HOW TO HIRE AN INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR PRESSURE WASHING
HOW TO HIRE AN INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR PRESSURE WASHING
Looking to hire a contractor in the Birmingham area for a certain job around your house or business? Well, there are some steps you should take to protect yourself and your investment.
So, what is a contractor? Simply put a contractor is what the name implies. Someone hired for a job, typically via a contract, which operates independently of the hiring party or person. It’s important to understand that contractors are not employees. They do not receive benefits or even tax deductions from the hiring company or person.
Many of these contractors operate as a sole proprietorship or LLC, depending on their personal business practices. These contractors pay for their own materials, licenses, taxes, health care, and much more. You can think of a contractor as a business relationship instead of as an employee. This allows flexibility but means you’ll have different processes than with an employee.
A perfect example of a contractor is a cleaning service. The service comes into your office or home to do work, but the cleaning service workers are not employees of your company. Contractors are considered to be business owners. They report income on their personal/business tax returns, and they can deduct business expenses which takes a load off of you as a business or homeowner.
What’s important is finding the correct contractor which best fits your needs and beliefs. Just like hiring a person for any job I always suggest you check references for any company, be sure you check the credentials, time in the business, google reviews, and even social media. I promise you if the company doesn’t have any type of footprint online you might not want them inside your house or up on your roof. That being said you should always make sure the company is licensed and insured. At my residential and commercial cleaning service we carry 2 million GL, Workers Comp, and 1 million in auto insurance. If someone is just doing residential the GL can be lower but make sure they carry WC and auto insurance.
Now on to the biggest part of the process….. PAYMENT! Don’t…….. I repeat don’t pay the total amount before the job is complete and you are satisfied. I have seen to many times where people get taken for large amounts of money and never have any work done. My suggestion is to 1) have a written contract – preferably a professional looking one with a carbon copy for both you and the contractor to keep. 2) Make sure what is written is what you have agreed to. 3) If you decided to give any money it needs to be a check. NO CASH. 4) make sure you are satisfied with the work before to close out the contract.
In my pressure wash cleaning business if I ever ask for money up front (usually on large commercial jobs) it’s typically around 20% of the total cost of the project. This is enough to cover the chemicals or materials needed. At the end of the day it’s going to be your decision about payment plans. If you don’t feel good about it don’t do it. There are plenty of different contractors that would be happy to give you a bid. Also, I always tell my customers to get other estimates so they know I’m charging them the correct price. My reputation and online presence about my business sales itself.
At the end of the day just be careful who you choose to do your work. Residential or commercial jobs both deserve a quality company with a good track record. Do your research and don’t pay until the job is completed to your satisfaction.
