WHY USE A NFRC COMPETENT PERSON SCHEME REGISTERED CONTRACTOR?
When it comes to refurbishing your roof, you want to be sure that the contractor carrying out the work will not only do a good job but also that your legal obligations are met. By using an NFRC Competent Person Scheme (CPS) Registered Contractor, you can rest assured that they are continuously audited against a robust set of criteria including, a financial check, office audit, and site inspection prior to being recognised as an NFRC CPS contractor.
What requirements do NFRC CPS contractors have to achieve?
Before a contractor becomes a registered NFRC CPS contractor, they must fulfil the following requirements:
Pass a probity check to ensure the company is financially viable.
Provide evidence to ensure that all relevant documentation is in place to issue you with a ten-year workmanship guarantee, a sales contract with a 14-day cooling-off period, and have the required insurance cover in place.
Successfully complete and pass an office audit to provide evidence of a robust and established business.
Successfully complete and pass a rigorous site inspection, ensuring they comply with the relevant British Standards, Health & Safety requirements, and Building Regulations.
All NFRC CPS registered contractors are audited annually and undertake regular site inspections throughout the year based on the number of projects they undertake. This ensures that they remain compliant with all standards and regulations.
Can NFRC CPS contractors self certify work?
An NFRC CPS contractor has the unique ability to self-certify that the work they complete complies with the relevant Building Regulations in England and Wales. If you are replacing 50 per cent or more of your roof, you are legally obliged to upgrade the insulation and obtain a Building Regulations Compliance Certificate (BRCC) from your local authority building control.
Failure to comply with the Building Regulations could result in you receiving an enforcement notice from Building Control, requiring the alteration or removal of your roof at your own cost. Without a valid BRCC you may also encounter problems when it comes to selling your property.
Using a contractor with recognition via the NFRC CPS scheme means that once the work has been completed and signed off, the homeowner will receive a BRCC plus an Insurance Backed Guarantee (IBG). More importantly, Building Control will automatically be notified that the works have taken place, fulfilling your legal obligation.
With every domestic notification, a ten-year IBG is included to reinforce the contractor’s workmanship guarantee. In the unlikely event that the roof fails, and the contractor ceases to trade, the IBG will come into effect. As a UKAS Accredited Body, NFRC CPS also has a robust complaints process in place to assist with any disputes that may arise.
What should I do before selecting a contractor?
Use our ‘Find a Contractor’ search function to find a NFRC CPS registered contractor in your area.
Before selecting your preferred contrator make sure their sales contract provides written confirmation that all work performed will be in accordance with the NFRC CPS scheme requirements. This includes information that:
The sales contract provides you with a 14-day cooling off period.
The sales contract confirms a 10-year workmanship guarantee.
Where 50 per cent or more of the roof is being replaced, the insulation will be upgraded with the work registered through the NFRC Competent Person Scheme so that a Building Regulations Compliance Certificate (BRCC) can be issued, together with a ten-year Insurance Backed Guarantee (IBG)*
(*applies to domestic notifications only)
WHAT THE SCHEME COVERS:
Self-certification, when 50 per cent or more of the roof is being refurbished, for the following roofing categories:
Slating and Tiling and all other pitched works (including Shingles and Shakes)
Felt, Single Ply and GRP
Fully supported lead, copper, zinc and standing-seam aluminium
Liquid Applied Waterproofing
Mastic Asphalt (including Hot Melt)
Reinforced Bitumen Membranes (RBM)
Sheeting
Provision of roof lights—provided they are only inserted between rafters or on a like-for-like basis.
WHAT THE SCHEME DOESN’T COVER:
Where less than 50 per cent of the roof is being replaced, as this falls out of the scope of Approved Document L1B
Any solar or photovoltaic (PV) installation
The following areas which fall under the remit of Building Control:
Work on trussed rafters
Any structural glazed roof such as atriums
New build work
Structural work, unless like-for-like, e.g. rafters