The Verification Standard
“Verified” is a process here, not a sticker.
Plenty of directories will sell any company a badge. Ours has to be earned — and kept. This page is the whole standard, in plain language, including the part most platforms hide: what happens when a pro loses it.
Check 1 — The business, against the state’s own record
Most marine trades have no state contractor license — and we won’t pretend otherwise. What every legitimate Florida business does have is a registration with the Division of Corporations (Sunbiz). Before a pro is listed, we pull their record directly from Sunbiz and confirm the business exists, its status is Active, and the people applying are the people on the record.
Then we keep pulling it. Registration status is re-checked on a monthly cycle, because a business that was fine in January can be dissolved by May — and a directory that checked once, once ever, would never know.
Check 2 — Real insurance, with the expiry date on our calendar
The pro’s certificate of insurance comes to us from their insurance agent — not just as an upload from the pro. We verify the coverage and record the expiry date in our tracking system, with alerts ahead of it. If the policy lapses and isn’t replaced, the listing and the badge are suspended automatically, and the suspension goes on the public log below. A boat owner should never be the one who discovers a pro’s insurance expired — that’s our job.
Check 3 — Credentials from the documents, reviews like an auditor
Where a real credential exists, we verify the issued document: manufacturer certifications (Yamaha, Mercury, Suzuki, and others), ABYC certification, and EPA 608 for refrigerant work. Where a trade has no governing credential — detailing is the honest example — the profile says exactly what was checked instead. A certification claim that can’t be documented comes off the profile; it is never taken on faith.
We also read the pro’s public review history across major platforms — not just the average stars. We look at volume, at patterns (the same complaint three times is a finding), and at how the company responded when something went wrong. Every pro is re-audited on a quarterly cycle, and reviews from jobs booked through this platform feed directly into the next audit.
What gets a badge revoked
The badge is only worth something if it can be lost. It can — fast:
- Business registration goes inactive or is dissolved and not reinstated — badge off on detection
- Insurance expires or is cancelled and not replaced — automatic suspension, no grace period
- A claimed certification can’t be documented, or proves false — claim struck; misrepresentation revokes
- A substantiated pattern of boat-owner complaints (no-shows at the marina, deposits kept, work abandoned)
- Manipulated reviews — bought, faked, or incentivized without disclosure
- Chronic unresponsiveness — verified pros answer booking requests promptly, or they don’t stay verified
When a badge is revoked, the pro’s listing comes down and any boat owner with a pending booking through that pro is told directly and re-matched. One bad pro wearing this badge would damage every honest pro on the platform — so the standard is enforced like it matters, because it does.
The public suspension log
Every suspension and revocation is recorded here — pro name, date, category reason, and outcome — permanently for revocations. In a marine community this size, the badge’s credibility is this log: it’s the proof the standard is enforced when nobody is watching.
The short version
Registration checked against the state, monthly. Insurance verified, expiry tracked, suspension automatic. Credentials from the documents, never self-declared. Reviews audited quarterly. Enforcement published. That’s the standard every pro on this site is held to.