How do I check if a plumber is licensed in Minnesota?

What the license types actually mean

Minnesota licenses people and businesses separately, which trips up a lot of homeowners. A person can be licensed while the company is not.

• Master Plumber — the individual credential that allows supervising work and signing off on it.
• Journeyworker Plumber — a licensed plumber working under a master.
• Restricted Master and Restricted Journeyworker — limited to work in municipalities under 5,000 population outside the metro.
• Plumbing Contractor — the business license. This is the one that carries the bond and the insurance, and it is the one that matters when you are hiring a company rather than a person.

Look at the truck

This is the fastest check anyone can do and almost nobody publishes it. Minnesota requires a plumbing contractor's business name and license number to appear on both sides of every service vehicle, in characters that contrast with the background and stand at least three inches tall.

If the van in your driveway is blank, or the number is on a magnet that does not match the paperwork, you have learned something useful before anyone touches a pipe.

What is the bond and what does it cover?

Minnesota requires licensed plumbing contractors to carry a $25,000 contractor bond. The state also sets liability minimums of $50,000 per person, $100,000 per occurrence, and $10,000 in property damage.

Read those numbers as floors, not as coverage. A $10,000 property damage minimum does not go far against a finished basement. Any contractor worth hiring carries substantially more than the statutory minimum, and any contractor should be willing to send you a certificate of insurance when you ask.

What should you ask before work starts?

Ask for the contractor license number and verify it yourself. Ask for a current certificate of insurance sent directly from the agency. Ask whether they are pulling the permit. Ask for the price in writing before the work begins.

None of those questions offend a legitimate contractor. All four of them annoy the other kind, which is precisely why they work.

Related questions

Where is the Minnesota plumber license lookup?

The Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry maintains a public license lookup covering individual plumbers and licensed plumbing contractor businesses. Search by business name, individual name or license number.

Is a handyman allowed to do plumbing work in Minnesota?

Plumbing work that requires a permit requires a licensed plumbing contractor. Minor maintenance like swapping a faucet is a different matter. If the work needs an inspection, it needs a license.

What insurance should a plumbing contractor carry?

Minnesota's statutory liability floors are $50,000 per person, $100,000 per occurrence, and $10,000 property damage, on top of a $25,000 contractor bond. Those are minimums. Ask for the actual certificate rather than assuming.