PSA: Confirm your contractor has WCB before you sign anything

I got burned last spring when a crew doing my basement framing had an accident on site. The guy fell off a ladder and I found out the contractor didn't carry WCB coverage, so I was looking at their medical bills. It took me 3 weeks and a lawyer's letter to sort out the mess, and it cost me about $4,600 in deductibles and lost time. How do you guys verify WCB numbers before hiring up here, and do you ask for a clearance letter every single job?

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diana202mo ago

Clearance letters are a snapshot, not a guarantee, and I get why people rely on them, but they don't cover the whole job. A policy can lapse mid-project or the crew changes, and suddenly you're back to square one. The real move is to ask for the WCB number and call the board yourself, takes five minutes, and you can confirm it's active right before the work starts. Even then, I'd set up payments tied to milestones so you're not out a pile of cash if something goes sideways. Checking once feels like enough until it isn't, and that's the lesson most of us learn the hard way.

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charlie_ellis2mo ago

Did the contractor give you any paperwork before they started, or did you find out about the missing WCB after the accident? I ask because I usually ask for a clearance letter and the policy number before anyone steps on my property, but it sounds like you got caught without that check. Would you still hire someone with a current clearance letter if the policy expires mid-job?

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