20 Questions to Ask Before Hiring a Commercial Cleaning Company in Ontario

Not a verbal assurance. Not an old certificate. A current clearance certificate issued by WSIB within the last 90 days, verified at wsib.ca. This confirms their account is in good standing and their workers are covered if injured on your property. Without this, you carry the liability.

Minimum $2M commercial general liability. Request a Certificate of Insurance with your business named as additional insured — this gives you direct rights under the policy and ensures you're notified if coverage lapses. $5M is appropriate for healthcare, regulated facilities, or high-value spaces.

Employees should be on the company's WSIB account. If they use independent contractors, those contractors need their own WSIB coverage. Ask how they verify this. "Contractor" classification is sometimes used to avoid WSIB obligations — WSIB audits this actively.

Subcontractors are common in the industry. They're fine — but each one who enters your facility should have documented WSIB coverage. Ask for the verification process, not just a yes/no answer.

Bonding provides coverage for employee theft — something general liability insurance does not. Relevant if the crew will have after-hours unsupervised access to your facility, particularly if there are accessible valuables, cash, medication, or confidential materials.

At minimum, ask whether criminal record checks are done for staff who will have unsupervised access to your facility. For regulated environments:

• Licensed daycares: Vulnerable Sector Checks (VSC) are required for anyone with unsupervised access to children
• Healthcare facilities: Criminal record checks are standard; some facilities require VSC
• General commercial: Criminal record checks are reasonable to request

Consistency matters for security (fewer people with access), quality (familiarity with the space), and trust. High staff turnover or constantly rotating crews is a quality signal. Ask how they handle absences — is there a regular backup, or random coverage?

At minimum: WHMIS 2015 training. For regulated environments: IPAC awareness (healthcare), CCEYA familiarization (daycares), food handler knowledge (restaurants). Ask specifically — "trained" is often used loosely.

Any WHMIS-compliant company will have this ready. The SDS binder for products used in your facility must be accessible during cleaning shifts under Ontario law. A company that can't produce product documentation is not managing their WHMIS obligations.

Critical for daycares (CCEYA), healthcare (IPAC), and food service environments. A DIN confirms the product is a registered disinfectant — not just a cleaner with marketing language about killing germs. Ask for the DIN number, not just the product name.

Relevant if you have staff or occupants with asthma, chemical sensitivities, or allergies. A quality cleaning company should offer fragrance-free substitutes without significant upselling.

This question reveals a lot. Standard quaternary ammonium disinfectants don't kill norovirus — an informed company will know this and will describe switching to bleach-based or labelled norovirus-effective products. A company that says "we'll just clean more" doesn't understand the chemistry.

The scope should list every area of the facility, every task, and every frequency. Not "general office cleaning" — specific tasks per specific room at specific intervals. If they won't provide this in writing, the contract will eventually become a dispute about what was promised.

Specifically ask about: floor waxing/scrubbing, carpet extraction, window washing, high-level dusting, consumables (paper towels, soap, garbage bags). Two quotes at the same monthly rate can be very different services if add-ons aren't clarified upfront.

Ask for the specific process: how do you report (app, email, phone?), who responds, within what timeframe, and what's the make-good policy if a task is missed? A company with no defined process is a company that handles complaints inconsistently.

The best companies do periodic quality walks with supervisors and share findings with clients. This is a meaningful differentiator — it shows they're managing their own team's performance, not just waiting for you to complain.

Standard is 12 months with 30–60 days written notice to cancel. Watch for: auto-renewal clauses that lock you in for another full term if you miss a 90-day notice window, and early termination penalties. Know what you're agreeing to before signing.

Fixed rates for the initial term are standard. Multi-year contracts often include annual CPI-linked increases — ask for the cap. An uncapped "market adjustment" clause in year 2 or 3 can significantly change your cost.

Not just "happy client" references — references from businesses with similar facility types and compliance requirements. A company that's excellent at cleaning offices may not understand CCEYA daycare requirements or IPAC healthcare protocols. Industry-specific references reveal this quickly.

A phone quote without seeing the space is an estimate at best. Reputable companies walk the facility — it results in a more accurate quote, fewer surprises after starting, and gives both parties a chance to assess whether it's a good fit. A company that won't walk the space is prioritizing volume over quality.