What to Ask When Vetting a House Cleaner

Sparkly House Cleaning is licensed, bonded and insured.

Here is what that means…

All of our cleaners are employees. They are covered under our general liability insurance, workers compensation insurance and our bond. If something is damaged in your home, you’re protected. If a cleaner is injured in your home, you’re protected.

There are independent maids (individuals often from Craigslist, etc.) and companies with independent contractors (Handy, Task Rabbit and many others). More often than not, these people do not have any of these protections. Meaning, if there is damage, personal injury or theft, you, the home owner is at risk. Additionally, there are companies claiming to have some type of “self-insurance.” However, if you read the fine print, the coverage is extremely low and utilization of it, if needed, is next to impossible.

When vetting a cleaner that’s coming into your home, here are things to ask:

1. Do you have a COI (certificate of insurance)?

2. Are you bonded?

3. Are you / your staff reference and background-checked?

4. Do you bring other cleaners with you? If so, are they classified as employees?

What is occurring is that many people and companies are simply misclassifying their cleaners, and not doing so unintentionally. It is very deliberate. The reason is the company’s margins skyrocket when classifying cleaners as 1099 / independent contractors. They not only avoid the insurance costs, but also employer taxes. It helps the business, but imposes massive liability on the home owner.

Sparkly puts peace of mind first. For our business, but also for our clients. For any company like ours who are operating ethically, legally and “above board,” we’d say a comparison to these non-insured cleaners is like comparing putting your money into an FDIC protected bank (companies like Sparkly) to giving your money to a friend who has a “hot tip on a sports bet” (your cousin’s, best friend’s, next-door neighbor who says this is “a can’t miss opportunity”). It’s apples to oranges, not apples to apples.

When things seem too good to be true, they usually are. At Sparkly House Cleaning, if our prices are higher than certain competitors, it’s not because we’re perfect. It’s because we’ve made the decision to operate our business legally and ethically.