Most states have a website where anyone can verify someone's license and that is where I would begin. Then I would ask for a copy of his insurance and bond (if your state requires that) and call the insurance company to find out how long they have insured him for, if the policy is in force, if it is paid up to date and if it has the provisions mandated by law to protect the homeowner. Then, I would definitly ask for references, call them and even surprise them with a request to see the finished work in person? Usually at least one or two will agree, if they all say no, that is a red flag. I would also check yelp, Angie's list and other local source as well as the BBB. IF this is the guy you said you weren't thrilled with I would do everything I could to disprove his qualifications to the insurance company. Instead of just resorting to the philosophy of "oh gee they win and this is how it is"; get angry Daisy, it IS your house and you're the one who will live with the results. You've paid your premiums through the years and did what you were supposed to do and you should have the right to at least agree on the contractor. You're obviously not comfortable with this guy, so get mad, fight it and meet with an attorney to ensure you have fully protected yourself against potential damages.

Our insurance company sent an adjuster to check damage from a frozen pipe and then it sent us a check for the amount. We will choose our own contractor. We could even fix it ourselves if we so choose. Did your ins. company tell you they would choose the contractor? I would definitely push back if that is the case.

Don't forget to Google the heck out of the contractor...and I have found it helpful to google their phone number and address as well. I wish I would have done that with the last contractor I hired.

lukki, thank you so much for taking the time to write that very comprehensive answer. I think things work differently in our province (and possibly country?) than elsewhere. Here we have what's called preferred insurance contractors. They are checked out by the insurer and the insurer guarantees their work. We got bids from 3 such companies plus one of our choosing. I am becoming more comfortable with the process, and have realized it is mostly issues of control I'm having trouble with (and I've come up with a list of questions to ask the agent to try to help me regain control). The contractor we chose would have done an extraordinary job and I would have had a lot less stress because I know he would have checked every possible detail (and then dble checked with me ). However, his bid was waaaaay over what insurance is willing to pay and we can only come up with half of the difference. I would not be comfortable going ahead with legal action because: a) I don't have that kind of fight in me, b) I'm beginning to see that my expectations are unrealistic and c) I think I would end up hating my house and that would be a hollow victory.

I phoned one of his references and she sounded exceptionally pleased and has had him back to do other work after he completed the insurance work. I'm still trying to get through to the others. I'm starting to realize that getting more money so this guy can do a better job without having to cut corners, is my best bet, rather than focusing on trying to get someone else entirely.

cyn, yes that is how it's done here. They choose the contractor and for a control freak like me, that is hard to take. It does have its upside in that I know they have checked him out thoroughly and his work is guaranteed through them. I will ask at our meeting tomorrow what recourse I have if we don't agree on how something is to be done. We could have chosen our own contractor, but we would have to pay that difference. Since his was the lowest bid, there is almost $140 000 dollars difference. Way more than we could afford or would be willing to spend even if we had it.

bethpen, I didn't even think to do that! My brain must be turning to mush with all the stressing I've been doing this week. I'll go do that right now.

Yikes. For that amount of work, maybe our insurance would do the same! That is a huge claim and no wonder you are stressed. Keeping my fingers crossed for you!

I would definitely call a few more references. I would not ask to see the work.....that is putting people on the spot....I would not appreciate that. If they extend an invitation...great.

There's still a part of me that thinks you should get an attorney to protect your interests since this is a major rebuild costing hundreds of thousands....even if it's a one time deal where they just look over all the documents from the insurance company and the contractor.

Daisy, you're welcome. I didn't realize you were maybe in Canada? As you can guess by some of the replies, it IS really different here in the states. Insurance companies are just as bad if not worse than our banks. People have to really know and fight for their rights or they risk getting the royal screw. It is a terrible way for them to do business and it is not a good experience for the insured, that's for sure. I can certainly relate to your perspective too regarding the contractor and I hope that things will turnout as you want them to. It would be terrible if your completed project were soured by a horrible repair process.

Since your insurance company has already vetted this contractor in some ways, when you check his references, I would ask what type of work he did for them (remodel, new construction, fire damage, water damage, etc). That way you would be comparing apples-to-apples in some ways. I'd ask more specific questions if people are willing to talk, such as 'where did you pick out your materials, were you able to stay within budget and if not ask if they mind stating where they went over (cabinets, flooring, lighting, etc) (you're not asking personal $$ questions here, just general info), were there subcontractors work they were not happy about, any major delays, workmanship issues, permit issues, inspection issues. I could probably think of others, but those came off the top of my head.

Make a checklist and write down comments if you can, negative and positive and see how they add up. I'd talk to at least three people, male and female. Or if you talk to a male, ask if his wife would feel the same way and vice versa.

Great points outsideplaying. I love the male/female advice - often two very different experiences.

We just came from a huge meeting with everyone involved and it went sooooo well. I'm happy (emotional, form-obsessed female who has a somewhat good grasp of the building process) and so is my DH (detail/ function oriented male perfectionist who has minimal understanding of building processes - but is willing to research to the ends of the earth until he understands).

We still have a huge project ahead of us, but everyone is on the same page, the air has been cleared and we can FINALLY, get started!!!

Please don't get sick of me, because I know I will be here with a thousand new issues as we proceed :)

Wow, Outside! Those are great questions! I think I will be making a list for future reference too. Wish I had you as a resource when I was contractor hunting a couple of years ago!

Oh daisychain01- I feel for you! We had 2 quotes through insurance, went with the higher one and they matched the lower one. As it was insurance and we had no other contractors that we knew/liked, we asked the insurance guy and he said he'd be fine letting either one into HIS house. Well, 1.5 years later and our kitchen is not done. The owner has been fine, the trades ok. Still ended up in tears once and essentially the carpenter is done and the owner is getting another one to finish up. I'm glad your meeting went well! I hope it is seamless for you guys!

Yikes! akl_vdb. That is the concern I kept voicing over the course of our meeting yesterday - what recourse do we have if things don't go as planned (particularly, like in your case, overages in time or money). A year and a half to fix a kitchen is ridiculous! I hope they get things wrapped up for you soon.

My DH and I have been real hard@sses, and for the first time in my life I'm not doing the apologetic Cdn thing. We just keep pressing them for answers and letting them know that we have very high expectations. It may backfire on us down the line, but so far we've managed to get answers, changes and assurances that make us happy - but we wouldn't have gotten them if we hadn't kept at it.

I hear ya about the tears. When the contractor told me that if I was open and honest with him, he'd do the same and we'd get along fine. I said, "here is the first bit of honesty: I'm going to come to you in tears all the time, so get the kleenex ready".

Generally, you don't have much recourse if things do not go as planned. Because most GC's live hand to mouth and could not cover the cost of their mistakes even if they wanted to do the right thing.

I also think they only give the good references. You want the bad ones. That is why the best thing whenever possible is to find someone that is recommend by someone you already know. Checking references rarely uncovers a dud.