Paying for a new roof, what protection with CC

[JustJess]

Okay, I have seen a lot of news stories on how people have given roofers their insurance checks and then the company goes "Poof!" with the money and no roof. I thought perhaps using a CC to pay might protect me in general from this happening, since if they don't do the job I can dispute/reverse the the charge with my bank.

I have a roofing company who says they have done CC payments by using Paypal, supposedly so everyone has documentation and the purchase is protected. Is that the case, I couldn't really find good info in the help system as to something like this. In other words, if I pay them to do the job using my CC via PayPal and they don't do the job can I just call my bank and dispute the charge or must I jump through hoops with PayPal?

If I have a problem and call my bank to reverse/cancel/chargeback, however the proper phrase goes, is it done right away or is PayPal going to kick up a fuss & put up a bunch of roadblocks to delay my being credited back for services not rendered?

Sorry if this was answered here somewhere and I missed it. A link to a solid answer would be helpful.

Thanks

[PayPal_Olivia]

Hi JustJess,

Coverage for services (such as the installation of a roof) is currently not guaranteed in most situations. We're always re-evaluating and finding new ways to offer more and more protection, but as it stands right now, you would have to examine the risks and weigh your decision about whether or not to pay your contractor without this guarantee of coverage.

Paying by credit card does offer another layer of potential protection, subject to the terms of the credit card issuer's own policies. You can check with them to see if they offer the coverage you're looking for. They may require that you first file a claim through PayPal (which we would definitely want you to do anyway to let us know there was a problem) and wait for that claim to be closed.

This is, of course, assuming the worst case scenario. There's always the probability that your purchase will go off without a hitch and you will enjoy your new roof for many years to come... but you're wise to examine your options now.

I hope my perspective helped!

Olivia