Verification
What we check
Effective September 24, 2026.
1. One standard: Verified Local Provider
Star Valley Guide (the "Guide," "we," or "us") is an independent local publication. Star Valley Home Services Guide is the home services section of Star Valley Guide. We use one verification standard for local businesses: Verified Local Provider. There is no higher or lower tier.
When a business earns it, its listing says:
"Star Valley Guide reviewed publicly available information including business identity, online reputation, applicable licensing and regulatory records, and local service presence."
2. What we look at
Business identity. Is this a real business, and are the name, address, and phone number consistent across its own website or profile, government records, and state business filings? Is the business active with the state?
Public reputation. What do homeowners say about the business in public reviews and ratings on sites such as Google and the Better Business Bureau, and in news and community sources? We read the reviews themselves, including the negative ones, not only the star rating.
Applicable licensing and regulatory records. If a license is required for the trade in the places the business works, we check the licensing authority's public records. If no license is required, we record that and do not count it against the business. We also search public safety and enforcement records, such as federal workplace safety records, the Wyoming Attorney General's consumer protection matters, federal exclusion lists, and, for some trades, environmental records.
Local service presence. Is the business based in Star Valley, or does it clearly and regularly serve Star Valley homes? Businesses based here count in their favor.
3. How we check
We use public records and public reviews, as they stand on the day we check. Verification never requires documents from a business, and it does not depend on a business's cooperation. A business does not have to know about us, claim its listing, or pay anything to be verified.
Records a business points us to. After a business claims its listing, it may point us to a record, or send a business document, that fills a gap in its public record, such as its state filing number, a license, or proof of its address. This is free for every business that claims its listing, whether or not it pays us.
We confirm each one with the issuer or in the public record before it can count, and then run a new verification. It can fill a gap, but it never erases what public records and reviews show, and nothing a business sends about reviews, complaints, or enforcement counts.
Insurance documents never change the badge. A business may send an insurance certificate. We do not verify it, we never publish it, and it never changes the badge, which still says nothing about insurance.
A person makes or reviews every decision that involves a serious concern. A serious concern that cannot be resolved means we do not verify the business, no matter how few providers work in that category.
4. What we do NOT check
Verification is not a guarantee, and it does not cover everything that matters when you hire someone. We do not:
- check whether the business carries liability insurance;
- check bonding;
- check workers' compensation coverage;
- run background checks on the business, its owners, or its workers;
- inspect, test, or approve the quality of any work;
- check prices or compare quotes; or
- guarantee the business's work, its availability, or its conduct.
Before you hire anyone, ask the provider directly about insurance, whether your job needs a permit or license, the price, and any warranty, and get important terms in writing.
5. What the summary on each listing means
| Summary line | What it means |
|---|---|
| Business identity: Confirmed | Public records agreed on who the business is on the verification date |
| Public reputation: Reviewed | We read the public reviews and ratings we could find and weighed them in our decision. It is not a rating, and it does not mean every review is positive |
| Applicable licensing: Reviewed | We checked whether a license applies to this trade where the business works, and if one does, what the licensing authority's public records show |
| Public regulatory records: Reviewed | We searched the public safety and enforcement records listed in section 2 |
| Star Valley service presence: Confirmed | Public information shows the business is based in Star Valley or regularly serves it |
| Verification date | The day we completed the check. Everything above reflects that day |
Confirmed means public sources agreed on a fact. Reviewed means we examined the public sources available and took them into account. Neither word is a guarantee.
6. Verification dates and rechecks
Every listing shows the date it was verified. We recheck every verified business at least once every 12 months, and sooner if something changes, such as a closure, a change of ownership, a drop in public ratings, a pattern of complaints, an enforcement action, a license change, or conflicting identity information. If a business no longer meets the standard, its badge comes off.
7. Participating and nonparticipating businesses
Verification and participation are separate. A business that meets the standard is listed whether or not it takes part in Star Valley Guide matching, and whether or not it has claimed its listing.
Participation and placement are commercial. Participating businesses receive requests through the Guide: some are in a free introductory period, and some pay a monthly membership. Paying members appear ahead of the others, and a Preferred Provider appears first (section 11). None of this affects verification. A business cannot buy the badge, and a business that does not pay keeps the badge as long as it meets the standard.
Other verified businesses appear in a separate, quieter list, without contact details or a button of their own. Each of their pages says:
"Verified Local Provider. This business is listed based on Star Valley Guide's public-signal verification process. It is not currently participating in Star Valley Guide matching."
Their buttons lead to our general matching, so a request goes only to businesses that can receive it. A listing that has not been claimed does not show the business's logo.
8. If a business sees a factual error
A business can claim its listing and correct factual details such as address, hours, and the jobs it takes, and can point us to records as described in section 3. A business that has not claimed its listing can ask us to correct a factual error through our contact form. Businesses cannot edit their verification status or our research findings.
9. How to report a problem with a provider
If you have a problem with a provider you found through the Guide, tell us through our contact form. A person reviews every complaint about alleged fraud, property damage, threats, unsafe conduct, serious service problems, legal threats, or major payment disputes. A complaint may lead us to recheck, suspend, or remove a provider. If anyone is in danger, call 911 first.
10. Reviews
We do not publish homeowner reviews, and we do not show or quote the public reviews we read. We never pay for, ask for, or reward reviews of any business, and we never pressure anyone to change or remove a review. What homeowners tell us about providers stays internal.
11. Preferred Provider status
A provider may pay for Preferred Provider status in a category, the top tier of paid membership. A Preferred Provider gets the first chance, for 2 hours, to accept new requests in its category. It is a paid commercial arrangement. It never affects verification. A Preferred Provider must meet exactly the same standard as every other provider, and we will label Preferred status wherever it applies. No provider has Preferred status today.