Picking a surfacing contractor is a big call for what looks like a simple job. Get it wrong and you're paying to have the drive dug up again in two years. Five questions cover most of it.
One: can you show me two recent jobs nearby I can drive past? Anyone doing real work has them, and the answer should come back the same day — not “I'll have a look”.
Two: can you put the spec in writing — depth of surface course, depth and type of sub-base, how the edges are held? This is the most useful filter there is. Good firms do it as a matter of course. The corner-cutters can't, because the vagueness is how the price stays low.
Three: who's on site? With a small outfit it's often the owner and a mate or two — that's fine, and usually a good sign. With a bigger one it might be a foreman you've not met. Either way, find out, so you know who you're dealing with on day one.
Four: how's it paid? A small deposit, 10–20%, is normal. A demand for half up front, especially in cash, is the old warning sign — the money goes and so does the contractor. Straight firms invoice on completion or against staged milestones.
Five: what happens after? Most surfaces have a settling-in period — a top-up of jointing sand, an aftercare sweep on surface dressing. Ask what they'll do and when. If the answer's “we're gone once we're paid”, take them at their word.
