The Checkatrade Guarantee - What it means for Trades

The Checkatrade Guarantee is a free, discretionary guarantee provided to homeowners by Checkatrade. It is designed to help in scenarios when work carried out by a Checkatrade tradesperson doesn’t meet industry standards.

This article will help you as a Trade understand what happens if a homeowner reports an issue with the completed work. It will run through how Guarantee claims can be made, how these claims should be handled and the potential outcomes.

Here’s the full Guarantee scheme and eligibility. As a Trade, you can submit a complaint to the Support team here.

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Workmanship complaints: Process

Homeowners can report poor workmanship directly to Checkatrade. Our Support team will then gather all relevant evidence from the homeowner to validate their claim.

If the claim is supported by sufficient evidence, we will notify you of the complaint, share the details, and attempt to facilitate a fair resolution between you and the homeowner. If there is insufficient evidence provided by the homeowner, the case will be closed.

It is important to respond with any requested information promptly. If the initial evidence provided by a Trade is insufficient, the case may be escalated to a Guarantee claim. At this point, we may ask you to communicate directly with the homeowner to discuss their claim and come to an agreement on next steps.

Guarantee claim process

If finding a resolution between both parties is unsuccessful, the case may progress to a Guarantee claim, but only if the homeowner meets all eligibility requirements in the T&Cs. The process involves a case review, which may include an assessment of the workmanship by an independent, third-party expert. Following their assessment, a final decision will be communicated to both you and the homeowner.

Guarantee claim outcomes

Once the claim has been assessed, a decision will be communicated with both parties. There will be two outcomes for a Guarantee claim:

Work completed to an adequate standard:

If the investigation concludes the work completed was to an adequate standard and no further action is required, the case will be closed and Checkatrade will handle the homeowner comms.

Work was not completed to an adequate standard:

If the surveyors decide the workmanship was completed to a poor standard, it’s the Trades' responsibility to cover the costs to rectify. If this happens, next steps will be communicated to you as the Trade.

If the costs to rectify aren’t covered, Checkatrade’s Guarantee payout scheme will be triggered which covers homeowner’s up to £1,000. This will trigger an account review against the Trade with potential for deactivation.

Communications

All communications regarding complaints and Guarantee claims will be sent via email to the primary contact on the account. Please make sure you respond to any complaints or guarantee cases as quickly as possible with the requested information. Failing to address complaints from homeowners may result in your account being deactivated.