New contractors licenses requirements to better protect consumers [Video]

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WBTW)– For years, any handyman could get a permit to build pools in South Carolina.

However, on June 30th, 2024, all contractors that install, service, or repair swimming pools must have a “swimming pool sub-classification.”

“I guess they saw that people were building pools that weren’t really qualified,” said a licensed pool contractor in the Carolinas.

The bill was first introduced to the House in March of 2023, and was signed into law two months later.

Due to the short notice, the state offered a grace period and gave temporary license to qualified builders in the pool installation, repair or service business prior to May, 19th, 2023.

According the the South Carolina Department of Labor, Licensing, and Regulation website, the temporary licenses were “intended to allow individuals and entities who were lawfully installing, servicing, or repairing residential pools without a license prior to the enactment of the …