Act of God Clauses for Roofers: Hurricane Delay Notices

Example: A roofer plans to start tear-off on Monday. An evacuation order closes access, and the shingle supplier cancels delivery. The homeowner still expects a finished roof by Friday. The job file needs to show what prevented the work and what the contract allows next.

An Act of God clause, often called force majeure, addresses specified events outside the parties' control. Its usefulness depends on the wording, governing law, actual effect on performance, and required notices. A storm name alone does not settle a delay claim.

Decide what the contract covers

Before signing a roofing contract, distinguish ordinary seasonal weather from unusual events that prevent the agreed work. The Atlantic season runs June 1 through November 30, and storms can occur outside it, according to National Hurricane Center climatology. Those dates are planning information, not a legal test for excusable delay.

Ask the person reviewing your contract to address:

• Covered events, including evacuation orders, unsafe access, and qualifying supplier disruption.
• The required connection between the event and the affected task.
• Notice recipient, delivery method, deadline, and later supporting records.
• Available relief: additional time, specified costs, or an agreed termination process.
• Site protection, reasonable mitigation, and restart responsibilities.

The ICC's 2020 force majeure and hardship models offer drafting options; they are not automatically part of a US roofing contract. Likewise, FAR 52.249-14 addresses excusable delays under certain federal contracts. Its external-cause and absence-of-fault conditions are useful comparisons, not residential contract rights.

Check the rest of the agreement for conflicting deadlines, damages, and notice clauses. The 12-clause contract review helps locate those connections; the right-to-cure guide explains the separate process for an alleged breach.

Send a notice tied to the work

Follow the signed agreement's notice procedure. If the full impact is unknown, identify what is known and say when more information will follow. Do not substitute a casual text for a required formal delivery method.

Adaptable notice example, for review against your contract:

The county evacuation order issued October 16 prevents access for the tear-off scheduled October 19. Delivery is also suspended, as shown in the attached supplier notice. We have postponed tear-off and secured stored materials. We request a schedule extension under section [number]. The duration remains unknown; we will update you after access and delivery are confirmed. Any additional work or charge will be addressed separately under the agreement.

Keep a dated daily report connecting the closure to the affected activity. Save the order, supplier message, site photographs, original schedule, mitigation efforts, and actual restart date. Record work that continued elsewhere too; a two-day closure does not automatically prove a two-day extension to completion.

Protect the site and price changes separately

Choose a responsible person to secure openings, materials, and equipment before conditions deteriorate. OSHA's hurricane preparedness guidance addresses evacuation planning and following local authorities. Afterward, its response and recovery guidance directs employers to task-specific hazard assessments. A customer's deadline does not remove worker-protection duties.

Use the roofing work order to communicate the approved protective work and access limits. Keep any later damage assessment in a separate roof inspection report; a schedule notice is not an insurance coverage decision.

Additional time and additional payment are different requests. Identify the contract basis for each charge before billing emergency covering, storage, remobilization, or acceleration. Coverage, deductibles, approval requirements, and credits depend on the agreement and applicable policy; do not promise reimbursement.

For example, if a supplier proposes a substitute shingle, document its specification, availability, customer approval, price difference, and schedule effect in a change order. Keep the original scope attachment with it. Do not use force majeure to transfer unrelated ordering mistakes or concealed-condition work to the customer.

When access returns, send a revised work schedule and scope record, identify remaining dependencies, and obtain any approval the contract requires. State a next update date when the completion date is still uncertain.