How to verify a Florida roofing contractor's licence
CCC vs RC, how to use DBPR's lookup, what the status codes mean and how to find board discipline.
Florida licenses roofers at the state level. Checking the licence takes two minutes and is the single most useful thing you can do before signing a roofing contract — especially after a hurricane, when out-of-area crews and door-to-door salespeople arrive faster than local permitting offices can keep up.
Step 1: get the licence number in writing
Every roofing contractor's licence number should be on the estimate, the contract and, under Florida law, in its advertising. Roofing licence numbers begin with CCC (Certified Roofing Contractor) or RC (Registered Roofing Contractor). If a salesperson can only give you a company name, or a number that starts with something else, ask who the licensed roofing contractor is. A general, building or residential contractor (CGC, CBC, CRC) generally has to subcontract roofing to a licensed roofer unless they hold a roofing licence themselves; the main exception is shingle roofing on a new home they are building.
Step 2: look it up with DBPR
The official lookup is the Department of Business and Professional Regulation's Verify a License page. Search by licence number (most reliable) or by name. The result shows the licensee, the business name, the licence class, the address of record, the expiry date and the status.
Every listing on this site comes from the same department's daily licensee extract, so the details here should match. If they don't, trust DBPR's live lookup — and tell us, so we can fix it.
Step 3: read the status correctly
DBPR shows two parts to a status. You want Current, Active. Other combinations you will see:
- Current, Inactive — the licence is renewed but the holder has put it on inactive status. They may not contract while inactive.
- Delinquent — the licence was not renewed on time. Florida roofing licences expire on a fixed two-year cycle (certified licences on August 31 of even-numbered years), so a lapse around renewal time is common and sometimes fixed within days. Still, do not sign until it is active again.
- Null and void, revoked, suspended — the holder may not contract.
We only list roofers whose licence is Current and Active in the latest extract.
Step 4: certified or registered?
A certified contractor holds a certificate of competency from the state and may contract anywhere in Florida. A registered contractor qualified through a local jurisdiction and may contract only where that registration is valid. A registered roofer from another county may not be allowed to pull a permit for your house. Your city or county building department can tell you.
Step 5: check the business, not just the person
Florida licences an individual — the qualifying agent — and that person qualifies a business. The contract should be with the business the licence is attached to. If the company name on the contract doesn't match the business name on the licence, ask why. The Division of Corporations at Sunbiz shows who registered the company and when.
Step 6: look for board discipline
The Construction Industry Licensing Board (CILB) publishes final disciplinary actions against licensed contractors, one file per fiscal year, on DBPR's construction industry public records page. There are also separate files for Construction Industries Recovery Fund actions, which arise when a homeowner was paid from the state fund because of a contractor's violation.
We match those files to licence numbers and show any entries on the roofer's profile with the date, case number, disposition and the actions listed, such as a fine, costs, probation or a citation. A single citation from years ago means something different from a revocation last month, so read the entries rather than the badge. The files cover fiscal year 2021-22 onward; for older history, request records from DBPR.
Step 7: insurance and workers' compensation
A licence is not insurance. Ask for a certificate of general liability insurance issued directly from the insurance agent, naming you as certificate holder, and for proof of workers' compensation coverage or an exemption. The Division of Workers' Compensation offers a proof of coverage search.
Step 8: the permit
Re-roofing almost always needs a building permit in Florida. The licensed contractor should pull it in their own name. A request that you pull an owner-builder permit for work a contractor is doing is a warning sign: the owner-builder becomes responsible for the work and for anyone hurt doing it.
A two-minute checklist
- Licence number starts CCC or RC and shows Current, Active at DBPR.
- A registered (RC) roofer is registered where your house is.
- Business name on the contract matches the licence.
- Discipline entries, if any, are read and discussed.
- Insurance certificate comes from the agent, not the salesperson.
- The contractor pulls the permit.