How to Vet New Subcontractors: A Red Flag Questionnaire for GCs

In a tight labor market, the temptation is to hire any subcontractor who answers the phone and says, “I can start on Monday.”

This is known as the “Warm Body” strategy, and it is the fastest way to destroy a project schedule.

A subcontractor who is financially unstable, unsafe, or over-extended becomes your problem the moment they step on site. If they go bankrupt mid-job, you are left with liens from their suppliers. If they have a safety incident, your insurance premiums go up.

Once you’ve vetted their business health, use our Subcontractor Scope of Work Checklist to verify their technical inclusions.

To protect your business, you need a rigorous Pre-Qualification Process. We have compiled a “Red Flag” questionnaire to help you screen new trade partners before you sign a contract.

[Download the Subcontractor Prequalification Form (PDF)]

The 3 Critical Areas of Vetting

Do not just ask for a price. You need to ask about the health of their business.

1. Financial Stability (The “Supplier Check”)

You need to know if they pay their bills. If they don’t pay their lumberyard, the lumberyard will file a lien against your client’s property.

The Questions:

“List 3 major material suppliers you have accounts with.”
“Do you have a line of credit? If so, what is the limit?”

The Red Flag: If they cannot provide supplier references, or if they operate strictly on “Cash on Delivery” (COD) with suppliers, they have cash flow problems. You will likely be asked to advance them money every Friday just to keep the job moving.

2. Safety Record (The EMR Score)

Safety isn’t just about compliance; it’s a proxy for management quality.

The Question:

“What is your current EMR (Experience Modification Rate)?”

The Red Flag: An EMR of 1.0 is the industry average. Anything below 1.0 is excellent. Anything above 1.0 means they have had frequent or severe accidents, and their insurance premiums are higher (a cost they pass on to you). If they don’t know what an EMR is, that is an immediate disqualifier for commercial work.

3. Manpower Capacity

The Question:

“What is your current backlog? How many crews do you have available for this timeline?”

The Red Flag: “I can start tomorrow.” While this sounds great, quality subcontractors are rarely sitting idle. Immediate availability often signals that another GC just fired them, or they have no backlog (which returns to the financial stability risk).

The “Soft” Vetting: Reference Calls

Don’t just collect the form; verify it. Call the General Contractor listed as a reference. Ask specifically:

“Did they staff the job consistently, or did they pull crews to put out fires elsewhere?”
“Did they submit close-out documents (warranties/manuals) on time, or did you have to chase them to get final payment?”
“Did they issue unexpected Change Orders for items that should have been in the base bid?”

The “Google Maps” Vetting Hack

One of the most effective, zero-cost vetting tools available is Google Street View. Before you sign a contract with a new trade partner, type their business address into Google Maps and look at the physical reality of their operation.

The Professional Sign: Do they have a dedicated office or a warehouse with their company branding? This signals a “Permanent” business that is likely to be there for warranty calls next year.
The Residential Address: Working out of a home office is common for small trades, but check the driveway. Are there marked trucks and organized equipment, or is it a cluttered mess?
The “Ghost” Office: If the address is a PO Box or a generic “virtual office” in a downtown high-rise, it’s a red flag.

You want to hire a subcontractor who has invested in their own infrastructure. If they don’t have a place to store their tools or a physical base of operations, they are more likely to “disappear” when a project gets difficult.

The Administrative Burden of “Pre-Qual”

The problem with vetting is the paperwork. Collecting a W9, a Certificate of Insurance (COI), a Safety Manual, and a Reference List from 20 different bidders is a logistical nightmare.

You receive 20 emails with different attachments.
You have to rename the files.
You have to check the dates on the insurance.
You have to file them in the server.

Because this is tedious, most GCs skip it. They revert to the “Warm Body” strategy and hope for the best.

Automate Vetting with Bid Bench

Bid Bench makes pre-qualification a standard, automated step in your bidding process.

The “Gatekeeper” Portal: When a sub wants to bid, they are directed to your branded portal. They cannot download the plans until they upload their credentials.
Auto-Expiration Tracking: The system scans their uploaded Insurance Certificate. If the policy expires next month, the system flags them as “High Risk” automatically.
Centralized Database: You build a permanent profile for every sub. You can add internal notes like “Do not hire - left mess on Smith Project” so your other Project Managers don’t make the mistake of hiring them again.

Hire with confidence, not hope.
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