Scope Changes by Text Are Not Binding Until Your Contract Says So

A roof job changes shape after the signing. The crew finds a soft spot in the deck, the homeowner wants a skylight moved two feet, the supplier swaps a shingle color, and somebody has to write that change down. Most of those changes arrive by text message, a phone call, or a quick word from a foreman at the curb. This page is about what each roofer says counts, because a text thread can hold a change without making it part of the contract.

Roofer comparison

Put the same question to every roofer on your list, in the same words: "When I want to change the scope after I sign, through which channel does the change become part of the contract?" Write down each answer as it is given. A roofer who says "a text is fine" has told you something. A roofer who says "only a signed change order, dated and priced" has told you something different. Neither answer is wrong by itself. The comparison is the point.

Ask four follow-ups of each reply: which channel binds, who signs for the roofer, whether a price appears in the change, and how long the roofer keeps the record. Compare the four answers side by side. Two roofers may both say "in writing," and one may mean an email from the office while the other means a paper form signed on the lot. The second one gives you more to hold. Missouri does not license roofers, so the contract and the change order are the records you will have most of, and their wording is worth more than a sales promise.

What it costs

A change made by text rarely changes the price on paper, and that is the problem. A foreman who texts "we will add two sheets of decking" has described work, but the final invoice may still show the original total. The homeowner is then left arguing about a number nobody wrote with a price beside it. A written change order with a line item, a unit price, and a quantity costs a few minutes at the time and saves a dispute at the end.

Ask each roofer what a change order costs to prepare, whether there is a fee for a change the homeowner requested, and whether a change the homeowner cannot avoid is priced at a set rate before the crew starts. Some roofers publish a unit price for decking replacement, and some price it only when they find the damage. Ask which one applies to you, and write the answer in the same column as the rest.

Set a dollar limit for changes you will approve on the phone. Under that limit, a text may be enough if the roofer confirms it in the contract channel the same day. Over that limit, you want a signed form before the crew touches the work. Write the number at the top of your comparison sheet, then check each roofer's answer against it.

What to ask

Use these questions on each roofer, in order, and write the replies as they are given:

1. Which channel makes a scope change part of the contract: a signed change order, an email from the office, or a text from the crew?
2. Who on your side has the authority to sign a change order, and what is their title?
3. Does every change show a unit price, a quantity, and a new total?
4. If a change arrives by text, how many days do you have to confirm it in writing before the crew proceeds?
5. How do you keep the record after the job closes, and for how long?

Compare the answers, not the adjectives. "Our process is very clear" is not an answer. "We send an emailed change order from the office, you reply with the word approved, and we hold the work until we have that reply" is an answer you can check against the contract.

Where a text thread stops being enough

A common case on a St. Louis roof is decking. Once the old shingles come off, the crew may find soft boards near a valley, a dormer cheek, or a chimney base, where years of freeze and thaw have worked water under the surface. The homeowner is rarely standing on the lawn when that happens. Before the crew replaces anything, the change needs a price and a quantity on paper, so the homeowner can say yes or no with the facts in front of them.

A text can record that the homeowner said yes. It cannot show a price, a scope line, or a date that matches the contract. If the change touches the shingle type, the underlayment, or the number of layers, the change belongs on paper. Ask each roofer to name the exact document you will receive. If the answer is "the crew lead will text you," that text is the only record you will have, and it is worth noting in the comparison.

Keep your own copies. Screenshot text threads with the dates visible, save emails as PDFs, and store signed change orders with the original contract. If you ever need to show what was agreed, a folder with dates in it does more than memory. Read the contract for any clause that names the channel for changes before you sign, because the clause you skimmed may be the one that decides the dispute.

Missouri and what a roofer can and cannot say

Missouri law bars a roofing contractor from representing or negotiating a homeowner's insurance claim, and from saying anything about paying, waiving or covering a deductible. That prohibition is part of the statute, so a roofer may not offer to handle the insurer side of a change that came up because an insurer's estimate left out a repair. The roofer may document the damage, put a written scope with photos and measurements in your hands, and attend as the contractor while you deal with your own insurer directly.

Keys Roofing

Keys documents damage, puts a written scope with photos and measurements in the homeowner's hands, and attends as the contractor while the homeowner deals with their own insurer. If you want to see how Keys handles a scope change before you choose, call the office at (314) 220-2333 and ask the questions from the list above. Write down what you hear, then set it beside the other replies on your sheet.