9 contractor red flags (from someone who vets them for a living)

Vetting contractors is my actual job. Before anyone goes on our roster I pull their L&I record, confirm the bond and insurance, and call past clients — and a surprising number of companies wash out before I even get to the reference calls. Not because I found some buried scandal. Because of things they said out loud, in the first conversation, that they thought sounded normal.

That’s the good news about bad contractors: most of them announce themselves early, if you know what you’re listening for. Here are the nine signals that end a conversation for me, and what each one actually means in Washington.

How do you spot a bad contractor before you hire them?

Watch for nine things: no L&I registration number on their ads or bid, no proof of bond and insurance, a big upfront deposit, dodging permits, cash-only pricing, no written contract, “today only” pressure, a blank stare at the words “lien release,” and showing up uninvited after a storm. Any one of them deserves a hard look. A couple together means walk.

1. There’s no L&I registration number on the ad, the truck, or the bid

Start with the easiest check, because it’s the law. Washington requires contractors to put their current registration number on every advertisement, bid, contract, and business card (RCW 18.27.100). A Facebook post or a printed estimate with no number on it means the person either isn’t registered or doesn’t follow the most basic rule of their own trade. Neither is your problem to fix.

When you do get a number, run it through L&I’s free Verify a Contractor tool. It takes two minutes and shows registration status, bond, insurance, infractions, and lawsuits against the bond. I wrote a full walkthrough of how to read an L&I record if you want the long version.

2. They can’t show you proof of bond and insurance

Every registered contractor in Washington carries a surety bond — $30,000 for general contractors, $15,000 for specialty trades (RCW 18.27.040) — plus liability insurance (RCW 18.27.050). Both show up in the L&I lookup, so a contractor who gets cagey when you ask is being cagey about public information. That tells you something. The bond is your safety net if the job goes sideways; a contractor who treats it like a secret is telling you they’ve never thought about the job going sideways — or they have, and they know what the record shows.

3. They want a big deposit before anything happens

Washington doesn’t cap deposits by statute, which is exactly why this one is on the contractor’s honor — and why L&I’s own hiring guide says not to make a large deposit or pay in cash, and to pay only as work is completed. Half down before a shovel hits dirt is how abandoned projects get funded. A reasonable ask is a modest amount at signing, then payments tied in writing to progress — and if the job genuinely needs expensive materials ordered early, the deposit should map to those materials, on paper, with receipts.

4. “We’ll pull the permit later” — or they ask you to pull it

Both versions of this are the same red flag wearing different hats. “Later” usually means never, and unpermitted structural, electrical, or plumbing work becomes your problem at inspection time and again at resale. The sneakier version is asking you, the homeowner, to pull the permit yourself. When you pull an owner permit, you become the responsible party in the building department’s eyes — and a contractor who wants that arrangement usually wants their name off the job for a reason. A legitimate contractor pulls permits under their own registration, builds the fee into the bid, and doesn’t flinch when you ask about it. (If you’re not sure what needs a permit around here, our Snohomish County permit guide covers it.)

5. Cash only, no paper trail

“Cash saves you the sales tax” sounds like a favor. It isn’t. It means no record you paid, no invoice to dispute, nothing to show the bond company or a judge if it comes to that — and a contractor comfortable dodging taxes on your job is comfortable cutting corners you can’t see. Pay by check or card, get an invoice, keep everything.

6. No written contract, or a one-line “estimate”

A real contract names the parties, describes the scope in detail, lists materials, sets a payment schedule tied to progress, gives start and completion windows, and says how changes get priced. “Kitchen remodel — $38,000” on a carbon-copy pad is not a contract, it’s a wish. Every dispute I’ve helped a homeowner untangle started with a vague scope. When nothing’s written down, every disagreement becomes your word against theirs, and they’ve had this argument more times than you have.

7. “This price is only good today”

Materials prices move, sure. But a bid that expires before dinner isn’t about lumber futures — it’s about stopping you from getting a second opinion. Same family: “I have a crew in the area this week only” and “I can only hold this slot if you sign now.” Good contractors around Everett are booked out; they don’t need to panic you into a signature. Anyone rushing you past the L&I check is telling you what the L&I check would show.

8. They go blank when you mention lien releases

Here’s the trap most homeowners don’t know exists: in Washington, if your contractor doesn’t pay a subcontractor or supplier, that unpaid sub can file a lien against your house — even if you paid the contractor in full. L&I explains it plainly on its About Liens page, and the fix is routine: lien waivers signed by subs and suppliers as they get paid, or joint checks made out to the contractor and the sub together. A professional has done this a hundred times and says “of course.” A contractor who’s never heard of a lien release either doesn’t pay subs often or doesn’t pay them at all.

9. They knocked on your door after the storm

After the flooding that hit Snohomish and Skagit counties, the door-knockers arrived right on schedule — out-of-area plates, “we’re doing your neighbor’s roof,” free inspections that always find damage. Some traveling storm repair outfits are real companies. Most of the ones knocking on doors are not registered in Washington, and by the time the workmanship fails, they’re three states away with no bond here to claim against. If your home actually is damaged, slow down, call your insurer, and check any contractor’s WA registration before signing anything — here’s the full first-48-hours playbook. And report unregistered operators at lni.wa.gov/fraud.

Is one red flag enough to walk away?

For the legal ones, yes. No registration number, no bond, no insurance — those aren’t judgment calls, they’re disqualifiers, because they strip away every protection Washington built for you. The behavioral ones — the deposit ask, the pressure, the thin contract — are sometimes fixable. A decent contractor will restructure a payment schedule or flesh out a scope when you push back. Watch how they take the pushback. Someone who gets irritated that you checked their L&I record will be worse, not better, once your money is in their pocket.

What’s the best way to protect yourself before signing?

Make the two-minute L&I check a reflex — every contractor, every bid, even the one your neighbor swears by — then insist on a written scope and a payment schedule tied to progress. That combination catches almost everything on this list before it costs you anything.

This screening is the front half of what we do at Ascent Prime — registration, bond, insurance, references, and past work, checked before a contractor ever gets your name. Here’s how the vetting works if you’d rather hand the homework to someone who does it every week.