Verify the business before the scope.
- Ask for the business’s legal name and the name that will appear on the contract.
- Confirm it serves your actual address and handles your specific project size.
- Ask which license, if any, is required for the exact work and verify relevant active credentials through the appropriate official authority.
- Request current insurance information and clarify who will perform the work.
The Florida DBPR license lookup is a quick place to look. Requirements depend on the scope and location, and your local building department can confirm them.
Put the exact job in writing.
- Does the price cover a few panels, all mesh, or structural work?
- Are wall, roof and door panels all included?
- Which exact mesh manufacturer, product and weave will be used?
- Are spline, fasteners, doors, access equipment and cleanup included?
- What is excluded, and who approves a change order?
- Who determines whether a permit or inspection is required and handles it?
- What are the estimated schedule, weather-delay policy and access requirements?
Use the cost guide’s quote line items to compare the same scope.
Separate payment from promises.
Before signing, understand the deposit, progress payments, completion standard, cancellation terms and how disputes are handled. Keep copies of the estimate, signed contract and receipts. For storm work, check your insurer’s requirements, including any preferred-vendor rules.
The Florida Insurance Consumer Advocate advises checking identity, researching contractors and reading contracts, especially after storms.
Ask what the warranty actually includes.
- Is the warranty for the mesh material, installation labor, or both?
- Who receives a claim—the installer, manufacturer or seller?
- Are labor, removal and reinstallation included?
- What excludes storm, accidental or animal damage?
- What paperwork, registration or maintenance is required?
Write the answers down before you agree to the work. The matching line is how you start that conversation.