How to Check a Roofer's License or Registration in South Carolina

To check a roofer in South Carolina, look the person up on the state's Residential Builders Commission lookup and confirm the status reads ACTIVE. The database is run by the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation (LLR). For a commercial building, search the Contractor's Licensing Board lookup instead. Then check what the state database can't show you: insurance, workers' compensation and the local business license.

This guide walks through each check in order, using the screens and status codes LLR shows as of October 2026. For contracts, liens and comparing bids, see the roofing contractor guide.

Which state board covers your roofing job?

Two boards inside LLR regulate construction. Which one applies depends on the building and the size of the job.

The Residential Builders Commission covers houses and small residential buildings. That means up to three floors, and no more than 16 units in any single apartment building (S.C. Code §40-59-20(6)). A roofer who contracts directly with a homeowner is a "residential specialty contractor" when the undertaking exceeds $500 (§40-59-20(7)). Roofers are one of the listed specialty trades.

Bigger residential jobs don't move the roofer to a different board. A registered roofer can take a job above $5,000 for an individual owner, but first has to file a surety bond with the Commission (§40-59-240(D)). A residential builder licensed by examination can also do roofing without a separate registration (§40-59-20(7)).

The Contractor's Licensing Board (CLB) covers commercial work. A CLB license is required when the total cost of construction is greater than $10,000 (§40-11-30); that figure was $5,000 until 2023 Act No. 69 took effect on May 19, 2023. The CLB lookup lists "Roofing - RF" among its classifications. The residential chapter doesn't apply to people licensed under the CLB chapter (§40-59-270). So a commercial general contractor on a house job is not, by itself, a problem.

License or registration: does the word matter?

For a lookup, not much. The residential statute defines "license" to include a license, registration or certification (§40-59-20(5)). What differs is the bar to get one. LLR's specialty registrant FAQ says there is no exam for a specialty registration "at this time," while residential builders are licensed by examination. Either credential is proper for a roofing job, as long as it is active.

How to run the LLR lookup, step by step

The search is free and takes a few minutes. Ask the roofer for their registration or license number first; it makes the search exact.

1. Open the main menu. LLR's Licensee Lookup lists every board alphabetically. Pick "Residential Builders" for a house, or "Contractors" for a commercial building.
2. Fill in as little as you can. The residential search has six fields: Last Name, First name, License number, City, Company name and License Type. The page notes that not every field is required, and a narrow search can miss a record spelled differently.
3. Leave License Type on "All" the first time. The menu includes Specialty, Home Builders and COA (the company credential, explained below). "All" catches a roofer registered as a specialty contractor and one licensed as a builder.
4. Clear the picture check. In October 2026, pressing Find opened an image test (reCAPTCHA) before results appeared. That is part of LLR's own page, not a sign something is wrong.
5. Open the matching record and write down the name, number, license type and status exactly as shown. If an expiration date is listed, note it too.
6. Got zero records? The residential page itself suggests trying the commercial Contractors board next, and the commercial page suggests the reverse. Run both before you conclude someone isn't there.

Search by name or by number?

Use the number when you have it. On the residential search, enter numbers only. On the commercial search, LLR asks you to leave off the letters G, M, CLG or CLM. Then check that the name that comes back is the person you met or the company on your bid.

Without a number, search the person, not the brand. The residential page tells users to search the individual's name. LLR's FAQ explains why: "We register the individual, not the company." Typing just the first few letters of a surname gives a list to scan if you aren't sure of the spelling.

Company searches can mislead. A registrant may list a company only when they hold 51% or more of it. A company with no majority-owner registrant needs its own Certificate of Authorization (LLR FAQ). So a company search with no hits isn't proof of trouble. Search the owner's name, then try the COA license type.

The commercial search has its own quirks. It searches only the licensed name, so enter either a company name or a person's name, not both. Leave out punctuation in company names, and add a city if you search by classification alone (CLB lookup tips).

What each status means

LLR defines its status codes on the search pages themselves, and says the database is updated nightly. Here is what each one means for you, using LLR's wording from the residential and commercial pages.

Check the renewal date against your job dates

Specialty registrations renew every two years, before June 30 of odd-numbered years. An unrenewed registration lapses on June 30 (LLR FAQ). The next deadline is June 30, 2027. If you sign in spring 2027 for work that starts in July, run the lookup again the week the crew arrives. Other credentials run on other cycles: the Commission's home page notes the builder and COA renewal deadline was June 30, 2026.

How to check for disciplinary actions

A status of ACTIVE doesn't tell you about past discipline. For that, use LLR's public Board Orders search: the Residential Builders Commission orders and the Contractor's Licensing Board orders. You can search by last name or company name, first name, or "doing business as" name. Each result lists the order date, name, license type and license number, with a link to view the order.

Open the order and read it. It states what the board found and what it required. One old order that was satisfied is different from a run of them. Fines run as high as $2,500 for each offense (§40-59-120). Misconduct that can cost a roofer their registration includes breaking the roofing-insurance rules in §40-59-25 (§40-59-110).

Search the trade name as well as the person. Orders against unregistered businesses may be filed under a company or DBA name with no license number at all.

What a lookup can't tell you

• Insurance. The lookup carries no insurance information. You need a certificate and a phone call (below).
• Workers' compensation. Same: check it separately with the state Workers' Compensation Commission.
• Local business license. Cities and towns license businesses on their own; LLR doesn't track it.
• Who shows up. The registration belongs to one person. It doesn't tell you whether the salesperson or the crew works for that person.
• Whether the job fits the registration. LLR's FAQ says a specialty registrant can't do structural work unless a licensed builder or general contractor supervises it. Rafter or framing repairs need that extra credential.

Checking the local business license

State registration doesn't replace local licensing. Specialty contractors "are not exempt from complying with county and municipal business license ordinances" (§40-59-240(C)). The rules depend on where your house sits.

• City of Columbia. A license is required of "every person engaged or intending to engage in any business" within city limits. Every license expires April 30, and the contractor's name must match their LLR license (Business License FAQ). We found no public license search on the City's site. Ask the roofer for a copy, and call the Business License Division at (803) 545-3345 to confirm.
• Unincorporated Lexington County. The County "does not require or issue business licenses" and relies on zoning permits (Lexington County zoning FAQ). Some towns in the county do license businesses, so call your town hall.
• Unincorporated Richland County and other towns. We couldn't load Richland County's business license page in October 2026. Call the county or town office to confirm what applies.
• The company itself. To confirm a corporation or LLC exists in South Carolina, use the Secretary of State's business entity search.

Certificates of insurance, and why you call the insurer

Nothing in the Residential Builders Commission chapter requires a registered roofer to carry general liability insurance. So whether a roofer is insured is something you verify, not something you assume.

A certificate of insurance is a one-page summary from the roofer's agent. It shows what was in force the day it was printed. A policy can be cancelled the next week, which is why the call matters.

1. Ask the roofer to have their insurance agent send the certificate to you directly, with your name and address as the certificate holder.
2. Look up the agency's number yourself and call. Ask whether the policy is active, whether the dates cover your job, and whether the named insured matches your contract.
3. Keep the certificate with your contract.

The workers' compensation rule

The workers' compensation law exempts a business with fewer than four regular employees in the state. It also exempts one with under $3,000 in payroll the previous year (§42-1-360(2)). So a small, honest roofer may legally have no policy. If so, ask how the crew is covered, and whether any subcontractors carry their own.

You can check coverage yourself. The Workers' Compensation Commission has an online lookup by employer and date, and its coverage staff answer at (803) 737-6203, Monday to Friday, 8:30 to 5:00. Collect proof of coverage when you hire the roofer, not after. The protection for project owners in §42-1-415 depends on documents gathered when the contractor is engaged.

Red flags worth stopping for

• Out-of-state plates after a storm, and no South Carolina record. Out-of-state contractors can get an emergency registration only after the Governor declares an emergency. It is limited to the declared area and the declaration's duration, and capped at $35,000 per project for specialty contractors (Reg. 106-5). Ask for the number and confirm it with the Commission at (803) 896-4696.
• "You pull the permit." Permit offices must refuse a permit for regulated work unless the applicant shows a license, registration or exemption (§40-59-280). A roofer who wants the permit in your name may be avoiding that check.
• Any status other than ACTIVE. Pending, inactive and lapsed registrants can't take work over $500 (LLR status notes).
• Names that don't line up. The truck, the bid, the contract, the certificate of insurance and the lookup should all point to the same person or company.
• No number in writing. A roofer who won't put a registration number on the bid has skipped the easiest part of the job.
• Offers about your insurance claim or deductible. Residential roofers may not negotiate a claim for you or rebate your deductible. See our post on checking a roofer after a storm.

If you pull the permit yourself

A homeowner can act as their own builder, but the exemption is narrow (§40-59-260). The home must be for your own or your family's use, not for sale or rent. You must appear in person and sign the permit application, and the permit office hands you a state disclosure statement.

That statement says: "You may not hire an unlicensed person as your residential builder or specialty contractor." The statute repeats the point in §40-59-260(F). An owner's permit does not make it legal to hire an unregistered roofer for a job over $500. It only shifts the paperwork, and the responsibility, onto you.

The separate list of small owner projects that need no permit at all, added in 2022, covers items like fences, short decks and finish work. Roofing is not on it (§40-59-265). For how local offices handle re-roof permits, see the roof permits guide.

How to file a complaint with LLR

The Commission investigates complaints against registered roofers and against people doing regulated work without a registration. Its complaint page explains the process.

1. Write to the roofer first. The Residential Builders complaint form asks whether you've tried to contact the licensee.
2. Gather documents. The form asks for the building permit application, invoices, estimates, the contract and cancelled checks that tie the builder to the job.
3. File it. Use the online complaint form, or call (803) 896-4470 to get a paper form. By statute the complaint must be in writing and sworn (§40-59-80); the form's attestation is made under penalty of perjury.
4. Consider the Alternative Complaint Resolution box. If the Commission approves it and the roofer agrees, the roofer contacts you to fix the problem. The form says this should happen within 30 days but no more than 60 days after approval. If it fails, the complaint is investigated as usual.
5. Be ready to testify. If LLR finds a violation, the roofer may be offered a consent agreement, or the case goes to a hearing. LLR says complainants should be ready to testify.

The checklist: what to check, where, and what good looks like