Missouri Roofing Rules: What St. Louis, MO Homeowners Should Know
A roof job in St. Louis, MO comes with a short list of state and local rules worth knowing before you sign. Here, in plain words, is who checks roofers, when the City wants a permit, how the insurance cancel right works and what Missouri says about deductibles.
What Matters Most
Missouri does not license roofers, so the checks that exist come from cities. The City of St. Louis requires a business license from every contractor working there, and a few County cities add their own. On an insurance-paid roof, state law gives you a cancel window after a written denial and bars deductible deals and gifts.
Permits depend on your address. We found no Missouri grant or discount program for new roofs, so none is listed here.
This is a summary of public law, not legal advice. None of the offices named here works with us.
What MO Requires of Roofers
There is no statewide roofing license in Missouri. No state test stands between a person and a "roofer" sign on the truck, so the useful checks are local.
Inside the City of St. Louis, each contractor and subcontractor on the job must hold a City graduated business license and show proof of workers' comp. Ask to see that license. The License Collector's office (City Hall, 1200 Market Street, Rooms 102 to 104) can tell you whether a contractor holds one.
We found no St. Louis County license for roofers, so ask your own city. Some County cities do set rules. Kirkwood, MO requires every contractor to hold a city Contractor's Business License. Webster Groves, MO requires a city Certificate of Registration for any contractor doing permit work, with $300,000 of general liability coverage per occurrence and workers' comp or an affidavit; owners working on their own occupied home are exempt. In University City, MO, the city notes that a contractor registration comes with many of its permit types; ask whether your roof job is one.
A few more things are fair to ask any roofer for:
- Coverage on paper. A current general liability certificate and proof of workers' comp, in the same business name the contract shows.
- An itemized contract. Each part of the job on its own line, with payments tied to finished work rather than cash up front.
- Two written warranties. One from the manufacturer and one for labor, and who registers the manufacturer warranty.
- Decking photos. Once the old roof is off, a look at the bare wood and any boards marked for swapping.
Your Right to Cancel
Missouri has a law just for roofing and exterior contracts that an insurance policy will pay for. Say your insurer sends word in writing that some or all of the claim falls outside your coverage. From the day that letter arrives, you have until midnight of the fifth business day to back out of the roofing contract.
The contract has to explain this right in bold print and include a cancellation form you can tear off and send. If you cancel, your money must come back within ten days. Only emergency work you agreed to, such as a tarp over an open roof, may be kept.
Door sales follow a separate rule. Buying from a seller at your door generally gives you three business days to cancel, under Missouri's home-sale law for credit sales and a federal rule for many door sales over $25.
Deductibles and the Law
Your deductible is your cost to pay. Under Missouri law, no contractor may offer, in an ad or in person, to cover your deductible or hand back part of it. Gifts, prizes, bonuses, coupons, credits and anything else of value are banned too, for any reason.
Claims have their own limits. Your insurance company decides your claim. A contractor may not negotiate it for you, or offer to; only a licensed public adjuster may represent you. A roofer can still photograph the damage and write an estimate.
Breaking these rules counts as an unfair practice under Missouri's Merchandising Practices Act, which bans deception in a sale or an ad. Two signs worth a second look:
- "We'll take care of your deductible." Any plan to cover, waive or rebate it runs against Missouri law.
- Pressure to sign today. A fair offer will still be there after you read it at home.
Local Permit Questions
The City of St. Louis spells out its re-roof rule. When the new roof uses the same kind of material and no more than 25% of the sheathing gets swapped, the City asks for no building permit. A roof of a different material needs one, and so does a job that tears out and replaces more than a quarter of the sheathing. Before work starts, have your roofer check with the City's Building Division permit section at City Hall, 1200 Market Street, Room 425, and agree in writing on who files any permit.
Historic homes add a step. The City's Cultural Resources Office reviews exterior work in the City's 17 local historic districts and 130 landmarks, from Lafayette Square and Soulard to Shaw and The Ville. For a home in one of those districts or a City Landmark, roof work usually needs a permit from that office even when the building code doesn't ask for one. Smaller jobs, roofing among them, can often be cleared over the counter by its reviewer in Room 424 at City Hall. Planning to trade slate or tile for shingles? Talk to the Cultural Resources Office first.
St. Louis County works differently. Many County cities keep their own building offices. Your roofer should ask your city first, or St. Louis County itself where the city sends its permits there. Florissant, MO is the plain exception: the city wants a building permit for every residential roofing and re-roofing job, and its Public Works Department at City Hall, 955 rue St. Francois, issues them.
For other towns, ask the city office:
- Kirkwood, MO. The Building Division, 139 S. Kirkwood Road, on the lower level of City Hall.
- Webster Groves, MO. The Building Commissioner's office.
- University City, MO. The Department of Planning & Zoning (City Hall, 6801 Delmar Boulevard, 4th floor).
- Chesterfield, MO. The planning staff at City Hall, 690 Chesterfield Parkway West; the city contracts with St. Louis County for building permits.
If your subdivision has HOA or trustee rules on color or material, get the approval in hand before the tear-off.
What Homeowners Ask About the Law
Do roofers need a license in Missouri?
Not from the state, since Missouri has no roofing license. In the City of St. Louis, a contractor needs a City graduated business license, and the License Collector's office can confirm it. Kirkwood, MO and Webster Groves, MO add their own rules. Elsewhere in St. Louis County, ask your city hall.
Does my City re-roof need a permit?
Same material and no more than 25% new sheathing means no building permit under the City's rule. A change of material or more sheathing work does need one. In a City local historic district or on a City Landmark, plan on a Cultural Resources Office review whichever way the building rule falls. Agree on who files before work begins.
My insurer denied part of the claim after I signed. What now?
Look at the date the written denial reached you. Count five business days from there; your right to cancel runs until midnight of the last one. Send the cancellation form from your contract and keep a copy. Your money comes back within ten days, apart from emergency work you agreed to.
Where can I take a complaint or a question?
Take sales and contract complaints to the Missouri Attorney General's consumer protection office. Insurance questions go to the Missouri Department of Commerce and Insurance. For a City business license question, try the City's License Collector's office, and for a local permit, your own city hall. Each office lists its contact details on its website.
Read the Originals
- Insurance-paid roofing contracts, deductibles and claims. RSMo 407.725, on the Missouri Revisor of Statutes site (revisor.mo.gov).
- Public adjusters. RSMo 325.015 (revisor.mo.gov) and insurance.mo.gov.
- Unfair practices. RSMo 407.020, the Merchandising Practices Act (revisor.mo.gov).
- Door sales. RSMo 407.700 to 407.720 (revisor.mo.gov) and the federal cooling-off rule (ftc.gov).
- City business license. Ordinance 61094 and the License Collector's contractor license pages (stlouis-mo.gov).
- City permits and historic review. The Building Division page "When a Residential Building Permit is Needed" and the Cultural Resources Office pages (stlouis-mo.gov).
- County cities. Pages from florissantmo.com, kirkwoodmo.org, ucitymo.org and chesterfield.mo.us, plus the Webster Groves building code, Appendix N.
All sources were read October 18, 2026.
Questions About the Rules?
Rather have a roofer look at your own roof? Send us a request with a few details. We set up the visit, and a local roofer inspects the roof and writes up the estimate. There is no cost to send a request. We don't climb on roofs, quote prices, write contracts or take part in insurance claims.
Want a ballpark before anyone visits? The roof cost calculator gives a range, and the roof replacement cost guide explains it.