Security, Privacy and Protecting Your Property
LAST TESTEd AUGUST 25, 2026Hiring a contractor means letting strangers onto your property and handing over your contact details. This page sets out exactly what happens to your information, and what you should confirm with any contractor before work starts, including us.
TLS 1.3
Encryption
Older TLS 1.0 and 1.1 are switched off entirely
HSTS
Enforced HTTPS
Browsers are told never to load this site over plain HTTP
5
Processors named
Forms, analytics, security providers are listed below.
811
Before any dig
Ohio law, and the first thing to confirm with any contractor
This website
Most contractor sites claim to be secure and leave it there. Here is the actual configuration, tested and dated, so you can check rather than take our word for it.
| What we checked | Result | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Encryption in transit | TLS 1.2 and TLS 1.3 only | Anything you type into a form on this site is encrypted between your browser and the server. |
| Obsolete protocols | TLS 1.0 and TLS 1.1 disabled | Both are deprecated and have known weaknesses. Leaving them enabled is a common oversight. |
| Certificate | Valid, issued by Google Trust Services | Your browser can confirm it is genuinely talking to this site and not an impostor. |
| Plain HTTP requests | Redirected with a 301, both www and non-www | There is no unencrypted version of this site to land on by accident. |
| Strict-Transport-Security | Enabled, six month max-age | Tells your browser to refuse plain HTTP for this site outright, so the insecure request is never made in the first place. |
| X-Content-Type-Options | nosniff | Stops a browser guessing a file is something other than what it is. |
| X-Frame-Options | SAMEORIGIN | Prevents this site being embedded in someone else’s page to trick you into clicking something. |
| Referrer-Policy | strict-origin-when-cross-origin | Limits how much of your browsing context leaks to other sites. |
| Edge protection | Cloudflare in front of the origin server | Filters malicious traffic before it reaches the site. |
Two things we fixed after auditing ourselves
This page started as an audit of our own site, and it found two gaps worth being open about. Strict-Transport-Security was not set, so a browser could still have attempted one plain HTTP request before being redirected. That is now enabled. Our privacy policy did not name the third parties that process your data. It does now, and they are listed below.
We mention this because a security page that only lists things already working is not much of an audit. If we find more, we will fix those too and say so.
Your information, and everyone who touches it
When you fill in a form on this site, your details do not simply arrive in an inbox. They pass through third-party services. Most companies never tell you which ones. Here are ours.
| Who | What they handle | Why |
|---|---|---|
| 123FormBuilder | Name, email, phone, address and message from the forms on this site | They host and deliver our contact and estimate forms. Your submission passes through them before it reaches us. |
| Google Analytics and Google Ads | Pages visited, device and browser type, approximate location, and cookies named _ga, _ga_021K8S8W5S and _gcl_au | Website analytics and advertising measurement. You can block these with browser settings or the Google Analytics opt-out add-on. |
| RealWork Labs | Job-site photographs and review invitations, which can carry approximate location data | The field app our team uses to record completed work and invite reviews. |
| Cloudflare | Technical request data including IP address | Security filtering and content delivery in front of the website. |
| Our host and email provider | Site data and correspondence | Running the website and replying to you. |
What we collect
- Your name, email address, phone number and the address of the property.
- What you told us about the project.
- Standard website usage data such as pages viewed and device type.
That is what is needed to quote concrete work and turn up at the right house. We do not ask for financial details through this website.
Getting it removed
You can ask us to correct or delete the information we hold about you at any time, and you do not need a reason. Email [email protected] or call (513) 270-2653.
If you asked for a quote and decided against it, you are welcome to ask us to delete the inquiry. We would rather do that than keep chasing someone who has moved on.
Text messages: reply STOP to any message to opt out, or HELP for assistance. Consent to texts is never a condition of buying anything.
Photographs of your property
Concrete is judged by eye, so photographs of finished work are how any contractor demonstrates quality. That means your property may end up in ours. Here is how that works and how to opt out.
- Crews may photograph the work area before, during and after a project, both as a quality record and to show examples of the work.
- The field application used to capture those photographs can attach approximate location data, which may be used to show the general areas we work in.
- The subject is the concrete. We do not set out to publish images of the inside of your home, your house number, vehicle plates or anything that identifies you.
- If you would rather no photographs of your property were used publicly, say so and that is the end of it. Before, during or after the job. You can also ask us to take down something already published.
- Review invitations are optional, never incentivized, and we do not write reviews on anyone’s behalf.
Worth asking any contractor the same question, because job-site photo apps are now common in this trade and most customers have no idea their patio is on a public map.
Before anyone digs on your property
This is the part of hiring a contractor that carries real risk to your property, and it is the part almost nobody asks about. Excavation for a driveway or patio happens exactly where gas, electric, water, sewer and telecoms lines run.
Ohio law changed in June 2026
For most contractor-performed excavation in Ohio, the excavator must notify Ohio 811 before work begins. For ordinary driveway, patio, grading, and similar excavation performed by a hired contractor, the requirement generally applies.
Ohio Revised Code sections 3781.25 to 3781.38 were rewritten effective June 9, 2026. The required notice window is now at least two working days and not more than 16 calendar days before excavation begins, and the day notice is given does not count. A great many contractor websites, and plenty of contractors, still quote the old 48-hour rule.
The service is free. Anyone can file a locate request at oups.org or by calling 811. Utilities then mark their buried lines on the ground in paint, which is what the colored markings in the photograph are.
Marked lines still need care. Locate marks show approximate positions, so responsible practice is to dig carefully by hand near them rather than putting a machine straight through.
Ask us this, and ask everyone else you are quoting
Has a locate request been filed, what is the ticket number, and when does it expire? Then, on the day: are the markings on the ground, and who exactly is operating the machine. A contractor who has done this properly will answer both without hesitating. If you get a vague answer to either, do not let the dig start. That single conversation prevents the most expensive category of problem on a concrete job.
What to confirm with any contractor, including us
We would rather give you a checklist you can use on everyone than a page of promises about ourselves. Ask us all of these when we quote. Ask the other two companies as well, and compare the answers.
Who will actually be on my property?
Will the people doing the work be the contractor’s own employees, or a subcontracted crew? Both models exist and both can produce excellent work, but you are entitled to know which one you are buying, and who to call if something goes wrong on site.
Can I see a certificate of insurance?
This is the one genuinely non-negotiable item. Ask for the certificate to be sent directly from the insurer or broker, not forwarded as a photograph. Check it is current and that it covers the work being done.
Has 811 been called, and what is the ticket number?
Covered above. Ohio law, free, and the answer should be immediate.
What is the payment schedule?
A deposit is normal because materials get ordered and crews scheduled. A deposit large enough that the contractor has effectively been paid before anyone arrives is not. Keep a meaningful balance due on satisfactory completion, and get the schedule written into the estimate.
What happens if something gets damaged?
Machinery has to reach the pour. Grass gets torn up, and occasionally something worse happens. Ask who puts it right, whether it is covered by insurance or absorbed by the contractor, and get the answer before you sign rather than after.
What exactly does the warranty cover, and what voids it?
Ask for it in writing. Ask specifically what it excludes. Concrete warranties commonly exclude hairline cracking, since some cracking occurs as concrete cures, so it is worth asking where a given warranty draws the line between normal and defective.
Do you need access to my house, or just the property?
Most exterior concrete work needs neither keys nor interior access. Water and power sometimes get borrowed. Agree that up front, and if anyone does need to come inside, agree when and who.
Will my project be photographed, and can I decline?
Job-site photo apps are standard in this trade now. You are entitled to say no, and a straight answer to this question tells you something about how the company treats customer preferences generally.
Being straight about what this section is
You will notice these are questions rather than promises. That is deliberate. Any company can write "our technicians are fully vetted and we treat your home with respect" on a web page, and that sentence carries no information because it costs nothing to type. A specific answer to a specific question, given to you directly and written into your estimate, is worth considerably more. So ask us, in writing, and hold us to the answer.
Licensing and insurance in Ohio, honestly
There is no state concrete license
Ohio does not issue a state general contractor license for residential work. The state licenses specific trades such as electrical, plumbing, HVAC, refrigeration and hydronics. Concrete flatwork is not among them.
So if a contractor tells you they are "state licensed" for concrete, they are describing something that does not exist. It is worth knowing, because it is a common line.
What is real:
- Municipal registration, which varies by jurisdiction across Hamilton, Warren, Butler and Clermont counties and across the river in Kenton and Campbell. Hamilton, for example, issues its own concrete license through its Engineering department, and the City of Cincinnati publishes its own contractor registration requirements.
- City of Cincinnati DOTE requirements for work touching the street approach, which call for plan review and a DOTE-licensed street contractor.
What the law does require
Ohio Revised Code Chapter 4722 requires a written contract for qualifying home construction services costing $25,000 or more.
If your project crosses that threshold, a written contract is a legal requirement rather than a favor.
Insurance is the thing to actually verify. Because licensing does not do the work people assume it does in this trade, the certificate of insurance is what protects you if someone is injured on your property or something is damaged.
Ask for it from the insurer directly. Ask any contractor. Ask us.
We publish what work costs and why on our pricing guide, and we compare ourselves against seven other local companies on our contractor comparison, including the categories where they beat us.
Questions about security, privacy and your property
Is this website secure?
Yes, and here is the detail rather than the assurance. The site runs TLS 1.2 and TLS 1.3 only, with the obsolete TLS 1.0 and 1.1 protocols disabled. The certificate is issued by Google Trust Services. Both the www and non-www addresses redirect plain HTTP to HTTPS with a 301, and Strict-Transport-Security is enabled so browsers refuse plain HTTP for this domain outright. X-Content-Type-Options, X-Frame-Options and Referrer-Policy are all set, and Cloudflare filters traffic in front of the origin server. All tested on August 25, 2026, and you can verify most of it through the padlock in your browser or any public SSL testing tool.
Who actually sees the information I put into your contact form?
Your submission passes through 123FormBuilder, which hosts and delivers the forms on this site, before it reaches us. Separately, Google Analytics and Google Ads receive website usage data and set cookies named _ga, _ga_021K8S8W5S and _gcl_au. Cloudflare processes technical request data such as your IP address. RealWork Labs handles job-site photographs and review invitations. Our host and email provider store site data and correspondence. These are listed in our privacy policy. Each handles information on our behalf for the purpose described, under its own terms of service, and none is engaged by us to market to you.
Do you sell my information?
No. We do not sell personal information, and we do not share phone numbers with third parties or affiliates for marketing or promotional purposes. The processors listed above handle data on our behalf in order to run the website and the business, which is a different thing from selling it.
How do I get my data deleted?
Email [email protected] or call (513) 270-2653 and ask. You do not need to give a reason. If you requested a quote and decided to go elsewhere, you are very welcome to ask us to delete the inquiry. For text messages, reply STOP to opt out or HELP for assistance.
Will you photograph my property, and can I say no?
Our crews may photograph the work area before, during and after a project, both as a quality record and to show examples of the work, and the field app used can attach approximate location data. The subject is always the concrete rather than your household, and we do not set out to publish house numbers, vehicle plates or anything identifying you. If you would prefer no photographs of your property were used publicly, tell us and we will not use them. You can say so before, during or after the project, and you can ask us to remove something already published.
Is calling 811 before digging actually required in Ohio?
For contractor-performed excavation, yes. Ohio Revised Code sections 3781.25 to 3781.38 were rewritten effective June 9, 2026, and the required notice window is now at least two working days, not counting the day notice is given, and not more than 16 calendar days before excavation begins. Many contractor websites still quote the older 48 hour rule. The statute does contain exceptions, including for property owners digging on their own property, though those narrow where a utility easement, a public right-of-way, or known utility facilities are involved. If you are hiring a contractor for a driveway, patio or similar work, the requirement generally applies to them. The service is free. Ask any contractor for the ticket number before a machine arrives.
Do I need a licensed contractor for concrete work in Ohio?
Ohio does not issue a state general contractor license for residential work, so nobody can be state licensed for concrete. The state licenses electrical, plumbing, HVAC, refrigeration and hydronics, not flatwork. Municipal registration is real and varies across the region, and City of Cincinnati DOTE rules apply to work touching the street approach. Ohio Revised Code Chapter 4722 requires a written contract for qualifying home construction services costing $25,000 or more. The thing genuinely worth verifying is insurance. Ask for the certificate to come directly from the insurer, and bear in mind that a certificate confirms a policy exists rather than guaranteeing that any particular claim would be covered, since that depends on the policy terms and the circumstances.
Will anyone need to come inside my house?
Most exterior concrete work needs neither keys nor interior access. Water and power are sometimes borrowed from an outside tap or socket. Agree that at estimate stage, and if anyone does need to come inside for any reason, agree when and who beforehand. This is a fair question to put to any contractor and the answer should be specific.
How should I pay, and how much up front?
Deposits are common in this trade, because materials are ordered and crews scheduled in advance. Rather than aiming at a particular percentage, the useful principle is to keep a meaningful balance payable on satisfactory completion, and to get the whole payment schedule written into your estimate rather than agreed verbally. If a deposit would leave the contractor substantially paid before work begins, ask what it is covering and why. We do not collect payment details through this website.
Does this page replace your privacy policy?
No. This page explains our practices in plain language. The formal document is our privacy policy, which sets out definitions, your rights under CCPA and GDPR, data retention, SMS consent and how to contact us. It was last updated on August 25, 2026 to name the third-party processors described on this page. If the two ever appear to disagree, the privacy policy is the governing document.
Ask us the hard questions
Bring the checklist from this page to your estimate. Ask about insurance, about who will be on your property, about the 811 ticket. If a contractor is annoyed by any of that, you have learned something useful for free.