five checks above are what fill that gap, and all five can be verified by you rather than asserted by them.
The Ten-Minute Version
If you only do four things before signing anything:
1. Search the manufacturer's own contractor locator
Look up the company on GAF's or CertainTeed's site and read the designation on file. Certified and Master Elite are different things.
2. Ask the carrier to send the certificate of insurance
Not the contractor. Confirm general liability and workers' compensation, and ask for the amounts.
3. Check the BBB accreditation date
Not the letter grade. How many years, in this market.
4. Ask which warranties they can offer
If the top-tier manufacturer warranty is not available to them, that answers the certification question directly.
Where Arrington Stands
We have been roofing Dallas since 1983, which means we have been through every hail cycle this metroplex has had in four decades. We are GAF Master Elite and CertainTeed SELECT ShingleMaster, the top designation at both of North America's largest shingle manufacturers, and FORTIFIED certified. We have been BBB accredited with an A+ rating since 1995, we carry $2 million in general liability, and we are members of the North Texas Roofing Contractors Association. We describe ourselves as certified rather than licensed, because in Texas that is the accurate word.
None of that is a reason to hire us on its own, and we would rather you ran the same four checks on us that you run on everyone else. If you want to compare properly, our guides to choosing a roofing contractor in Dallas and the best roofing contractors in Dallas cover the questions that come after credentials, and our testimonials and about page are there if you want the longer version.
When you are ready for a written estimate from a contractor whose credentials you have checked yourself, book a free inspection or call (214) 698-8443. There is no pressure attached, and if the honest answer is that your roof does not need work yet, that is what we will tell you.
