Home Improvement for Consumers
Getting any work done on your home requires hiring the right person to do the job. When considering a home improvement job, consumers should be prepared to talk with multiple contractors, ask for references, and ask about their experience completing the type of work you need done in your home. Find more information here about what to look for in a Home Improvement Contractor.
All Home Improvement Contractors, New Home Construction Contractors, and Home Improvement Salespeople must be registered with the Department of Consumer Protection (DCP).
Skilled work often done as part of a home improvement project (such as electrical, plumbing, HVAC) will likely require a more specific license that involves additional training and certification. Detailed information about what license may be needed for your project can be found here.
Be sure to verify licenses and registrations before you hire anyone by visiting https://www.elicense.ct.gov.
DCP enforces Connecticut’s Home Improvement Act, and administers the Home Improvement Guaranty Fund, which may provide assistance to homeowners who have a court judgement against a contractor who cannot pay them back for poor work. View the fact sheet and application to the Home Improvement Guaranty Fund.
If consumers have complaints regarding a Home Improvement Contractor, the best way to file with DCP is to fill out this complaint form, and email it along with any other helpful information such as contracts, receipts, permits, and accounts of your conversations with your contractor to dcp.complaints@ct.gov.
Our videos about "What you should know before you hire a contractor":
Find Additional Fact Sheets & Helpful Information Below:
- Consumer Tips: Contracting with and Working with a Home Improvement Contractor
- Learn How to Verify a Registration or License
- Fact Sheet: Home Improvement Without Headaches
- Home Improvement Law and Regulations
Home Improvement for Contractors
The Department of Consumer Protection (DCP) registers all Home Improvement Contractors, New Home Construction Contractors, and Home Improvement Salespeople doing business in Connecticut. DCP also enforces the Connecticut’s Home Improvement Act, and administers the Home Improvement Guaranty Fund.
The Department of Consumer Protection (DCP) registers all Home Improvement Contractors, New Home Construction Contractors, and Home Improvement Salespeople doing business in Connecticut. DCP also enforces the Connecticut’s Home Improvement Act, and administers the Home Improvement Guaranty Fund.
Contractors are required to be registered with us before advertising or beginning home improvement work. View specific information about the application process to register. Some home improvement related projects require additional training and a specific license. Find more information on which projects need what license.
We recommend that contractors keep a copy of and familiarize themselves with the Home Improvement & New Home Construction in Connecticut (Manual for Contractors) which has been updated as of March 2017.
Contractors may also wish to visit our page that lists Home Improvement Laws and Regulations.
Specific Project Requirement Information:
- Requirements for Removal of Underground Oil Storage Tanks
- Fact Sheet: Installing Irrigation Systems in CT
- Fact Sheet: Landscape Lighting and Mandatory Licensing
- Public Act 12-184, effective October 1, 2012, requires a battery-operated smoke detector and, if there is a fuel-burning appliance, a carbon monoxide detector in any one or two family home that is being occupied during any interior alterations and additions that require a building permit. The new law amends the State Fire Code.