A subcontractor's word isn't verification. Every year, general contractors and developers get burned by subs who let a license lapse, never carried the insurance they claimed, or worked a trade they weren't actually licensed for. The fix isn't complicated, but it does take a few concrete steps — here's the checklist.
1. Confirm the license is active, not just real
A license number that exists isn't the same as a license in good standing. Most state licensing boards run a free public lookup tool where you can search by license number or business name and see the current status — active, expired, suspended, or revoked — along with any disciplinary history.
Check three things on that lookup: the license is active (not expired or pending renewal), it covers the specific trade or scope of work you're hiring for (a general contractor license doesn't automatically cover electrical or plumbing work in most states), and the business name on the license matches the entity you're contracting with.
2. Get a certificate of insurance — and read it
Ask for a Certificate of Insurance (COI) directly from the sub's insurer or broker, not a photo of a policy declarations page — a COI is issued to a specific holder and is harder to fake or misrepresent. At minimum, look for general liability coverage with limits appropriate to your project size, and confirm the policy is currently in force (check the effective and expiration dates, not just that a policy exists).
If the sub has employees, also ask for proof of workers' compensation coverage. Without it, an on-site injury can become your liability, not theirs — this is one of the most common and most expensive gaps GCs discover after the fact.
3. Ask about bondability, not just bonding
Not every project requires a performance bond, but whether a sub *can* get bonded is itself a useful signal. Bonding companies underwrite based on financial stability and track record, so a sub who can't get bonded at all is telling you something about their business health, even on jobs where you won't require a bond.
4. Check references from other GCs — not just the sub's own list
A curated reference list will always sound good. Where possible, ask other GCs or developers in your network (or in local trade groups) if they've worked with the sub, independent of who the sub suggests you call.
Red flags worth pausing on
- License listed under a different business name than the one on your contract
- Insurance certificate with an expiration date before your project's expected completion
- Reluctance to provide a COI directly from the insurer
- No workers’ comp coverage despite having a crew
- License covers a different trade than the work being quoted
A faster way to do this for every sub you consider
Doing this manually for every prospective sub — one license lookup, one insurer call — doesn't scale once you're sourcing subs regularly. That's the problem Sub-Finder's verification badge is built to solve: every listed subcontractor is checked against independent business registries (Cobalt Intelligence, OpenSOSData, and Didit), with license, insurance, and bonding status uploaded and shown on their profile, so you're not starting from zero on every hire.