How long the certification period runs
A LeakFREE® Roof Certification period runs for a term set by the roof itself, up to a maximum of ten years. Two years is common on a resale transaction. Longer terms are issued where the findings support them. The expiration is printed on the certificate as a date, so nobody has to calculate it later or argue about when coverage of the record lapsed.
What sets the term
The accredited member who performs the inspection sets the term from what they find. Four things drive it:
- The findings. What the multi-zone LeakFREE® Check turned up across the interior, attic, exterior, perimeter and rooftop.
- The slope. A steep-slope roof sheds water differently than a low-slope assembly, and the failure modes are different too.
- The materials. A tile roof and a twelve year old asphalt shingle roof are not on the same clock.
- The condition. Age, prior repairs, workmanship, penetrations, flashing and the state of the underlayment.
Terms are never stretched to help a deal close. A member who extends a term past what the roof supports is putting their own accreditation behind a document that will not hold up.
Why two years shows up so often
Most certifications are ordered in the middle of a sale, and a two year term is the length that has become customary in that setting. It gives a buyer a documented baseline for the period right after closing, when a roof problem is most likely to turn into a dispute between buyer, seller and agent.
If a lender, an insurer or a transaction requires a specific certification term, ask for that requirement in writing and give it to the inspecting member before the inspection. NRCIA does not set what any third party accepts, and requirements vary between institutions and states.
What the certification period does not mean
The term is the life of a record, not a promise about the roof. A LeakFREE® Roof Certification states that a specific roof, at a specific address, met the published LeakFREE® criteria on the date it was inspected. It is not insurance. It is not a service contract, and it is not a warranty against future leaks.
Weather, other trades and ordinary aging all keep working after the inspector drives away. What the certificate holds is a dated, registered account of condition that a buyer, an agent, an adjuster or a court can read years later.
Keeping the term intact
If repairs are performed during the certification period by anyone other than an NRCIA member, a re-inspection by a member is required. The member who signed the certificate cannot vouch for work they never saw. Every certificate is generated and registered through InspectionPLUS®, and a certificate produced outside the platform is not valid.
LeakFREE® is our federally registered trademark. Only NRCIA members can issue a LeakFREE® certification.
Get the term for your roof
The length you qualify for depends on what an inspection finds. An accredited member can tell you after the LeakFREE® Check, not before it.
Find an accredited NRCIA inspector near you.
LeakFREE®, Forensic ROOF®, Mr. RoofCheck®, InspectionPLUS®, Today’s Inspection… Tomorrow’s Protection®, and Got Leaks?® are registered trademarks of Field Gate FLP, used by permission. RoofGUARD™, ForensicGUARD™, DisasterGUARD™, E3GUARD™, and Think Like a Raindrop™ are trademarks of Field Gate FLP.
