Checking the company before the work

What registration means here

Washington does not hand out chimney licenses. It registers contractors through the Department of Labor and Industries, and a company working on your house should show an active registration, a surety bond, and workers' compensation on its employees. That is the legal minimum for any chimney inspection or repair job.

How to run the check

Ask for the registration number when they call back. Run it through the L&I Verify a Contractor page, which returns the business name, the status, the bond, and open safety violations or lawsuits filed against the bond. If the number does not come back, or the business name does not match the company on the phone, that answers the question.

What it will not tell you

Registration proves the company exists legally. Quality is a separate question. The estimate, the reviews, and whether they answer the phone with a real business do the rest.