Door knocking, storm chasers and the roof you didn't know was broken

Short answer

Treat any unsolicited offer to repair something you had not noticed as a sales approach rather than a diagnosis. Australian law gives you a cooling-off period for unsolicited consumer agreements, restricts when door-to-door sellers may call, and requires them to leave when asked. Never agree on the spot, never pay cash up front, and get an independent opinion before authorising anything.

It intensifies after storms and it follows a script. Someone was working nearby, noticed a problem with your roof or driveway, has material left over, and can do it today at a good price — but only today.

The tells, in order of reliability

  1. It was unsolicited. You did not go looking, which means the problem was found by someone with an interest in finding one.
  2. Urgency. A price that expires today exists to prevent you getting a second opinion, which is the only thing that would settle it.
  3. They went up and photographed damage you cannot verify. Photographs are not evidence of where they were taken.
  4. Cash, or a large deposit before anything starts.
  5. No written quote, no ABN, no licence number, and a mobile number with no business address.
  6. The name is generic and searching it returns nothing older than a few months.

What the law actually gives you

Under the Australian Consumer Law, an agreement made at your door with an uninvited seller is generally an unsolicited consumer agreement. Those carry a cooling-off period during which you can cancel without penalty, they must be given to you in writing, and the supplier generally must not accept payment during the cooling-off period. Door-to-door sellers are also restricted in the hours they may call, must identify themselves and their purpose, and must leave immediately if asked.

If you have signed something you regret, the cooling-off period is the mechanism, and your state consumer body will tell you where you stand. Cancelling within it does not require a reason.

What to do at the door

  1. Do not agree to anything, and do not let anyone onto the roof.
  2. Ask for the business name, ABN and licence number in writing. A legitimate trader provides them; this request ends most cold approaches on its own.
  3. Say you will get a second opinion. Watch the reaction — it is the most informative moment of the conversation.
  4. If damage might be real, ring your insurer. For storm damage many will arrange an inspection and a make-safe directly.
  5. Then choose a business yourself, from a source that is not the person standing in front of you.

A minute of checking is what this comes down to. Only 9.8% of the 36,230 businesses measured here publish an ABN a customer can confirm — so asking for one is both reasonable and, for an operator who does not want to be found later, awkward.

Common questions

Is door-to-door selling legal in Australia?
Yes, but it is regulated. Uninvited sellers face restrictions on the hours they may call, must identify themselves and their purpose, must leave when asked, and agreements made this way carry a cooling-off period with limits on taking payment during it.
I signed something at the door. Can I cancel?
Usually yes. Unsolicited consumer agreements carry a cooling-off period during which you can cancel without penalty and without giving a reason. Contact your state consumer body promptly — the period is short and starts running immediately.
What if they say my roof is genuinely dangerous?
It might be. That is a reason for an independent inspection by someone you chose, and a call to your insurer, rather than a reason to authorise work by the person who told you. Real urgency survives a second opinion; manufactured urgency does not.

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