What does an out-of-hours roofer cost?

Evening, night and weekend call-outs are priced on survey like any other job, because the fault and the access decide the figure. What national guides do give is a range for storm repairs, which is the kind of work that most often has to happen at short notice. MyBuilder's roof repair guide, updated in August 2026, puts storm fixes at £500 to £1,500. Its other bands put a minor repair at £100 to £300 and a major one at £2,500 or more.

Treat the storm range as a starting point, not a quote. Bills at the top of it usually involve a wider area of damage, difficult access, or both, while a small, accessible fault tends to sit nearer the bottom. Where the damage is limited to a few slipped tiles on a roof that is easy to reach, the cost may sit at the lower end. Where a chimney has been hit, a section of covering has gone or scaffolding is needed, it can climb. The only number that applies to your roof is the written quote that follows an inspection.

Planned jobs fit into a diary. Urgent ones displace it. A roofer who drops everything for an emergency leaves other customers waiting, and that disruption is part of the price. Work done in the evening, at a weekend or in bad weather is also slower and riskier: poor light, wet surfaces and gusty wind all limit what can safely be done.

Weather adds its own cost. Tiles cannot be bedded safely in heavy rain, and a repair started in a gale may have to be stopped half-finished. That waiting time is real, and it is one reason a first visit often ends with a temporary cover and a return date.

Materials matter too. A planned repair is ordered in advance; an urgent one often uses whatever can be fetched quickly, sometimes at a higher cost. And an emergency job is frequently two jobs: first a temporary covering to stop the water, then a return visit for the proper repair. That second visit has its own labour and materials, even if the first visit was short.

Four things move an urgent price most. The first is access. A low extension can be reached from a ladder, while a steep three-storey gable may need a tower or full scaffold. MyBuilder lists roughly £850 to £1,200 to scaffold a typical two-storey house, and that outlay can be larger than the repair bill on a minor fault.

The second is the extent of the damage, since one tile is not one square metre. The third is the covering itself, because natural slate, handmade clay and stone slate are dearer to replace than factory-made concrete tile. The fourth is what is found underneath, such as rotten battens or damp boards, which only show once the covering comes off. Our guide to emergency roof repair costs sets out the same drivers for the whole range of jobs.

A leaking ceiling makes anyone want to agree to the first price offered. Resist, politely. Ask for the quote in writing, showing the overall price and what the work involves. Ask whether VAT and any scaffold sit inside that figure, and what happens if further damage turns up once work starts.

Be wary of anyone who knocks after a storm, asks for cash up front or will not put anything on paper. Our page on storm-chasing roofers describes the warning signs. A reasonable firm will take photographs of the damage, split the make-safe job from the permanent repair into two stages, and let you decide.

Remember that a temporary fix is meant to be temporary. Our page on roof tarpaulins explains what they do and when they fail.

If the damage might be covered by your policy, call the insurer before arranging anything expensive. ABI advice issued for Storm Eunice in 2022 suggested arranging temporary emergency repairs where necessary but speaking to the insurer first, and keeping receipts. Our page on how insurers define a storm explains why that matters, because a policy may only respond to damage meeting its definition.

The insurer decides whether a claim is paid, and no outcome can be promised in advance. Which? has reported that only 32% of storm-related claims made in 2024 resulted in a payout, according to FCA figures, so plan for the possibility that you pay yourself. Our page on tiles blown off a roof covers one common storm repair.

Routine jobs wait behind leaks and storm damage here, and step one is keeping the water out. Ring 01793 626096, or tell us what you can see through WhatsApp or the contact form. Once we have surveyed, you receive photographs of the damage along with a written quote at one price, covering the lightest repair that will fix the fault. The workmanship is guaranteed for 10 years on paper, and our emergency roof repairs hub has more.

A price given by phone for work nobody has seen would be a guess. A leak that looks simple from a description sometimes turns out to involve a failed valley or rotten boards, and a guess made blind helps nobody when the bill arrives.