Who keeps the old lead when a roof is replaced?

Lead on your roof is part of your property. When it comes off during a re-roof, a repair or a flashing replacement, it does not become the roofer's by default. In practice many roofers keep the old sheet to offset the cost of their work, and many customers are happy with that. The trouble comes when nothing is said and each side assumes the other agreed.

The simplest course is to settle it at the survey. Either the lead stays with the roofer, in which case the quote reflects that, or it stays with you, in which case it is stacked and left. Ask for the decision to be written on the quote, so there is a record. Our quote is one total price, and we will tell you plainly how the old lead has been treated.

Lead is a metal that can be melted and reused many times without losing its useful properties. That is why scrap dealers pay for it, and why theft from roofs has been such a persistent problem. Old sheet is usually clean enough to sell as it comes, though thin, split or heavily contaminated pieces fetch less.

Do not rely on any particular figure for what the lead might fetch. Scrap prices move with the market, and a pile of old flashing from a small job will not be worth a great deal. What matters more is the principle: it has value, so it should be accounted for. Our page on lead theft covers why this matters for security as well, because lead left on a skip or stacked on a drive overnight invites trouble.

Old roof lead is a recyclable metal, handled differently from tiles, battens or rubble. It should be kept separate, sorted and taken to a metal dealer or recycler, not tipped into a general skip. Mixed loads are harder to process and may be refused.

Asbestos is a different matter. If the building includes asbestos cement sheets or old soffits, that material follows its own rules, with a consignment note raised for any household asbestos load. It is never mixed with lead or anything else. If there is any doubt about a material, work stops until it has been checked properly.

Old flat roofs that were patched with sealant over lead raise a separate point. Lead roof sealant explains why that coating can contaminate the metal and cut its resale value.

Anyone who carries waste for someone else, construction waste included, should appear on the register of waste carriers. GOV.UK keeps a public register where you can search for a business by name or number, and it is worth checking before you hand over a load. Details are on the GOV.UK waste carrier page.

Ask for a waste transfer note or an invoice that records what was taken and by whom. For a small job it may be a short document. It is not an onerous request, and a roofer who is organised will not mind providing it. If the lead is sold on, a receipt from the scrap dealer shows where it went.

Four points are worth putting in writing. First, who owns the old lead once it is off the roof. Second, where it will be stored if it stays on site, and for how long. Third, who removes it and what paperwork you will get. Fourth, whether any credit for the lead has been reflected in the price.

• Name the person who keeps the lead.
• Agree whether it is cut up or left in rolls.
• Ask for a transfer note or scrap receipt.
• Record any asbestos or other hazardous material found.

Where the old roof is being replaced like for like, copper or lead helps you decide whether lead should go back at all.

If the lead stays with you, store it somewhere out of sight and off the street. A heap of grey sheet on a front drive is easy to spot from the road. A locked garage or a back garden with a closed gate is much better.

Stack it flat, away from children and pets, and avoid leaving it in rain-soaked piles where run-off can mark paving. Old lead is heavy, so lift it in small batches. Wash your hands after handling it and before eating, as you would after any work with the metal.

If it will leave with the roofer, ask for it to be cleared the same day the strip-out ends, so it is not sitting by the scaffold overnight.

Large flat roofs and parapet gutters release the most old lead, and they are where ownership questions matter most. A lead parapet gutter can hold a lot of metal in a short run, and lead flat roofs hold more still. The hub for all of this is lead roofing.

On a job like that, we agree the position at survey, record it on the written quote and leave the site clear when we finish. The workmanship guarantee that follows lasts 10 years and is also in writing, so the paperwork for the lead and the paperwork for the roof sit together.