Remodeling Scams and Contractor Red Flags

Remodeling scams tend to follow one pattern: no registration, money up front, nothing in writing and a reason you must decide today. Each of those habits removes one of the protections Washington law gives you.

Red flags and what each one means

Several of these come straight from L&I, whose list of warning signs includes a contractor who will "Accept only cash, require large deposits or the entire cost upfront", who does "not provide a written contract or complete bid", or who will "Offer exceptionally long warranties."

Unregistered operators

Under RCW 18.27.020(2) it is a gross misdemeanor to "advertise, offer to do work, submit a bid, or perform any work as a contractor without being registered", or to do so while a registration is suspended or revoked. The same conduct is a civil infraction, and RCW 18.27.340 sets the penalty for failure to register at "not less than $1,200, nor more than $10,000", in effect since July 1, 2024.

Those penalties fall on the contractor. The consequences that fall on you are different:

• L&I puts it plainly: "Unregistered contractors carry no bond or insurance to protect consumers." There is no bond to claim against and no Homeowner Recovery Fund application, because that fund requires a judgment against a registered contractor.
• L&I warns that if you hire an unregistered person, "you could be considered that person's employer, with wage, tax, workers' comp, safety, and record-keeping requirements."
• One point in your favor: under RCW 18.27.080, a contractor cannot sue for payment without proving it was registered when it contracted.

Watch for borrowed credentials as well. RCW 18.27.020(2) also makes it a gross misdemeanor to use a false or expired registration number in advertising, or to let an unregistered contractor work under someone else's registration. RCW 18.27.100(3)(a) requires the current registration number on advertising that shows the contractor's name or address, so a truck, card or website with no number is itself a sign. What the bond and insurance actually cover is explained in contractor insurance, bonds and workers' comp.

Large deposits and cash-only terms

We found no Washington statute that caps a remodeling deposit, so the amount is a matter of negotiation and judgment, not a legal limit. The guidance that exists is advice. L&I says: "Besides a reasonable down payment, you should pay your contractor only when specific phases of a project are completed", and does not name a percentage. An Attorney General's Office consumer post, which appears to be an older one, suggests limiting the initial down payment "to 10-20 percent so that you can hold back the final amount based on performance."

A kitchen is a special case in one honest way: cabinets and some appliances are ordered early and must be paid for by someone. A legitimate contractor can show you what the deposit buys. How to structure payments is covered in contracts, deposits and change orders.

No contract, no disclosure, no permit

We could not confirm that Washington law requires a written contract for general remodeling, but L&I's advice is unambiguous: "Get a written contract" and "Avoid verbal contracts or amendments." It also affects your rights later, since a claim on a written contract has six years under RCW 4.16.040(1) and an unwritten one has three under RCW 4.16.080(3).

The disclosure statement is not optional. On residential work of $1,000 or more, RCW 18.27.114 requires the contractor to give you the "NOTICE TO CUSTOMER" before starting, showing its registration number, bond amount and registration expiration date. A contractor who skips it has committed an infraction and cannot bring a lien claim on that contract.

An offer to save money by skipping permits moves the risk to you, the owner of the house. Check what your project needs in do you need a permit to remodel a kitchen in Vancouver, and read what happens afterward in unpermitted kitchen work.

Pressure tactics and your right to cancel

"This price is only good today" exists to stop you from checking. A sound kitchen bid does not need to expire in an afternoon. Homeowners often assume a three-day right to cancel will rescue them. Do not rely on that.

• Washington has no general cooling-off law for remodeling contracts that we could find. The Attorney General's cancellation-rights page lists the state's statutory cancellation rights, and none is specific to home improvement or remodeling.
• The federal Cooling-Off Rule may apply. Under 16 CFR Part 429, a buyer in a door-to-door sale of $25 or more made at the buyer's residence "may cancel this transaction at any time prior to midnight of the third business day" after the transaction. Saturdays count as business days. Sundays and federal holidays do not. The seller must give you two copies of a "NOTICE OF CANCELLATION" form, tell you orally, and refund within 10 business days of a valid cancellation.
• It has exclusions. They include sales made after prior negotiations at the seller's fixed retail business establishment, such as a showroom, and buyer-initiated emergencies with a handwritten waiver.
• How it applies to a bid you asked for is unsettled. The rule's text says it covers a sale "even if the buyer invited the seller", and the FTC's consumer page says it applies "when you invite a salesperson to present in your home", but we found no FTC statement specific to remodeling contracts signed at home after the homeowner requested a bid. Ask an attorney before relying on it.

The five-minute check

1. Ask for the registration number. RCW 18.27.100 requires it on advertising that shows the contractor's name or address.
2. Search it in L&I's Verify tool (or call 1-800-647-0982). Confirm the registration is active and the business name and owners match the person in front of you.
3. Read the bond amount, the insurance coverage and expiration date, and whether the workers' comp account is active and paid to date.
4. Look at lawsuits against the bond, past infractions, other business names used in the past and how long the business has been registered.
5. Ask for the written contract and the Notice to Customer, and take them home to read.

A contractor based across the river needs Washington registration to work in Washington. An Oregon CCB number is not a substitute, so run the Washington search regardless. A fuller walk-through is in how to verify a contractor in Washington, and the wider vetting process is in how to choose a kitchen remodeler.

If you have already paid

Stop paying, gather every document and message, and report an unregistered or fraudulent contractor to L&I at 1-888-811-5974. The Attorney General's Consumer Resource Center, 1-800-551-4636, takes consumer complaints. Your options for recovering money, with their deadlines, are in what to do if a remodel goes wrong.

JDI Construction's Washington registration number is JDICOCN932KZ and its Oregon CCB number is 176101. We would rather you check than trust, so look us up before your consultation for kitchen remodeling in Vancouver.