St. Patrick's Day is around the corner, and we were wondering...are you feeling lucky?? Do you often rely on luck to get you through when it comes to making decisions? That might work fine with choices like where to go for dinner, where to vacation, or even what color shirt to wear (just pull one out of the dryer, right?), but when you need a service provider, luck just isn't good enough. Choosing someone to work on your home's most important parts like the plumbing, the roof, or the HVAC system is a big deal, and making the wrong decision could have disastrous and long-lasting consequences.

So, how should you go about choosing the best person or company for the job when a need arises? Well, there are three main factors to look for:

License

Insurance

References

Why? Well, if a contractor or business is licensed, that means they've met a set of required standards in their field, and they actually are trained and qualified to handle your job. Opting for an unlicensed individual or a "business" you found through a homemade yard sign at the street corner could leave you with someone who learned all of their skills from YouTube and has no legitimate education or experience. That could leave you holding the bill for poor work and damages to your home. Which leads to the second factor you need to consider: insurance.

Insurance matters for you AND for the service provider. An insured contractor or company is not only protecting you from accidents or faulty work, but they're also protecting themselves in case they get injured on your property and your coverage won't assist them in the recovery or damages. A provider who doesn't carry insurance obviously doesn't care about you or about themselves, and that's a risk you just don't want to take.

Finally, you have the right to look for, and ask for, references before you make a decision. Any quality company will have previous clients who can offer insight into the quality of work, the customer service experience, the strengths/weaknesses of the particular business, and more. If a business owner or individual can't or won't give you any references and the ability to contact them, and if you have a hard time finding any legitimate reviews about the service, it's a good indicator that you need to keep searching. If they're proud of their work and have satisfied clients, they'll want to show them off!

EZ Roofing Systems is proud to offer the very best in roofing services to the greater Polk County area in Central Florida. Our attention to detail, honesty and ethics, and focus on customer service and satisfaction are why homeowners call us to get the job done right the first time, every time. Roof repairs, inspections, and full replacements are all in a day's work for us, and we are proud to leave you with a roof you can feel good about. Have a fun (and safe) St. Patty's Day. Best of luck to you!

So, you're ready to invest in a new roof and it's time to start shopping around. You could hire the local handyman that lives two streets over, or you could take the time to research local licensed professionals. While the choice seems simple, you'd be surprised how often people opt for the former. Why? It's "cheaper", it's "faster", and it's "really the same work" so there's no difference, right?

WRONG. 

We'd like to point you to an example for just a moment. Take time to think about a wedding. Sure, a bride could just head down to the local grocery store, ask for a cake, and hope for the best. She could ask her cousin's friend's aunt's babysitter to take the photos for a very affordable price, and she could simply call up a few friends and neighbors to bring food to share with a large group, call it a "potluck reception" and be done. Chances are, if you heard of a bride actually doing these things, you'd caution her against it. Everyone knows that taking time to search out quality professionals in each field, asking for references and a portfolio, and following the motto "you get what you pay for" is often true when it comes to weddings. Why, then, do we think it's any different when it comes to our homes? 

Licensed contractors offer a huge array of benefits not provided by their handyman counterparts, and while we respect the work that handymen do in many areas, when it comes to your roof, anything less than a licensed and insured roofing contractor will be a huge mistake. Not only can you actually negate your homeowner's policy if you allow someone unlicensed to work on your roof, but you can end up with huge liability issues, damages that come out of your pocket and (most likely) sub par work in the end. What do licensed contractors have to back them up? 

• Insurance. Policies protect the contractor AND you in the case of an accident or in the case that the work is less than satisfactory.

• Contracts. These legally binding documents make sure you do, in fact, get what you pay for. 

• Legal payment plans ONLY. A licensed contractor can legally only ask for 10% of the total projected cost, or $1,000, whichever is less. If you have a contractor asking you for full payment up front, or for several thousand in "deposits", RUN AWAY! 

• Industry knowledge. Since licensed contractors must stay up to date on all the current legalities, practices, AND trends in the industry, they will be able to give you the highest quality in roofing work at the best possible price. 

Don't make the mistake of trusting your roof to someone who could leave you in worse shape than you started in, holding bills and staring up at a leaking roof. Take time to find a local, licensed roofing contractor. Residents in and around Winter Haven trust EZ Roofing Systems to provide all of their roofing needs, from insurance inspections and general maintenance to repair and roof replacement. If you're in the area, give us a call for your free estimate!