SB38: your right to choose your own roofer

Colorado Senate Bill 38 (2012) is the state's roofing consumer-protection law, written after a decade of post-storm contractor abuse. If you own a home here, three of its protections matter most.

One: you choose the contractor. Your carrier may suggest a 'preferred' company, and that network contractor may be perfectly good, but the choice is legally yours, and your claim payout cannot be conditioned on using their pick.

Two: the 72-hour window. Any roofing contract paid by an insurance claim can be cancelled within 72 hours of signing, including the ones signed on a doorstep the day after a storm. If your claim is later denied, you can cancel and recover your deposit.

Three: deposit protection. Contractors can't collect payment for roofing work they haven't performed unless the money is held in trust, and they must carry insurance. A contractor asking for a large cash deposit 'to order materials' before your claim is approved is waving the exact red flag SB38 was written to catch. We don't ask you to sign anything until your scope reflects the real damage, which is how the law says it should work anyway.