Ask a homeowner what they would want checked before someone works on their house and insurance comes up fast. Ask how they would check it and the answer is usually that they would not know how.
The hard gate
Public liability insurance is the one credential where we do not accept a gap. Without current evidence on file, a trader cannot accept new work on the platform. Not a warning, not a lower ranking. They cannot take the job.
That is deliberately blunt, because the situation it protects against is the one where something goes wrong at your house and the person who caused it has no cover.
Expiry is the part people get wrong
A certificate checked once is a certificate that was valid once. Insurance lapses, and it lapses quietly.
Credential expiry is tracked and traders are chased to renew before the date, by an automated daily check. The renewal reminder exists because the alternative is discovering the lapse at the worst possible moment.
Identity first, then everything else
Nobody goes live without completing identity verification. It happens before an account can take work, not after a complaint.
None of this makes a trader good at their job. It makes the person turning up who they said they were, insured, and accountable for the work. Judgement about quality is still yours, and we would rather be honest about which parts we can and cannot do for you.