Trades Authority Pro User Review and Rating Standards

User reviews and ratings on Trades Authority Pro follow a defined set of standards that govern submission eligibility, content criteria, scoring methodology, and editorial enforcement. These standards exist to ensure that contractor ratings reflect genuine service experiences rather than promotional content or competitive interference. Understanding how reviews are collected, weighted, and displayed helps consumers make informed contractor selections and helps listed businesses understand what shapes their public profile. This page covers the full scope of those standards, from first submission through dispute and removal.

Definition and scope

A "user review" on Trades Authority Pro is defined as a first-hand account submitted by a verified service recipient — meaning an individual or household that engaged a listed contractor for compensated trade work at a specific address and date. Ratings are expressed on a 5-point integer scale across four distinct dimensions: work quality, timeliness, professionalism, and value. An aggregate star score is computed from those four sub-scores and displayed alongside the listing. Reviews that do not meet the verified-recipient threshold are classified as unverified submissions and are held in a moderation queue rather than published automatically.

The scope of this review system spans all trade verticals covered in the directory. Electricians, plumbers, HVAC technicians, roofing contractors, general contractors, and specialty trades such as tile setters and insulation installers are all subject to identical standards — there is no rating tier that applies exclusively to one trade category. Consumers who want context on which trades appear in the directory can consult the Trades Covered in Authority Industries Directory page.

How it works

The submission and scoring process follows a six-stage sequence:

  1. Submission trigger — A review window opens 72 hours after the job-completion date entered by the consumer at the time of contractor contact. This delay prevents submission before a project is finished.
  2. Identity verification — The submitting account must be associated with a confirmed email address and a ZIP code that matches the service address on file. Accounts created fewer than 7 days before submission are flagged for additional review.
  3. Content screening — Automated filters check for prohibited content categories: no business names of competing contractors, no pricing that could constitute a commercial claim, no personal identifying information for contractor employees, and no language violating the platform's harassment standards.
  4. Moderation review — Submissions flagged by automated screening enter a human-moderation queue with a 5-business-day resolution window. Unflagged submissions publish within 24 hours.
  5. Weighted scoring — Each of the four sub-scores contributes to the aggregate score, but not equally. Work quality carries 40% of the aggregate weight; timeliness, professionalism, and value each carry 20%. This weighting reflects the primacy of completed-work outcome in contractor evaluation.
  6. Display and indexing — Published reviews appear on the contractor's listing page in reverse chronological order. Listings with fewer than 3 published reviews display an "Insufficient data" notation rather than an aggregate star score, preventing a single outlier from defining a contractor's public profile.

The methodology for how contractor data underlies these listings is described in detail at Trades Authority Pro Data Sourcing Methodology.

Common scenarios

Verified vs. unverified review — The most frequent distinction the moderation process draws is between verified and unverified submissions. A homeowner who hired a listed plumber, paid by invoice, and submits from a matching ZIP code is a verified reviewer. A submitter whose ZIP code does not match the service address, whose account was created the same day, and who provides no job-completion date is treated as unverified. Unverified reviews are not published unless additional documentation — such as a dated invoice uploaded to the submission portal — resolves the discrepancy.

Contractor-disputed review — When a contractor disputes a review's accuracy, the process follows the pathway described at Authority Industries Dispute Resolution for Consumers. Contractors must submit a written rebuttal within 14 calendar days of the review's publication date. Rebuttals are attached to the original review as a visible response rather than triggering removal — removal is reserved for verified policy violations only.

Review modification after publication — Consumers may update a previously published review once within 90 days of the original submission. Modifications undergo the same content screening applied to initial submissions. After the 90-day window closes, the review is locked.

Incentivized reviews — Reviews submitted in exchange for a discount, refund, or other contractor-provided benefit are prohibited under platform policy, consistent with guidance from the Federal Trade Commission on endorsement and testimonial disclosures. Any review identified as incentivized is removed and the associated listing flagged for compliance review.

Decision boundaries

Specific conditions determine whether a review is published, held, or removed:

The distinction between a held review and a removed review is consequential for contractors because held reviews may still publish once resolved. Contractors seeking to understand how their listing eligibility interacts with review performance should reference Authority Industries Listing Eligibility Criteria and Authority Industries Quality Benchmarks for Trade Listings.

References

Explore This Site

Regulations & Safety Regulatory References Tools & Calculators Contractor Bid Comparison Calculator