Arizona gives homeowners a simple public tool, the Registrar of Contractors licence search. Use it on any company you consider, including ours, and ask for the licence number in writing.
How do I find a good concrete contractor?
To find a good concrete contractor, shortlist companies that visit the site, measure and put the scope in writing. Look each one up on the Arizona Registrar of Contractors website for licence status and complaint history. Ask for addresses of jobs two or more summers old, and go and look at them. Concrete shows its faults after a couple of hot seasons, not in the first week.
Does a concrete contractor need to be licensed and insured in Arizona?
Licensed, yes, for nearly every real job. The Arizona Registrar of Contractors says that if the whole project, labor and materials together, costs more than $1,000 or needs a permit, the person or business doing it must be licensed. Liability insurance is something you should ask for on top of that, with a certificate sent by the insurer. Ask any contractor, us included, for the licence number and the certificate before you sign.
What should I ask a concrete contractor before hiring?
- What is your Registrar of Contractors licence number and classification?
- How thick is the slab, what base goes under it and what steel goes in it?
- Where will the joints be, and when are they cut?
- What time of day will you pour, and how will you cure it in the heat?
- Who contacts Arizona 811 and who handles city and HOA approval?
- What is the payment schedule?
Write the answers down. A contractor who is vague on thickness, base or pour time in July is telling you something.
What should a written estimate include?
A written estimate should state the area in square feet, slab thickness, base, reinforcement, concrete strength, finish, joint layout, removal and disposal, access method, approvals, start window, price and payment terms. Arizona law, A.R.S. 32-1158, requires a written contract for work over $1,000. The contract should carry the contractor's name, address and licence number.
How much deposit is normal?
Arizona sets no legal cap on a deposit for general concrete work. The only cap we found is for in-ground pool and spa construction contracts, where A.R.S. 32-1158.01 limits the down payment to 15 percent. For flatwork, a modest deposit to hold the date and cover materials is common, with the balance due when the work is complete. Tie every payment to a stage you can see.
The contractor wants 50 percent up front in cash with no contract. Should I?
No. Asking for 50 percent in cash with nothing in writing fails on three counts. The law requires a written contract over $1,000. Cash leaves you no record. And half the price paid before any work removes the contractor's reason to turn up. Offer a small deposit by cheque or card against a signed contract. If that is refused, look elsewhere.
What are the red flags?
- No licence number, or one that does not match the company name on the Registrar's site.
- Door-to-door offers of leftover concrete from another job.
- A price that is good only if you sign today.
- No mention of base, thickness, steel or joints.
- A plan to pour in the afternoon in summer.
- Cash only, and no written contract.
What warranty should I expect?
Expect the warranty to be written into the contract and to cover workmanship for a stated period. Ask what it says about cracks, since hairline cracking is normally excluded, and about settlement and surface flaking. We do not publish a blanket warranty on this site. The terms for your job are set out in your written quote. Separately from any warranty, the Registrar accepts complaints against licensed contractors for two years after the work was last performed.
I paid a deposit and the contractor stopped answering. What do I do?
Send a dated written demand by email and certified mail, with a deadline to start or refund. If the contractor is licensed and has stopped answering, file a complaint with the Arizona Registrar of Contractors. If the contractor is unlicensed, the Registrar also takes reports of unlicensed contracting, and you can go to justice court for the money. If you paid by card, ask the card issuer about a dispute straight away.
How do I know they have done stamped work before?
Ask to see it in person. Anyone who has done stamped work before can give you addresses of finished jobs that are at least two years old. Look at how the pattern lines up at the edges, whether the colour is even and how the sealer has held up in the sun. Ask who on the crew does the stamping, and ask for a small sample panel in your chosen colour.
What if the crew hits a hidden water line?
Work stops, the water is shut off and the line is repaired before anything is poured. Arizona 811 marks utility-owned lines only. A private water line, irrigation main or pool pipe will not be marked. Who pays depends on the contract and on whether the line could reasonably have been known. Show the crew every line you know of, and ask how the contract treats hidden conditions.
Is a written estimate binding if they hit something unexpected?
A signed contract with a fixed price is binding for the scope it describes. An estimate on its own is an approximate figure unless it says otherwise. Hidden conditions, such as solid rock, buried debris or an unmarked line, are handled by a change order. That is a short written note of the extra work and price which you sign before the extra work is done. Refuse to pay for extras that were never put in writing.
Your own price comes from a free visit, a tape measure and a written quote. Call (480) 771-7722 or text a photo of the area.