Last reviewed: 2 October 2026

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How do I check that a home warranty company is licensed, funded, and who it says it is?

This page uses Texas and California, where the regulators' own pages name different offices; other states vary, so start with your state's consumer protection office. It says what each regulator's own pages tell you to look at.

The checklist

1. Find your state's office. Use the USAGov state directory (reference 1) and pick your state. Which agency licenses home warranty companies differs by state: in Texas the FAQ names TDLR, and in California it is CDI.²⁴ For other states, ask the consumer protection office you reach which agency handles home warranties. Our complaint-routing guide and the US guides describe how individual states differ.
2. Get the full legal name on the contract, and find out whether the seller is the company that owes you service. TDLR's FAQ defines a "provider" as the person or company "contractually obligated to the service contract purchaser under terms of the contract," and a "seller" as someone who markets or sells a contract on a provider's behalf but is not contractually obligated under it. Sellers are not required to register with TDLR, but must follow the same marketing and sales requirements as a registered provider.² The FAQ also says the provider's name must be on all written service contracts and written advertising materials, so a contract with no identifiable provider name is a reason to ask questions.²
3. Search the license record. In Texas, search the TDLR Licensing Database and select "Service Contract Providers"; providers and administrators are in one list, and an administrator's registration number carries an "(a)", as in "SCP(a)-001" versus "SCP-001" for a provider.² In California, CDI says you can call 1-800-927-4357 to verify license status, and that a list of licensed Home Protection Companies is on its website.⁴ TDLR's FAQ also lists phone numbers, (800) 803-9202 (in Texas only) and (512) 463-6599.²
4. Confirm the record is current. TDLR's FAQ says provider and administrator registrations are valid for one year and must be renewed annually, and it describes late-renewal and expired-registration situations.² When you look a company up, check the status and dates the record shows, not just that a name appears.
5. Look at how the provider shows it can pay claims. For Texas, the three options in the key summary come from TDLR's FAQ, which adds that any form of financial security must be approved by the department before use and that reimbursement insurance must cover all obligations for all service contracts issued and outstanding in Texas.² The FAQ is written to providers and does not say what a consumer can view of those filings, so ask TDLR. The CDI page cited here does not describe California's funding rules; our California guide and our guide to reimbursement insurance and funded reserves cover the general idea.
6. Check enforcement and complaint records. TDLR's FAQ says you can get a list of final enforcement actions against providers and administrators by searching its website with the same "Service Contract Providers" selection.² CDI says it posts information about every home warranty company so consumers "can investigate a home warranty company's license and track record," including performance and complaint data on its public website.⁴ A complaint is a record that someone complained, not a finding that the company did anything wrong.
7. Compare the contract to the rules for what it must say. CDI lists terms California law requires a home warranty to state in "clear and conspicuous terms," including each covered appliance, system and component, "all exclusions and limitations," the contract period, fee and renewal terms, the services and service fees, any limits on time or geographic area, and a statement that services start on a telephone request without claim forms being filed first.⁴ For Texas, TDLR's FAQ points to Occupations Code Section 1304.156 and Rule 77.70 for required contract contents.²
8. Ask what happens if the seller is not licensed. TDLR's FAQ says that if TDLR determines a person or company operated as a provider or administrator without the appropriate registration, the contract holder may cancel and obtain a full refund of the purchase price, or keep the contract.² That depends on a TDLR determination; it is not something you can declare yourself.

Texas and California side by side

How this connects to our standard and Register

These steps correspond to points 3, 4, 8, 9 and 10 of our standard: state licensing verified directly, a funded-claims mechanism, a named company and the entity actually obligated, complaint data and enforcement history. The Register applies that method to home warranty providers as a category. It shows how we check and what we found; it is not a substitute for looking up the license yourself, and nothing on this page is a judgment about any company.

How to verify this yourself

• Open the USAGov directory (reference 1) and confirm which state office applies to you.
• For Texas, read TDLR's Service Contract Providers FAQ (reference 2) and use its Licensing Database; for California, read CDI's Home Protection Contracts page (reference 4) and use the license check it describes.
• Phone numbers and web tools change. Confirm them on the regulator's own site before relying on them.

What this page is not

This page covers two states as examples, and only what the cited regulator pages say. It does not tell you whether any company is licensed, whether a contract is worth buying, or what your own state requires. If you are unsure which state office applies, ask your state consumer protection office or a lawyer.