How to Hire a Mold Remediator in Texas and What the License Covers

Texas is one of the few states that licenses mold work, and the rules shape how a legitimate job is run. They decide who may inspect, who may remove, who can declare a project finished and what paperwork you should receive. Knowing them lets you tell a properly run project from a company that is improvising.

Who needs a license

TDLR’s program overview defines mold assessment as inspecting or surveying a structure to give information about mold or to develop a mold remediation plan, and mold remediation as the removal, cleaning, sanitizing or other treatment of mold or mold-contaminated matter. Its FAQ says anyone who provides assessment in Texas must be licensed as a mold assessor, and that mold remediation contractors and companies are required to be licensed. Mold remediation workers register with the state instead.

There are separate license types for assessment technicians, assessment consultants, assessment companies, remediation contractors, remediation companies and analysis laboratories. The consultant is the person who writes the plan. The remediation contractor carries it out.

The 25 square foot exemption

TDLR’s FAQ says areas of visible mold of less than 25 contiguous square feet can be cleaned up by people who are not licensed, and that small areas can be cleaned or removed by an owner or maintenance staff. It adds that the exemption applies only to people who are not licensed. A licensed contractor is not exempt from the law and rules even on a small project. In rental housing with ten or more units, the FAQ says remediating 25 contiguous square feet or more of visible mold must be done by a licensed remediator.

That is the legal floor. EPA’s guidance is stricter in spirit: a patch under about 10 square feet can in most cases be handled by a homeowner, and anything larger calls for its remediation guidance or a professional, as does anything involving sewage or other contaminated water, or the HVAC system. Legal permission to clean something yourself does not mean it is a good idea.

Assessor and remediator must be different

This is the rule that most surprises people. TDLR’s FAQ says you are not allowed to conduct both mold assessment and mold remediation on the same project, unless you are employed by a school district and working on a project for that district. A company can hold both licenses, but it cannot use them on the same job. The purpose is to keep the person who decides how much work is needed independent of the person who is paid to do it.

In practice, that means a company that offers to “inspect for free and then remove” the mold is either not licensed for both, is operating outside the rules, or is doing something other than a regulated project. Ask.

How a licensed project flows

TDLR says the Consumer Mold Information Sheet must be given before any mold-related activity begins. It also says a consultant who did not prepare the protocol cannot declare that a project has achieved clearance, and that to determine clearance the consultant must conduct a post-remediation assessment. The certificate, according to the FAQ, is Texas Department of Insurance Form MDR-1, it states that the property does not contain evidence of mold damage, and only a licensed remediator is authorized to give it.

How to verify a license

1. Ask for the license number and the full legal name on it, for the company and for the person who will write or carry out the plan.
2. Check it on TDLR’s license search, linked from the mold program page. Confirm the license type matches the job: assessor for the plan, remediator for the work.
3. Confirm the two are different companies for your project, unless you are in the school-district exception.
4. Look for disciplinary history. TDLR says disciplinary orders are posted in its administrative orders search for three years.

Questions to ask

• Who is the licensed assessor, and who is the licensed remediator? Are they independent of each other?
• Will I receive the protocol in writing before work begins? What does it say about containment, removal and clearance?
• What is the moisture source, and who is fixing it? Mold returns where moisture returns.
• How will the area be contained, and how will the air be filtered?
• What does clearance involve, who performs it and will I get the report?
• What is excluded, such as plumbing, roof repair and rebuilding?

How to compare two bids

TDI’s claim guidance says to get estimates from more than one contractor. For mold, compare bids on the same points, because a low number that leaves things out is not a low number.

If one bid names a protocol and a clearance step and the other does not, they are not bids for the same job.

Red flags

• A promise that mold will never come back. No one can promise that; it returns when moisture does.
• Fogging, ozone or encapsulating paint offered as the whole solution without finding the water and removing affected material. EPA says killing mold with bleach or biocides is not recommended as routine practice and that mold has to be removed.
• No license number, or a number that does not match the company on TDLR.
• Pressure to sign immediately, or to pay in full upfront. TDI’s claim guidance says to get estimates from more than one contractor and not to pay in full upfront.
• An inspection that comes with a sales pitch for the same company’s removal.

Insurance and mold

The Texas Department of Insurance home insurance guide lists mold removal among the things most policies do not cover, except to repair damage caused by a covered risk, and lists mold removal as an optional endorsement. A burst pipe that caused covered water damage and mold is a different situation from mold that grew from a long-term leak. If you are filing a claim, tell the insurer early and ask what documentation it wants; the documentation checklist helps.

For the process itself, see the mold removal page. For whether testing is useful, read the testing guide, and for the timing of mold growth after a leak, read how long before mold grows.

Read about mold removal →

This article is general information from the Dallas Flood Guard editorial team. It is not medical, legal, engineering or insurance advice. Sources are linked above. See the editorial policy for how posts are researched and corrected.