How to check a contractor's license in Alabama

Who licenses what in Alabama

The GC board's results table lists name, license number, city, state, phone and specialty. The HBLB says that if a builder is not on its web list, call 1-800-304-0853 "to verify whether the builder holds a current and valid license" (consumer FAQ).

How to look a contractor up, step by step

1. Ask for the license number and which board issued it. A remodel over $10,000 needs an HBLB license; the electrician, plumber and HVAC contractor need their own.
2. Search the builder or roofer on the HBLB lookup. Our fetcher could not open the lookup itself, so we cannot describe its fields; the board's phone line is the fallback.
3. Search trade contractors on the electrical and plumbing and gas boards' searches.
4. For a project of $100,000 or more, search the GC board too. It is "the duty of the awarding authority to ascertain if a contractor is duly licensed before permitting him to submit a bid" (GC board law page).
5. Check the HBLB's Disciplinary Actions page for the builder's name, then look up the firm's permits in the city file (links below).

The Homeowners' Recovery Fund

Alabama is one of the few states with a fund for homeowners. If you win a court judgment against a licensed home builder and cannot collect, the fund pays actual economic damages up to $30,000 for a single transaction, and "Ninety thousand dollars can be paid based on the actions of a single licensee" (Recovery Fund). The conditions are strict:

• The builder must have been licensed by the HBLB when the contract was signed and when the work was done. "If the builder is not licensed by the Board", the fund pays nothing.
• Claims cannot be based on a residential roofer license.
• Within 10 days of filing your lawsuit, notify the board by certified mail with a copy of the complaint. A complaint to the board alone "is not enough".
• No pain and suffering, interest, attorney's fees or court costs; a consent judgment does not count.

That makes the license check worth more in Alabama than in most states: it decides whether the fund exists for you at all.

Penalties for unlicensed work

Building without an HBLB license is a Class A misdemeanor (Ala. Code § 34-14A-14(a)). The board says that once an unlicensed builder is identified it can "fine the unlicensed builder up to $5,000.00", stop the work and pursue criminal charges (Unlicensed Builders). On a $100,000+ project the GC board treats both an unlicensed contractor and the party that hired them as in violation.

Our permit data in Alabama

We have permit counts for three Alabama places, but not contractor lists, so we cannot show who pulled each permit. Use them to see what work is common and when.

Prattville's file stops in May 2022. To look up a specific address, see the Montgomery, Huntsville and Prattville permit-search guides.

Red flags on an Alabama job

• A remodel or addition over $10,000, or a roof over $2,500, from someone with no HBLB license.
• A contract split into pieces just under $10,000.
• A license number from the wrong board: an HBLB license does not cover wiring or plumbing.
• A builder who asks you to pull the permit as owner. Owners can build their own home, but the recovery fund only covers licensed builders.
• An entry on the HBLB's disciplinary actions list.