7 Questions to Ask Before Hiring an Excavation Contractor

Excavation is not like painting. If a painter does a bad job, you repaint. If an excavation contractor does a bad job, you might have a cracked foundation, a hit gas line, or a yard full of soil nobody will haul away. The machine in your yard weighs several tonnes, and the person running it matters.

We are a contractor ourselves, so take this how you want. But these are the seven questions we would ask anyone digging on our own property, including us. A good contractor will answer all of them without getting defensive.

Are you insured, and can I see proof?

Ask for a certificate of liability insurance, and ask that it names enough coverage for the kind of damage excavation can do. Two million dollars is a common floor for this trade. Also ask whether their workers are covered under WSIB, Ontario’s workplace insurance. If a worker gets hurt on your property and the contractor has no coverage, that problem can land on you as the homeowner. Anyone legitimate carries both and shows the paperwork without a fuss.

Will you call for utility locates before digging?

This is the fastest way to spot a corner cutter. In Ontario, anyone digging must contact Ontario One Call before breaking ground so that buried gas, hydro, water, and communication lines get marked. It is free, and it is the law. The standard wait for locates is about five business days, so a contractor who says they can start digging tomorrow on a job booked today is either not getting locates or has already arranged them.

Ask directly: who is requesting the locates, and can I see the paperwork before the machine starts? A hit gas line shuts down your street. A hit hydro line can kill someone.

Can you give me a written quote, and what exactly does it include?

Verbal quotes are worth the paper they are written on. Get the scope in writing: what is being dug, to what depth, what happens to the excavated soil, what backfill material is included, and what the site will look like when they leave. The soil question matters more than people think. Hauling and disposing of soil is a real cost, and a quote that is silent on it often means a surprise later, or a pile of dirt left in your yard.

Also ask what would trigger an extra charge. Hitting rock, finding an old buried oil tank, or bad weather are legitimate reasons for a change. The point is to hear how they handle surprises before one happens.

Who is actually doing the work?

Some outfits sell the job and subcontract the digging to whoever is available. That is not automatically bad, but you should know who is showing up. Ask whether the person quoting the job will be on site, and who operates the equipment. With a family run company you usually get the same people every day, and the person on the machine has a name you know.

Have you done this specific type of job before?

Excavation covers a lot of ground. Digging a pool is different from trenching a water line, which is different from cutting a basement entrance beside a foundation. Ask what similar jobs they have done recently and how those went. You are listening for specifics: how they handled tight access, where the soil went, how long it took. Vague answers on specifics are a warning sign.

Can I talk to recent customers?

References still work. Ask for two or three from the past year and actually call them. Ask one useful question: if you did the project again, would you hire them again? People hedge in reviews but tend to be honest on the phone. Online reviews help too, but read the detailed ones, not the star count.

What is your plan for my property?

Machines are heavy and yards are soft. Ask where the excavator will track, whether they will protect the driveway and lawn, and how they will leave the site. Ask about fencing or covering open excavations overnight, because an open pit is a hazard, especially with kids around. A contractor who has thought about this before you asked is a contractor who has been doing it a while.

None of these questions are rude. They are normal, and the good contractors in the GTA get asked them every week. The ones who bristle at them are telling you something useful.

RMAK Disposal and Excavation Services is a family owned company, serving Mississauga and the GTA since 2015. Ask us all seven of these questions, we do not mind. Call or text Antoni at 647-675-6895 for a free written quote.