1. What's your NYS mold remediation contractor license number?
Under NYS Article 32, any mold project above 10 square feet of visible growth must be performed by a NYS-licensed mold remediation contractor. The license number is public — verify it on the NYS Department of Labor's mold license search.
If the contractor doesn't have one, the project is out of compliance and the documentation won't satisfy HPD, DOH or an insurer.
2. Who's your assessor — and how is separation handled?
Article 32 requires separation between the assessor (who writes the work plan and performs post-remediation clearance) and the remediation contractor on the same project. Some firms hold both licenses but cannot use both on a single job.
The honest answer here is a partner assessor by name, or a clear statement that they will run only one role on your project and bring in an independent firm for the other.
3. Show me the remediation work plan.
Article 32 work begins from a written assessor-issued work plan. The plan defines scope, containment class, equipment, clearance criteria. A contractor working without that plan — or building it themselves — is not running an Article 32 project.
4. What's the post-remediation clearance protocol?
The right answer references the work plan and the assessor: independent post-remediation verification including visual inspection and, where the plan requires, air sampling, against criteria specified in the plan. A failed clearance triggers re-cleaning at the contractor's cost.
If "clearance" means "the contractor signs off," that's not clearance.
5. Walk me through your insurance.
You're looking for: general liability, contractor's pollution liability, workers compensation, and (often) professional liability. Ask for a sample certificate of insurance. Pollution liability is the one most often missing on smaller firms.
6. What documentation do I receive at close-out?
The minimum useful close-out package is: assessor's work plan, daily field logs, photograph record, moisture readings before and after, independent clearance report, lab analysis (if air sampling was performed), and waste manifests for affected materials. If the contractor's standard close-out is shorter than that, expect documentation gaps later.
And a bonus question.
"Have you done this kind of building before?" A brownstone is not a hospital wing is not a 30-unit walk-up. The right answer references comparable work; the wrong answer is generic.