What Is TrustMark?
The government-endorsed quality scheme for work in and around the home. What registration means, how to check it, and where it fits among your other checks.
The short answer
A government-endorsed quality scheme for work in and around your home.
TrustMark is the UK's government-endorsed quality scheme for work carried out in and around the home. A TrustMark registered business has been assessed by an approved scheme provider for the trades it is registered in, and has agreed to meet TrustMark's standards on technical competence, customer service and trading practices. You can check whether a business is registered, and for which trades, on TrustMark's own site.
Registration is a useful signal. It is not the only one, and plenty of capable builders are not registered. This page explains how the scheme works, how to check a business properly, and how to weigh it alongside your other checks.
How it works
TrustMark and its scheme providers
TrustMark doesn't assess every business itself. It licenses scheme providers, typically trade associations and certification bodies, which assess businesses in particular trades against TrustMark's requirements. A business that passes is registered for those specific trades, and the scheme provider continues to oversee it.
Registered businesses agree to TrustMark's standards and to follow the technical standards that apply to their trade. If something goes wrong, there is a complaints process that starts with the business itself and can then involve its scheme provider and TrustMark. The details of that process are set out on TrustMark's site, and they are worth reading before you rely on them.
TrustMark registration is also a requirement for installers on some government-funded energy efficiency schemes, which is why it comes up often with insulation and heating work.
Checking it properly
How to check a business is registered
Search the register yourself
Use the search on TrustMark's own site, by business name or by your postcode. Don't rely on a logo on a van, a letterhead or a quote. Logos are easy to copy and registrations can lapse.
Match the business
Make sure the registered business is the same one named on your quote, with the same name and, for a limited company, the same company details.
Check the trades listed
Registration is by trade. A business registered for one type of work isn't automatically registered for another. Confirm the trade you need is on the list.
Keep a record
Save a screenshot or note of the listing with the date. It is useful to have if a question comes up later.
Keeping it in proportion
What registration tells you, and what it doesn't
It tells you
- The business was assessed by an approved scheme provider
- It is registered for particular named trades
- It has agreed to a code of practice on standards and service
- There is a route for complaints beyond the business itself
It doesn't tell you
- That every job will go smoothly
- Whether the business is right for your particular project
- Whether its insurance is current today
- How it communicates, or how busy it is
Related schemes
How TrustMark differs from other badges
Competent person schemes
These let registered installers self-certify that certain work meets the Building Regulations. They are about compliance rather than overall quality. See what is a competent person scheme?
Trade associations
Membership bodies for particular trades. Some assess members closely, others less so. Check the association's own site for what membership involves.
Directories and platforms
Commercial listings, some of which carry out their own checks. Worth understanding what a platform's badge actually covers before relying on it.
Using it well
How to weigh registration in your decision
Registration is most useful as a starting filter. If you are choosing between several builders you know little about, a TrustMark listing for the right trade is a reasonable reason to put one on your shortlist. It shouldn't replace the checks that tell you about the individual job: insurance that covers your work, conversations with recent customers, and a clear written quote.
Absence of registration is not a mark against a builder on its own. Registration costs a business time and money, and some very capable small firms rely on reputation and repeat customers instead. In that case, lean harder on references and the insurance certificate.
If the business you are considering is registered, it is worth reading the complaints section of TrustMark's site before work starts. Knowing the route exists, and how it begins, is useful even if you never need it.
If you use Mortaro
Ask us, and we'll get the answer
Before a contractor from our network is introduced to any customer, we check five things: public liability insurance, reviews and references, the warranties they provide, their trade experience and work history, and their ability to meet our standards. If registration with a scheme such as TrustMark matters to you, or is required for your job, ask us and we will get the answer from your contractor.
Your contractor, who carries out the work, is named in your quotation before you commit, so you can also search the register yourself. More on how the network works is on our contractor network.
Straight answers
Questions about TrustMark
Should I only use TrustMark registered builders?
It is a reasonable preference, and for some funded energy work it may be required. For other work, registration is one good signal among several. A builder who isn't registered but has strong references, proper insurance and a clear written quote can be a sound choice. Our guide to trade accreditation schemes compares the options.
Does TrustMark cost me anything?
Searching the register is free. Businesses pay to be registered through their scheme provider.
Where do TrustMark checks fit with everything else?
Alongside insurance, references, a Companies House search where relevant and a written quote. Our guide to choosing and checking a contractor sets out the full picture.
Start here
Tell us about the work you have in mind
We will confirm we cover your postcode, arrange a site visit with a contractor from our network and send you a written quotation. No charge, no obligation.