Homeowner guide
How to hire a contractor in Ireland
Hiring a contractor is mostly about reducing uncertainty before any money changes hands. Whether you need a new driveway, a roof repair, a pest treatment or a shed base, this guide covers the checks Pro10 applies when shortlisting businesses, plus the questions you should ask before signing anything.
1. Check the service fit
A paving specialist should clearly show driveway, patio, tarmac or gravel experience on their website, ideally with recent project photos. A roofing contractor should make roof repairs, flat roofs, chimney work or new roofs explicit. A pest control company should list treatments per pest type. If the business claims to do everything, ask which trade is actually their core work.
2. Look for genuine local coverage
Good local businesses state the areas they serve and provide a real phone number, a physical address and clear quote channels. Vague national coverage with no address is a warning sign, and it gets a lower editorial confidence score in the Pro10 shortlist.
3. Verify insurance and paperwork
Ask for proof of current public liability insurance before work starts, not after. For larger jobs, confirm whether the quote includes VAT and whether the business is registered. A contractor who handles this quickly and openly is usually a contractor who runs the job the same way.
4. Get written quotes and compare like for like
A verbal price is not a quote. Ask for written scope covering site preparation, materials and their brands, drainage or access costs, debris removal and timelines. When quotes differ a lot, the cheaper one is usually missing something: find out what.
5. Agree payment schedule and warranty before starting
Tie payments to milestones, keep the final payment for completed and inspected work, and get warranty terms for both workmanship and materials in writing. Agree how changes to the scope will be priced before they happen.
Frequently asked questions
How many quotes should I get?
Two or three written quotes is the practical sweet spot. Fewer gives you no baseline, more usually just delays the project without changing the decision.
How much deposit is normal for contractor work in Ireland?
A small deposit to secure materials can be reasonable, but be cautious of anyone asking for a large share of the total up front. Tie payments to progress milestones and keep the final payment for completed, inspected work.
What insurance should a contractor have?
At minimum, current public liability insurance. Ask to see the certificate and check the dates. For bigger jobs, ask whether employers liability cover is in place for their crew.
Is a Pro10 listing an endorsement?
No. Pro10 shortlists contractors based on public business information from their official websites. It is a starting point for your own checks, not a guarantee of workmanship.
Ready to compare? Start with the shortlists: paving contractors in dublin, paving contractors in cork, roofing contractors in dublin, roofing contractors in cork, guttering contractors in galway, pest control services in dublin, pest control services in galway, shed base installers in dublin.