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St. Petersburg HVAC Repair(727) 292-1764

Guide

Before you hire an HVAC contractor in Florida

Florida licenses air conditioning contractors at the state level, and Pinellas County runs its own board as well. Five minutes with the two lookups is worth it.

(727) 292-1764

Two classes of state air conditioning license

Florida law defines a Class A air conditioning contractor with no size limit, and a Class B contractor limited to 25 tons of cooling and 500,000 Btu of heating in any one system. Either covers a typical house. Mechanical contractors hold a broader license that also covers this work.

Source: Florida Statutes, section 489.105.

Checking a license

  1. Get the number

    Florida requires a contractor's license number on offers, bids, contracts and advertisements (section 489.119). Ask for it on the call.

  2. Search the state

    Use the DBPR license search by name or number.

  3. Read the status

    The Pinellas board says only state-certified contractors listed as Current, Active or Probation, Active are eligible to work.

  4. County-certified?

    Some local trades hold a county certificate instead. Those appear on the Pinellas County contractor search.

Insurance and who actually does the work

The Pinellas County Construction Licensing Board advises checking that a contractor carries general liability and workers' compensation insurance, or holds a workers' compensation exemption. It also notes that journeymen work for licensed contractors and cannot be hired directly.

Source: Pinellas County Construction Licensing Board.

A man on a screened lanai talking on the phone, with a ceiling fan and palms outside.

Questions to ask on the first call

  • What is the company's legal name and Florida license number?
  • Will you pull the permit, and who schedules the inspection?
  • Is the quote written, and does it list equipment model numbers?
  • Who will be on site, and are they your employees?
  • How is the warranty registered, and what does it exclude?

Reporting a problem

The county board investigates complaints about contractors and takes reports of unlicensed contracting on (727) 582-6767. Its page on pinellas.gov links the complaint forms.

Talk it through with an independent contractor

Ring from St. Petersburg, Florida or a neighboring town and mention which rooms stay warm, what the thermostat reads and roughly how old the equipment is. Scope and price stay between you and that independent company.

(727) 292-1764
Call (727) 292-1764