How to check a Suffolk County contractor license

Check it in four steps

1. 1Get the license number and the exact business nameThe county's own checklist says a contract should include the Suffolk County home improvement license number, so ask for it up front.
2. 2Look it up on the county's siteThe county's License and Complaint Violation Look Up lets you choose Home Improvement License and search by license number or business name. A search by license type shows license data only, not complaints or violations, so run a business name search too.
3. 3Or call"For license verification, please call Consumer Affairs at (631) 853-4600," the county says. Use the phone if the lookup is not loading.
4. 4Match the namesThe business on the license, the contract and the certificate of insurance should be the same company. If the names differ, ask why before you sign.

What a Suffolk license tells you

• The contractor had insurance when it applied: the county answers yes to whether insurance is needed with the application.
• It passed the county's test, which is based on the county's home improvement law and Article 36-A of New York's General Business Law. Licenses issued before January 16, 1987, when the county started testing, predate the test.
• It keeps an establishment in New York State, which the county requires of every licensee.

Why it matters if something goes wrong

Suffolk County keeps a Restitution Fund for homeowners who won a final legal judgment or arbitration award against a licensed contractor and could not collect. With an unlicensed contractor, the county warns, you have little recourse and are not eligible for the fund.

The contract, in Suffolk

• New York State law and Suffolk County Code require a written contract for home improvement work.
• Never pay the full price up front. The county advises setting a payment schedule and sticking to it.
• State law lets you cancel until midnight of the third business day after you sign. If you cancel, the county advises doing it by certified mail, return receipt requested.

Complaints

Suffolk County Consumer Affairs reviews homeowner complaints about home improvement work. The county's main number for open complaints and licensing is (631) 853-4600, and its consumer checklist lists P.O. Box 6100, Hauppauge, NY 11788-0099.

Town licenses on the East End

Some East End towns license contractors too. The Town of Southampton, for example, requires its own home improvement contractor license on top of the county's: see our Southampton permit guide.

Revival checks the county license of every contractor in its network before the first introduction and again on the day of each introduction. See our vetting standards.