Is it free to verify a contractor's license?

Yes. License records are public and every state's official lookup is free to search. Anyone charging homeowners just to run a license search is reselling a free public record.

Is a certificate of insurance proof of coverage?

A certificate of insurance is a snapshot, not live coverage. Check that the named insured matches your contract, that today falls within the policy dates, and that the limits fit the job. For major projects, ask to be listed as certificate holder and call the agent on the certificate to confirm the policy is active.

My state has no statewide general contractor license. Can anyone build?

No. In those states licensing usually happens at the city or county level, and skilled trades such as electrical, plumbing, and HVAC are still licensed by the state almost everywhere. Check both the local building department and state trade boards.

Why should a contractor pay for verification if already licensed?

Customers cannot tell a licensed contractor apart from one who just claims it. Independent verification converts compliance costs into visible proof: a public page with a dated check and a badge that stays up only while status holds, for a flat annual fee rather than per-lead charges.

Does the contractor verification fee renew automatically?

Yes. It is $99 today and $99 once a year on the same date, so the badge does not lapse mid-season. Contractors can cancel anytime from the billing link on their receipt or by email. There is no contract, no minimum term, and no cancellation fee. A reminder is emailed before each renewal, and if cancelled the verification page and badge come down at the end of the paid term.

Is LicensedAndInsured.com a government website?

No. LicensedAndInsured.com is an independent, privately operated resource that links to official government sources for all license lookups.

Find a contractor

Pick the trade.
Enter your city or ZIP.
See who’s been checked.

Q: What does licensed and insured actually mean?

Licensed means the state, or in some states the city or county, has authorized the contractor to perform that trade, usually after exams, experience requirements, and background checks. Insured means the business carries general liability insurance for damage it causes and workers' compensation for injuries to its crew. The claim is only meaningful if the license number is real and active and the insurance is currently in force, both of which you can check.

Q: What happens if I hire an unlicensed contractor?

It varies by state, but commonly: permits can be denied or work red-tagged, homeowner's insurance may deny related claims, state recovery funds that cover licensed work become unavailable, and liability for worker injuries can shift toward the homeowner. In many states an unlicensed contractor cannot enforce the contract.

Q: Is the directory a lead service?

No. Verified contractors are listed by trade and every city they serve with their own phone and website, and homeowners contact them directly. There are no forms, no homeowner data is collected or sold, no referral fees are taken, and nobody pays to rank higher: verified listings are ordered nearest to the homeowner first, then by most recent verification date. A business appears only after passing verification; the listing is included in the annual fee.

Verified listings have had their license confirmed in the official state record and a certificate of insurance reviewed, on the date shown — and you call them directly. Below them, we show what the state’s public license record lists for your area, so you always have somewhere to start.

NO ACCOUNT · NO EMAIL WALL · WE NEVER SELL LEADS

LicensedVerified in state records

InsuredCertificate reviewed

TrustedReal contractors. Real peace of mind.

Contractors & public adjusters: Florida’s licensees are already listed here. Claim yours — free →

UNLICENSED WORK VOIDS MOST PROTECTIONS A COI IS DATED — CHECK THE DATES VERIFYING TAKES ~60 SECONDS

Step 1 — the license

Look it up at the official source

Every state handles contractor licensing differently. Pick yours and we’ll send you straight to the official lookup — no account, no email wall.

See all 51 jurisdictions, what each one licenses, and notes on local rules →

Hiring a public adjuster in Florida? They’re licensed by the Department of Financial Services, not the contractor board. Look up an adjuster license at DFS ↗ — and ask to see the $50,000 surety bond Florida requires.

Step 2 — the insurance

The 60-second check before you sign anything

“Insured” is the half of the claim almost nobody verifies. If an uninsured roofer falls off your roof, that risk can land on you. Run this checklist on every bid over a few hundred dollars.

Homeowner checklist

0 of 8 done

ALL 8 CHECKED — you have done more diligence than most homeowners ever do.

How to read a certificate of insurance (COI)

Ask for the certificate — usually an ACORD 25 form — and check four things:

1. The named insuredMust match the business name on your contract exactly. A certificate for a different LLC protects you exactly zero.

2. Policy datesToday’s date must fall between the effective and expiration dates. An expired certificate is a piece of paper.

3. The limitsGeneral liability of $1M per occurrence is a common floor for residential work. Bigger job, bigger limits. Workers’ comp matters any time a crew is on your property.

4. The catch: a COI is not proof of current coveragePolicies can be canceled the day after a certificate is printed. For a big job, ask to be listed as certificate holder and call the agent listed on the form to confirm the policy is active. Two minutes on the phone.

Know the pattern

Six red flags that end the conversation

“The license number is on the truck somewhere”Licensed contractors know their number cold. Stalling on the number usually means there isn’t one.

Large cash deposit up frontBig cash-only deposits before materials arrive are the classic setup for disappearing. Several states cap deposits by law.

“We’ll skip the permit to save you money”Unpermitted work can void insurance claims, stall your home sale, and cost multiples later. The discount is not a favor to you.

Door-knocking after a stormLegitimate contractors are booked after a storm. Out-of-state plates plus pressure to sign today is a documented fraud pattern.

No written contractScope, price, schedule, and payment terms belong on paper. Several states require written contracts above small thresholds.

The name on the COI doesn’t matchBorrowed certificates and borrowed license numbers are common. Names must match across contract, license record, and COI.

For contractors

Claiming your listing is free. Verification is the upgrade.

You already pay for the license, the general liability, the workers’ comp. Lead platforms then charge you again and again to stand next to competitors who may have none of it. Independent verification turns your compliance into a marketing asset you own — on your trucks, your bids, your website.

Renting attention SHARED-LEAD PLATFORMS

$15–$120+ per lead — the same lead sold to 3–8 of your competitors
Annual contracts, auto-renewal, early-termination penalties
You pay whether or not the homeowner ever answers
The badge disappears the day you stop paying them

Owning proof INDEPENDENT VERIFICATION

One flat annual fee — less than most single shared leads’ true cost
License checked against official state records, COI reviewed and dated
A public verification page you can link from bids, ads, and estimates
Badge files for your website, trucks, and proposals — yours to display all year
A directory where every listing is verified — found by trade and service city, contacted directly

Founding offer · limited time

Step 1 · Claim your listing

Claim your listing

$99FREE · NO CARD

Free through — after that, claiming a listing is $99/yr

If you hold a Florida contractor license, you’re almost certainly already on our directory from the state’s public file — without a phone number.

Your phone number and website go on your listing
Your trades (up to 3) and the cities you serve (up to 5)
Moves you above every unclaimed competitor in your area
Labeled “Claimed” — honest, because we haven’t checked your insurance yet

Find and claim your listing →

Takes two minutes. Text or email us from your listing and we add it the same day.

Limited time · Founding 100

Step 2 · The upgrade

Verified: Licensed & Insured

$199 $99 / YEAR

You save $100 a year — and the $99 rate is locked for life as long as you stay verified.

Founding rate ends or after the first 100 members —

License status verified against your state’s official record, with the check date published
Certificate of insurance reviewed and kept on file; re-verified twice a year
Your own page: licensedandinsured.com/pro/your-company
Listed in the Verified Directory — up to 3 trades and 5 service cities, found by city or ZIP-radius search, with your phone and website. Homeowners call you directly; we never sell leads or rank by payment
Badge kit — web embed, print files for trucks & yard signs, proposal footer
Verification letter (PDF) you can attach to any bid

See a sample verification page →

Get verified — $99 / year

Apple Pay · Google Pay · Card
Takes about a minute. Have a code? Enter it at checkout.

You only pay for a check you pass. If your license or insurance doesn’t verify, we refund you in full, same day — and tell you exactly what didn’t clear.

$99 today, then $99 once a year. Renews automatically so your badge never lapses mid-season. Cancel anytime in one click — no contract, no minimum term, no cancellation fee, and we never charge you per lead.

You’ll enter your company name, license number, and state at checkout, then send your certificate of insurance by text or email — we’ll show you how on the next screen. Verification is point-in-time and based on official public records and the documents you provide. It is not an endorsement, a guarantee of workmanship, or insurance advice. If your status lapses, the badge is withdrawn — that is what keeps it worth displaying.

Transparency

What verification means here — and what it doesn’t

Trust marks are only worth what they check. Here is the entire methodology, in plain language.

What we check

License or registration status in the official state (or local, where applicable) public record, on a stated date
That the licensed name matches the business name being marketed
A current certificate of insurance showing general liability — and workers’ comp where the business has employees — with carrier, limits, and policy dates on file
Re-checks twice a year, and the “last verified” date is printed on the public page

What we don’t claim

We don’t guarantee workmanship, pricing, schedules, or outcomes — nobody honestly can
We don’t confirm coverage is in force at any moment after the check date — policies can be canceled; for large jobs, call the agent on the COI
We are not a state agency, and verification is not a government credential or an endorsement
We don’t sell homeowner contact information, sell leads, or rank directory listings by payment. Listing is a benefit of passing verification, not a product you can buy without it.

Questions

Straight answers

What does “licensed and insured” actually mean?

“Licensed” means the state (or in some states, the city or county) has authorized the contractor to perform that trade — usually after exams, experience requirements, and background checks. “Insured” means the business carries general liability insurance for damage it causes, and workers’ compensation for injuries to its crew. The claim is only meaningful if the license number is real and active, and the insurance is currently in force — both of which you can check.

Is it really free to verify a contractor’s license?

Yes. License records are public. Every link in the directory above goes to the official government source, and none of them charge homeowners to search. Anyone charging you just to run a license search is reselling a free public record.

What happens if I hire an unlicensed contractor?

It varies by state, but the pattern is consistent: permits may be denied or work red-tagged, your homeowner’s insurance may deny related claims, you can lose access to state recovery funds that only cover licensed work, and if a worker is hurt on your property the liability can shift toward you. In many states an unlicensed contractor also can’t enforce the contract — which tells you how seriously the law takes it.

The contractor showed me a certificate of insurance. Am I done?

Almost. Check the named insured matches your contract, check today falls inside the policy dates, and check the limits fit the job. For a major project, ask to be listed as the certificate holder and call the agent shown on the certificate to confirm the policy is active — certificates are snapshots, not live coverage.

My state says “no statewide general contractor license.” So anyone can build?

No. In those states, licensing usually happens at the city or county level, and skilled trades — electrical, plumbing, HVAC — are still licensed by the state almost everywhere. Check both your local building department and the state trade boards linked above.

For contractors: why pay for verification when I’m already licensed?

Because your customers can’t tell you apart from the guy who just says it. You’ve already paid for the license and the premiums; verification converts that overhead into visible proof — an independent page with a dated check, and a badge that only stays up while your status holds. It’s a flat fee, not a per-lead meter, and it doesn’t get sold to your competitors.

Does the contractor fee renew automatically? How do I cancel?

Yes — $99 today, then $99 once a year on the same date, so your badge never lapses in the middle of a busy season. You can cancel anytime from the billing link on your receipt, or by emailing us. There is no contract, no minimum term, and no cancellation fee. We’ll email you before each renewal. If you cancel, your verification page and badge come down at the end of the term you already paid for.

Do you list public adjusters too?

Yes. Florida public adjusters are licensed by the Department of Financial Services and must hold a public-adjuster appointment and a $50,000 surety bond. A verified adjuster listing means we checked the license and appointment in the DFS record and reviewed the bond and errors & omissions certificate. Pick “Public Adjuster” as the trade in the directory. We don’t sell, place, or negotiate insurance and take no fees on claims — the listing is the same flat annual fee as any other.

Is the directory a lead service? How do contractors get found?

No. Verified contractors are listed by trade and by every city they serve, with their own phone number and website, and homeowners contact them directly. There are no forms, we never collect or sell homeowner information, we take no referral fees, and nobody pays to rank higher — verified listings are ordered nearest to the homeowner first, then by most recent verification date. A business appears in the directory only after passing verification; the listing is part of the annual fee, not a separate product.

Is this site affiliated with a government agency?

No. LicensedAndInsured.com is an independent, privately operated resource. We link to official government sources for all license lookups and we say so everywhere — impersonating a government service is exactly the kind of thing this site exists to help you avoid.