Licensing & insurance
Licensed and insured in Virginia, and easy to verify
Hiring someone to dig, build and pour at your home is a real risk if the paperwork is not in order. myYardPros is a licensed and insured Virginia contractor serving Northern Virginia, and we give you our license and insurance details with every estimate. Here is what those words mean and how to check them for any contractor.
What does a Virginia contractor license mean for a homeowner?
A Virginia contractor license means the state knows who the company is and has cleared it to do the kind of work it is selling. Licenses are issued by the Board for Contractors at the Virginia Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation, usually called DPOR. Each license has a class, which limits the size of project the contractor may take on, and one or more classifications or specialties, which describe the type of work it covers.
For you, the license is a starting point and a safeguard. It tells you the company is a real, accountable business, and it gives you a regulator to turn to if something goes badly wrong. An unlicensed contractor offers neither. Most building permits also have to be pulled by a properly licensed contractor or by the homeowner, so a missing license often shows up as a request that you pull the permit yourself. Treat that as a warning sign.
What do general liability and workers' compensation cover?
Two policies matter when a crew works at your home, and they protect you in different ways.
- General liability insurance
- Covers damage the contractor causes to your property or to someone else's, such as a broken window, a damaged fence or a neighbor's flooded yard. Without it, your only remedy is the contractor's own pocket.
- Workers' compensation insurance
- Covers workers who are hurt on the job. Virginia requires most employers to carry it. If a contractor has none and someone is injured in your yard, the claim can become a problem for you as the homeowner.
- Certificate of insurance
- A one-page document from the insurance agent or carrier that lists the policies, their dates and the company insured. Ask for a current one, and check that the name matches the license and the contract.
How do I verify a contractor's license in Virginia?
It takes a few minutes, and it applies to us as much as to anyone else you are considering.
Get the exact business name and license number
Ask the contractor for both. A company that hesitates to give you a license number has already answered your question. We include ours with every estimate.
Search the DPOR license lookup
Go to the Virginia DPOR website at https://www.dpor.virginia.gov/ and open License Lookup. Search by license number or by business name and find the matching record.
Read the record carefully
Confirm that the name matches your estimate, the license is current and not expired, the class is large enough for your project's price, and the listed specialties fit the work you are buying.
Confirm the insurance separately
DPOR does not hold insurance records. Ask for a certificate of insurance showing general liability and workers' compensation, with dates that cover your project.
What should I ask for before signing with any contractor?
Ask every bidder for the same things, then compare what comes back.
- The Virginia contractor license number, checked against the DPOR record yourself
- A current certificate of insurance for general liability and workers' compensation
- A written scope listing excavation, base depth, materials and what is excluded
- Who applies for the building permit, and whose name goes on it
- Who requests the Virginia 811 utility marking before any digging starts
- How changes to the scope and price are agreed once work has begun
- A written contract in the same business name as the license
How does myYardPros share its license and insurance details?
We provide our license and insurance details with every estimate, without being asked. You should not have to chase a contractor for proof that it is allowed to work on your home, so the information arrives with the scope and the price. Take it to the Virginia DPOR license lookup and check it before you decide anything.
We would rather you verify than trust. The few minutes it takes are the cheapest protection you will buy on the whole project. Our about page explains who we are, and how it works shows where these documents arrive in the process.
How do permits and Virginia 811 fit in?
Permits and utility marking are the two other safeguards on an outdoor project, and a licensed contractor should handle both. In Northern Virginia, building permits are generally required for decks, porches and roofed structures, and for retaining walls that hold back more than about three feet of soil. Rules vary by county and by site, so we confirm the requirement for your address, prepare the application and schedule the inspections.
Before any digging, underground utilities must be marked through Virginia 811, often called Miss Utility. The service marks public utility lines. It does not mark private lines such as irrigation pipe, lighting wire or a pet fence, so tell us about anything buried that you know of. We request the marking and wait for it before we excavate.
Related services
Custom Deck Building
Custom deck building is the design and construction of a new pressure-treated wood or composite deck sized to your house and yard.
Retaining Walls
A retaining wall holds back soil so a slope becomes level, usable ground.
Screened Porches
A screened porch is a roofed outdoor room with screened walls, built on a deck-style floor and tied into the house.
French Drain Installation
A French drain is a gravel-filled trench with a perforated pipe, wrapped in filter fabric, that collects water moving through the soil and carries it to a safe outlet.
More about myYardPros
About Us
You want a patio that stays level, a deck that feels solid underfoot and a lawn that dries out after a storm.
Our Story
This is not a tale about a truck and a dream.
Meet the Pros
Letting a crew into your yard takes trust, and trust starts with knowing who is responsible for what.
Community
A project in your yard happens in front of your whole street.
Agents and Inspectors
You see the problems before anyone else does: water against a foundation, a deck that is past repair, a patio that has sunk, siding gone green.
Reviews
You want to know what it is really like to hire us, from people who have.
How It Works
You should know what happens next at every point of a project, and what it will cost before anyone picks up a shovel.
Let's talk about your yard.
Tell us what you have in mind. We will walk the property with you, explain your options plainly and put the scope and price in writing.
Serving Fairfax, Loudoun, Prince William and Arlington counties and the cities inside them. Check your address. Military, veterans, first responders, healthcare workers and teachers: ask about the Heroes Discount.