Questions to Ask Before Hiring a Garage Door Company
Ask for the full price of the finished repair rather than the visit, whether that includes parts and labor, what happens if more is found once the door is apart, whether there is a separate trip fee, the warranty terms, the name on the license, the arrival window, and whether the estimate will be in writing before work starts. For a new door in Florida add two more: is this door rated for my wind zone, and who pulls the permit. A spring should come back at $150 to $350 installed and a wind-rated steel door at $950 to $4,200 with the permit included.
The ten questions
1. What does the finished repair cost, not the visit?
Good answer: a range with the reasons it varies. Bad answer: only a service call fee. Our published ranges are on the price list, so you already know what a real answer sounds like.
2. Does that include parts, labor and disposal?
Good answer: yes, or a clear list of what is extra. Bad answer: vagueness, or “it depends”.
3. If you find something else once the door is apart, what happens?
Good answer: work stops, you get a new number, and nothing proceeds until you agree. Bad answer: “we will take care of it”.
4. Is there a separate trip charge or call-out fee?
Good answer: a clear yes or no, and if yes, the amount and whether it comes off the repair. Bad answer: discovering it on the invoice. If you are calling after hours, the emergency premium is $150 to $300 and it should be stated now, not later.
5. What is the warranty on parts and on labor?
Good answer: specific periods for each, printed on the invoice. Ours is one year and one year. Bad answer: “we stand behind our work”.
6. What name is your license under?
Good answer: a name you can look up at myfloridalicense.com in two minutes. Bad answer: “we are fully licensed and insured” with nothing to check. Our article on choosing a company walks through the lookup.
7. What arrival window can you give me?
Good answer: a window of a few hours and a call if it slips. Bad answer: “sometime today”.
8. Will I get the estimate in writing before work starts?
Good answer: yes, without hesitation. Bad answer: anything else.
9. If it is a spring, will you replace one or both, and what does each cost?
Good answer: an explanation of why both is usually recommended on a two spring door and a price for each option, $150 to $350 for one, plus $120 to $250 for the second done at the same visit. Bad answer: only quoting for both without discussion.
10. Is this door rated for my wind zone, and who pulls the permit?
This one is Florida only, and it is the question that matters most on a new door.
Good answer: the company tells you whether your address is in the High Velocity Hurricane Zone (Miami-Dade and Broward) or not, names the approval the door carries, either a Florida Product Approval number or a Miami-Dade NOA, and says that they pull the permit as the licensed contractor and that it is included in the price. Bad answer: “all our doors are hurricane doors”, “you can pull the permit yourself to save money”, or “nobody checks”.
What a good answer looks like at a glance
| Question | Good | Weak |
|---|---|---|
| Finished price | A range with reasons | A service call fee |
| Found more | Work stops, new number | “We will handle it” |
| Warranty | One year parts, one year labor, on the invoice | “We stand behind it” |
| License | A name you can search | “Fully licensed” |
| Wind rating | FL number or NOA named | “Hurricane door” |
| Permit | Contractor pulls it, included | Owner pulls it, or none |
| In writing | Yes, before work | Anything else |
Questions to ask about the job itself
For a spring: what wire size, inside diameter and length, and what cycle rating? A company fitting a 20,000 cycle spring is doing something different from one fitting a 10,000 cycle spring, and the price should reflect it. Florida doors cycle hard, because the garage is the front door of the house, so ask whether high cycle springs make sense for yours.
For an opener: which drive type, and why that one for my garage? Belt versus chain is mostly about whether there is a bedroom beside or above the garage. Then ask about battery backup, which adds $60 to $150 and is the difference between opening the door after a storm and not.
For a new door: what gauge is the steel, what is the R-value, what is the design pressure rating, what is the approval number, and what is the lead time? “Insulated” without a number is not an answer, and “hurricane rated” without an approval number is not either. Our guide to wind-rated versus impact-rated doors explains the difference in plain terms.
For a storm repair: will you photograph and document the damage for my insurer, and will the repair or replacement be quoted in writing separately from the assessment? Storm damage repair runs $150 to $1,500 for assessment, bracing and panel or track work, and a full replacement should be a separate written number.
The thing that matters most
Everything above reduces to a single test: will they put a number in writing before they start?
A written estimate before work begins is the whole difference between a trade with a reputation and one without. It costs the company nothing if they are honest and it costs them everything if they are not, which is exactly why some of them will not do it.
For a door, the same test has a second half: will they put the rating and the permit in writing too? A door installed in Florida without either is not a finished job, whatever the invoice says.
Related reading
- What a fair quote includes
- Is my garage door quote too high?
- Garage door permits in Florida
- Miami-Dade NOA versus Florida Product Approval
- Garage door repair scams and how to spot one
Related questions
Is it rude to ask all of this on the phone?
No, and a company worth hiring will not treat it that way. You are about to let a stranger into your garage and spend a few hundred dollars, or a few thousand for a door. Ten questions is proportionate.
What if they will not quote without seeing the door?
A range is always possible from a description. 'Between $150 and $350 for the spring depending on what we find' is a real answer. 'We cannot say anything until we are there' is not.
What does 'rated for my wind zone' actually mean?
The Florida Building Code sets a design wind pressure for every site, and the door has to be tested to resist it. Outside Miami-Dade and Broward that is shown by a Florida Product Approval, an FL number. Inside those two counties, the High Velocity Hurricane Zone, the door needs a Miami-Dade Notice of Acceptance. The company should be able to tell you which applies to your address and which number the door carries.
Who pulls the permit for a garage door in Florida?
The licensed contractor installing the door. A permit is required for a replacement door and the rating is documented on it. A company that asks you to pull it yourself, or tells you it is not needed, is not one to hire for a door.
Should I get more than one quote?
For anything above a few hundred dollars, yes, unless the car is trapped and you need it today. For a full door replacement, always, and make sure every quote names the same rating so you are comparing the same door.
