About the Best & Worst Contractors of 2012:

Welcome to our list of 2012 Best and Worst Contractors, a compilation of companies with either awesome or awful track records for local service.

Our Best Contractors come from a variety of popular categories and must qualify for the prestigious 2012 Angie’s List Super Service Award, which requires they have a current and overall grade of A, a minimum number of work-done reviews in the reporting period and be in good standing with Angie’s List. The Best also must have a flawless current record and multiple Page of Happiness nominations in the past year. These extra requirements put them in the top 1 percent of contractors eligible for the SSA nationwide.

To determine the Worst Contractors, we scrutinized member reviews, Penalty Box cases from the Angie's List Complaint Resolution Process and court records. We interviewed scores of sources, basing our selections on the gravity or volume of allegations and the damage customers say those contractors inflicted.

Finally, in keeping with our tough stance on trade licensing, the Angie’s List Trade Licensing Department audited every Best Contractor finalist for compliance with state and local licensing laws. We booted those unable to produce a valid trade license or prove they didn’t need one. If a Worst Contractor was found to lack a required trade license, we included information on their noncompliant status.