What Happens When I, as an Arizona Homeowner, Hire a Contractor?

As an Arizona homeowner, you may need to have a house built on land you recently purchased, or you are having a remodeling job done on a part of your existing home. If you hire a general contractor to do the work, always make sure that the contractor and any sub-contractors are licensed and are covered by worker’s compensation in the state of Arizona before signing any contract with them. See what information, as covered by A.R.S. 32-1158, should be included in a contract.

Do not sign any agreements until you have been given copies of state licenses and have talked to an attorney and your property loaning bank about any potential liabilities. You can also check with the state to make sure that your general contractor is licensed and registered with the state. It is a crime for unlicensed and unregistered contractors to advertise in the state of Arizona for jobs they are not licensed for.

What are Arizona’s Contractors Licensing Classifications?

There are different licenses for commercial and residential contractors, and some general contractors may also have both licenses. Any business that does building work, alters a building, adds to or subtracts from a building, works on highways, railroads, erects scaffolding, utility work, metering devices, sewer lines, and more, must be licensed.

If you own a home and want to have your kitchen remodeled, only use licensed contractors. This also includes home designers who have been trained by and adhere to, the prescribed standards of kitchen and bath design as set forth by the National Kitchen & Bath Association (NKBA).

Subcontractors are also included, who must be licensed to put in floor covers, landscaping, and any contractor or subcontractor who manages a construction project must be licensed. This position also hires and fires specialty contractors, conducts scheduling of the project, and purchases the material inventory for getting the job done.

• Engineering Contracting for Commercial Businesses (A-4 through A-19)
• General Commercial Contracting

• General Commercial Contractor (B-1)
• General Small Commercial Contractor (B-2)

• Residential Contracting

• Specialty Residential Contracting (Covers R-1 through R-70)

Go to the Arizona Registrar of Contractors – License Classifications page to see the full list and the expanded list of what these classified contractors do. If you have any questions about the classification of what your potential contractor should fall under, call the office number at the bottom of the page.

Know Who You Are Hiring

Always check the credentials of who you hire and make sure you have a contract that covers all the required details that will keep you out of trouble. The last thing you want is to incur a heavy financial liability because you did not pay close attention to your rights or your worker’s rights. You can read more about such problems here.

You may also include in the contract, with the advice and help of an attorney, that you shall not be held responsible for any workers’ compensation should anyone be injured on the job while at your location, whether it be a home or at your business.

If you need help with worker’s compensation issues, call us at once for a consultation. 602-346-9009