Check the customer before you start
For UK trades. Look up who you’re working for, get the price and terms agreed in writing, keep your photos and paperwork safe, and get paid. All from your phone.
No card needed. Rather talk? Call us on 07355 420282
Tap your trade to see what it does for you.
One job, start to finish
Each step takes a few minutes on your phone.
Check the customer
Put in their name and the first part of their postcode, plus the company number if they’re a limited company. You see the company’s Companies House record and your own jobs, payments and disputes with them.
Send your terms
Your price, what’s included and when you get paid go to them by email or WhatsApp. They tap Accept on their phone, and the date and time are kept.
Keep your proof
Take photos in the app as you go. They’re dated and saved to the job with your messages and paperwork.
Get paid
Send the invoice from the job and turn on reminders. If it turns into a row, open a dispute with your evidence already there.
What’s in your account
Most disputes start with something that wasn’t written down. Everything here is for getting it in writing and keeping it.
The evidence vault
Every photo, message and bit of paperwork for a job, kept together. If a customer says the work wasn’t done, or wasn’t done right, it’s all there.
- Photos straight from the job. They keep the date and time they were taken.
- Sorted by stage: before, during, after, paperwork and messages.
- A photo list for your trade, so you get the shots that matter, like the work before it’s covered up.
- A fingerprint on every file when it’s saved, so you can show it hasn’t been changed since.
- Download a job’s evidence as one pack if you need it for a dispute or your insurer.
10 GB on Small Trade (about 3,000 photos), 25 GB on Professional (about 8,000).
Customer Check
A company’s Companies House record, and your own history with the customer. No scores and no blacklist.
Terms signed online
Your quote, what’s included and your payment stages, accepted on their phone before you start.
Extras agreed as you go
Write down extra work as it comes up and get the price agreed before you do it.
Invoices and reminders
Invoices with VAT, sent by email or WhatsApp, with reminders when they’re due or late.
Diary
Job starts, deliveries and invoice dates, with reminders on your phone.
Money book
Money in and out as you go, and a file for your accountant at the end of the year.
Materials and calculators
Work out how much you need, then compare local suppliers’ prices and order.
Disputes
If it goes wrong, open a case with your evidence. A person looks at both sides and writes up the outcome, and either side can appeal.
What it does for you
Payment stages are agreed before you start, and reminders do the chasing.
The price, what’s included and any extras are in writing and accepted by the customer.
Dated photos and paperwork for every job, in one place you won’t lose.
See a company’s status before you take the job and order the materials.
Quotes, invoices, the diary and your books, all on your phone.
If it goes wrong there’s a proper process. No public reviews, and no naming and shaming.
Check a customer, fairly
A check takes about a minute. There’s no score and no blacklist. Whether to take the job is up to you.
- Find the customer or job with just enough detail to be sure it’s the right one.
- See what’s known: company records and your own jobs with them, each with its source.
- Facts from other members come later: only once our solicitor confirms a lawful way to show them, and then always labelled in plain words: verified, disputed, unresolved, corrected or not enough evidence.
Supported by evidence both sides could check.
The other party disagrees. Their response is recorded.
Still open. Nothing has been decided.
Changed after review, with a visible history.
Not enough to rely on either way.
No information. That is never a bad sign.
Missing information is never a negative result. A customer with no history, or who isn't on Check the Customer at all, is treated exactly the same as anyone else.
Too many trades don’t get paid
Most trades have had a customer refuse to pay. It usually starts with a row about the final bill, or about whether the job was finished.
of trades have had a customer refuse to pay
IronmongeryDirect, 20241lost each year by the average trade to customers who don’t pay
IronmongeryDirect, 20241of builders had a payment disputed or held back in the last year
metals4U, 20252UK businesses close each year because of late payment. That’s 38 a day.
UK Government research, 20253Why it happens, and what we do about it
Sources: 1. IronmongeryDirect survey of 500 UK tradespeople, June 2024. 2. metals4U survey of UK tradespeople, December 2025; across all trades, 66% had a payment disputed or held back in the last 12 months. 3. London Economics for the Department for Business and Trade and the Small Business Commissioner, July 2025; this covers all UK businesses, not just trades. Surveys 1 and 2 were carried out for companies that sell to trades.
The first 20 trades join free
Help shape Check the Customer from day one. Founding members get 6 months free, keep a lower founder's price afterwards, and get a say in what we build next.
Find local suppliers and order through the site
Merchants, yards and hire firms put their prices on here. Compare them side by side, order in a few taps, then collect it or have it delivered. You pay the supplier the way you normally do.
Featured suppliers
Paid spots. Tap one to see what they sell and their prices.
Search for materials
Sell building materials or hire out plant? How it works for suppliers.
Started by local trades
Gary West and Simeon Paterson started Check the Customer so trades can protect their business without naming and shaming anyone. We’re starting on the Isle of Wight.
Gary West
Co-founder and tradesman. He knows what goes wrong on site, from unclear terms to late payment.
Simeon Paterson
Co-founder. He makes sure it’s fair and practical for trades.
Questions? Answers.
Is this a list of bad customers?
No. There’s no public list and no customer score. You record your own jobs, terms and evidence. Anything shared is factual and the customer can challenge it.
Will it make sure I get paid?
Nobody can promise that. It makes sure your terms, deposit and evidence are in place before you start, so problems are rarer and easier to sort out.
Can I review a customer?
No. You record what happened: what was agreed, invoiced and still owed. Insults and accusations are blocked as you type.
What if a customer thinks a record is wrong?
They can see it and challenge it on our Your rights page. A person reviews every challenge and replies with reasons.
Do you hold my customers’ money?
No. Your customers pay you directly, as they always have. We only charge for plans, adverts and supplier packages.
How do I cancel?
From Membership in your account, in a few taps. You’ll see when your access ends.
When does it start?
Now, with 20 founding members on the Isle of Wight, free for 6 months. Paid plans start once our solicitor has signed off the terms.
Do I need to download an app?
No. It works in your phone’s browser, and you can add it to your home screen like an app. It works on a computer too.
Where does it work?
Anywhere in the UK. We’re starting on the Isle of Wight, where the 20 founding places are.
Apply for a founding place
Free for 6 months, then a lower founder’s price. No card needed.