The new roof is already leaking
Roofs almost never fail in the middle. They fail where something sticks through them — and that tells you both what to inspect and what to say.
A roof is the largest single thing most people buy for their house, it is sold with a warranty measured in decades, and the most common complaint against roofing companies is that it started leaking almost immediately.
Across public homeowner complaint records against roofing companies in nine states, leaks on recent work appeared in 8 of the 11 companies reviewed — more than pricing, more than damage, more than delays. The intervals are what make it striking. These are not roofs wearing out.
- “These windows have leaked since day one” Homeowner complaint record, ME
- “A roof less than 8 months old should not have these issues” Homeowner complaint record, MD
- “3 months later a leak occurred again” Homeowner complaint record, IL
- “continuously leaked since it was installed two years ago” Homeowner complaint record, ME
- “Roof underlayment is unprotected within 3 month and leaks” Homeowner complaint record, FL
- “again had a leak in the same location” Homeowner complaint record, GA
- “more water coming down not only from the same spots” Homeowner complaint record, IL
- “suspected an issue within the first six months” Homeowner complaint record, GA — later "$30,128.06 expense to restore"
Roofs leak where things stick through them
This is the single most useful technical fact for a homeowner, and it is not obvious: the field of shingles is rarely the problem. Water gets in at the interruptions — where a chimney, a vent pipe, a skylight, a wall or a valley breaks the surface. Those junctions are sealed with metal called flashing, and flashing is fiddly, invisible from the ground, and the easiest thing to rush.
The complaint corpus is emphatic about it. Two companies, five separate complaints, all naming the same component:
- “There was no counter flashing!” Homeowner complaint record, GA
- “the flashing is not flashed properly and sealed” Homeowner complaint record, MD
- “their is no flashings around none of the pipes” Homeowner complaint record, MD
- “flashing around the chimney was not to code” Homeowner complaint record, GA
- “water running under the shingles to the exposed frames” Homeowner complaint record, GA
- “Roof is leaking from a vent pipe” Homeowner complaint record, TX
| Where leaks actually start | What should have happened | How to check from the ground |
|---|---|---|
| Chimney | Step flashing up the sides plus counter-flashing let into the masonry — two layers, not a smear of sealant. | Binoculars or a phone zoom. Visible caulk doing the sealing instead of metal is a warning sign. |
| Vent pipes | A boot flashing collaring each pipe, shingles lapped over the upslope side. | Every pipe should have a collar. A bare pipe through shingles is wrong. |
| Valleys | Where two roof planes meet — either woven shingles or metal valley, laid to shed water. | Look for debris damming, or nails driven through the valley centre. |
| Roof-to-wall | Step flashing behind the siding, not surface-mounted over it. | Metal that sits on top of the siding rather than tucked behind it. |
| Skylights | A manufacturer flashing kit, installed as a kit. | The most-complained-about single item after chimneys. |
You do not need to diagnose anything. You need to know the words, so that "where exactly is it getting in, and is that flashing or field?" is a question you can ask.
Two warranties, and only one of them is the roofer's
Almost every frustrating warranty conversation in the complaint record comes from these being confused — sometimes honestly, sometimes not.
| Manufacturer warranty | Workmanship warranty | |
|---|---|---|
| Covers | The shingles themselves — defects in the product. | The installation — flashing, nailing, laps, penetrations. |
| Length | Often 25–50 years, prorated. | Typically 1–10 years. This is the number that matters. |
| Who honours it | The manufacturer, if the roof was installed to spec. | The contractor — if they still exist. |
| Covers an early leak? | Rarely. Early leaks are almost always installation. | Yes. This is exactly what it is for. |
This is why "50 year warranty" on the sales sheet can coexist with nobody coming to fix a leak in month eight.
- “50 year warranty on the new roof... no longer responds to my phone calls” Homeowner complaint record, ME
- “contacted [them] by phone 11 times... no return call except once” Homeowner complaint record, TX
- “five-year warranty... called multiple times to no avail” Homeowner complaint record, IL
- “None of these messages have been returned” Homeowner complaint record, GA
- “never been able to talk to a live person” Homeowner complaint record, GA
- “Led me on for the last 6 months never sending anyone” Homeowner complaint record, FL
- “tried calling countless times... keep changing their name” Homeowner complaint record, ME
What to do the day you see a stain
In this order
- Photograph it, with a date, from inside and outside Stains spread and dry. A timestamped photo on the day you noticed is the single most useful piece of evidence you will have.
- Note the weather Wind-driven rain from one direction, or ice-damming in winter, points at different causes than a steady drip in still rain. Contractors take this seriously.
- Contact them in writing — email or text, not a phone call Every unresponsive-contractor complaint above is a story about phone calls. Writing creates the record, and warranties generally require you to give the original contractor a chance to fix it.
- Quote your own contract back at them Name the workmanship warranty term and the date of installation in the message. It changes the tone of the reply.
- Ask for a specific date, not a callback "When can you come Tuesday or Thursday?" is much harder to leave unanswered than "please call me."
- Do not repair it yourself yet Fixing it removes both the evidence and their obligation. If water is actively damaging the house, document heavily, tell them in writing you are forced to act, then mitigate.
If that produces nothing: escalate in the order that creates records — owner or service manager by name and role, a written deadline naming your next step, then a complaint to your state contractor licensing board (free, and a licence is worth more to them than your repair), then BBB, then a card dispute if any of it is still chargeable.
When it is genuinely not their fault
Worth saying plainly, because assuming bad faith on day one makes the conversation worse and is often wrong. Legitimate non-workmanship causes of a leak on a newish roof include ice damming in a house with poor attic insulation or ventilation, a failed sealant on a satellite dish mount someone else installed, siding or window leaks that only look like roof leaks, condensation from an unvented bathroom fan, and storm damage that is a fresh insurance claim rather than a warranty item.
A good roofer will tell you which of these it is and show you. The tell is not whether they say "that's not covered" — it is whether they can demonstrate why.
If you need a second opinion
An independent roofer will inspect and document a suspected workmanship failure for a modest fee, and that report is what turns "I think it was installed wrong" into something a licensing board or a court can read. Use a company with no relationship to the first.
Who to call for a second look
Roofing contractors by city
Get an independent inspection
Tell us your city and what you're seeing. You get local roofing contractors who can document the failure — and if the first company ever does come back, you'll know what you're looking at.
Get matched with a roofer What to check before payingQuestions homeowners actually ask
My new roof is leaking. What are my options?
Photograph it with a date from inside and out, then contact the contractor in writing — email or text — naming your installation date and your workmanship warranty term, and ask for a specific visit date rather than a callback.
Most warranties require giving the original contractor the chance to remedy, so this protects your position as well as creating a record. If nothing happens: owner or service manager by role, a written deadline, then your state contractor licensing board, then BBB.
Where do most roof leaks come from?
Not the middle of the roof. Leaks cluster where something interrupts the surface — chimneys, vent pipes, skylights, valleys and roof-to-wall junctions — because those are sealed with flashing, which is fiddly and easy to rush.
In the complaint records reviewed for this guide, flashing was named repeatedly and explicitly: "There was no counter flashing!", "their is no flashings around none of the pipes", "flashing around the chimney was not to code". If a new roof leaks, ask first whether it is flashing or field.
Does a roof warranty cover a leak?
It depends which warranty. The manufacturer warranty covers defective shingles and is the long number on the sales sheet — 25 to 50 years, usually prorated. The workmanship warranty covers the installation and is typically 1 to 10 years.
An early leak is almost always installation, so it is the workmanship warranty that matters — which is why "50 year warranty" and "nobody will come and fix my eight-month-old roof" can both be true at once.
How long should a workmanship warranty on a new roof be?
Commonly somewhere between 1 and 10 years, and the length matters less than who stands behind it. Get the term, the start date and the callback process written on the contract before you pay.
Ask what legal entity honours it and how long that entity has existed. One homeowner in the record noted a company that "keep changing their name" — a decades-long warranty from a business that dissolves and re-registers is worth nothing.
My roofer won't come back to fix a leak. What can I do?
Stop phoning and start writing — every unresponsive-contractor complaint in this corpus is a story about unreturned calls, and written contact is what an insurer, a board or a court can read later.
Then escalate in order: ask for the owner by role, set a written deadline naming your next step, file with your state contractor licensing board (free, and their licence matters more to them than your repair), file with the BBB, and dispute the charge if any portion is still chargeable.
Should I fix the leak myself and bill the roofer?
Not if you can avoid it. Repairing removes the evidence of what was wrong and usually voids the contractor's obligation, since most warranties require giving them the opportunity to remedy.
If water is actively damaging the house and you cannot wait, document heavily first — photos, video, the written notice you sent — then tell them in writing that you are being forced to mitigate. That preserves as much of your position as the situation allows.
Can a new roof leak for reasons that aren't the roofer's fault?
Yes, and it is worth staying open to it. Ice damming caused by poor attic insulation or ventilation, condensation from an unvented bathroom fan, siding or window leaks that present as roof leaks, a satellite mount someone else drilled, and fresh storm damage are all real and none are workmanship failures.
A good roofer will show you which it is. Judge the answer by whether they can demonstrate the cause, not by whether the answer is "covered".