We at Ultimate try to educate our potential customers on things to look for before hiring a contractor. It may take an extra 5-10 minutes to research the company you are thinking about hiring, but those few minutes can save you many headaches and money in the future. Many people ask us if we are licensed or with the BBB, and we are, but as a consumer you need to take the extra time and actually look up the company on the BBB’s website (www.bbb.org) or with the state licensing department (www.azroc.gov) for yourself.
I recently hired a contractor who told me he was licensed, but when I looked it up it turned out it was his brother-in-law’s license! I wondered how many other people just took his word for it. We realize that in a tough economy like ours, saving money by hiring an unlicensed contractor can be tempting. What many consumers don’t realize is that if the license doesn’t belong to the person you hired, or if they didn’t have one at all, ultimately you are out of luck if there are any issues with the project. The Arizona Registrar of Contractors can only help you recoup expenses if the company is licensed.
Please take a few minutes and look up the company you are interested in. I continue to be amazed at how many people do contracting work without a license. The license protects you, the homeowner! It’s your insurance policy that you have a way to make sure you get what was promised to you!
