Two contractors bid on the same ramp, and one number comes in lower. That lower number is often not the lower job. Before you compare totals, make both bids describe the same work, the same permit, and the same paper.

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Put both bids on one scope

Ask each contractor to measure the same entry: the rise from grade or landing to the threshold, the run available, the width of the door opening, and any turn at the top or bottom. Measurements taken by one person on one visit are easier to compare than two sets of guesses.

Require each bid to name the standard it follows. If one bid says 'standard ramp' and the other lists the rise, run, landing sizes, and rail heights, you are not comparing the same job until the first bid is restated in writing.

Check the materials line: aluminum, wood, or concrete; surface-mounted or set on footings; handrails on one side or both; and the walking surface. Write 'not stated' in your comparison wherever a bid is silent. Do not assume a missing item is included.

Check what the ramp attaches to. Ask which parts are bolted to the house, which sit on the ground, and whether the bid covers any repair to the sill, siding, or the existing step.

Check the permit and inspection line

Ask who pulls the permit. Some exterior ramp jobs need one from the city or county, and a bid that leaves permits out is an incomplete total. Call the building office for your address and ask what they require for an exterior ramp, rather than relying only on the contractor's answer.

Ask whether the bid includes the final inspection. Then ask what happens if the first inspection fails: who makes the correction, and whether the correction is priced in the bid or billed later.

Verify the paper before you compare the price

Ask for a certificate of liability insurance and proof of workers' compensation coverage. Call the carrier named on the certificate and confirm the policy is active and covers this kind of work. A certificate can be expired or name a different business.

Check whether your city or county requires a contractor registration or license for this trade. Requirements differ by jurisdiction, so the building office is the place to confirm them.

Confirm that the business name on the bid matches the name on the insurance certificate and on the permit application. A mismatch is a question to resolve before you sign.

Compare the terms that change the total

Cleanup and haul-away of old materials, restoration of the lawn, landscaping, or paint, and any door hardware or threshold work that is added during the install are the usual places where a second bid differs from the first.

Change orders decide how the final bill grows. Ask how a change is requested, who signs it, and how it is priced. Get the hourly or per-item rate for changes in writing before you sign the main agreement.

Read the warranty as a written term. Note its length, whether it covers workmanship, materials, or both, who honors it if the business closes, and what it excludes.

Ask how many working days pass between the signed agreement and the start, what the contractor does if weather or the permit delays the job, and how you will be told. Write the answer down. A reply of 'soon' is not a schedule.

Tie each payment to a stage, such as permit issued, materials on site, install complete, and inspection passed. Avoid a large payment before materials arrive.

Build the comparison sheet

Use one grid. The rows are each scope item, the permit, the inspection, the insurance, the warranty, the cleanup, the change rate, the payment stages, and the start window. The columns are the bidders. Mark each cell as stated, not stated, or unclear. Send every unclear cell to the contractor in writing. Compare the totals only after the grid has no blank cells. Keep the signed bid and the grid together in one folder.

Who else can pay or help

Medicare generally does not cover home modifications such as ramps, so do not build the budget around it without a written determination.

Veterans may have access to the VA Home Improvements and Structural Alterations program for some changes, subject to eligibility. Confirm eligibility with the VA before you sign a bid you expect the program to reimburse.

Some Medicaid waiver programs list home modifications as a service. The state program, not the contractor, decides whether your modification is covered and whether a particular contractor must be approved. Ask the program office before you commit.

Aging Ahead can tell you whether it knows of home repair or modification programs in the region. Start with the Local Help With Paying for Care page, and check where each rule comes from on the Sources page.

Where a lawyer or a physician takes over

A contract dispute, a lien on the house, or a question about who owns a modification on a rented or jointly owned home belongs with a lawyer. The Missouri Bar runs a lawyer referral service. Questions about what the person needs physically, such as the right slope, height, or landing for a particular transfer or wheelchair, belong with their physician or therapist.

Two Ramp Bids Are Not Yet Comparable: Put Both on the Same Scope, Permit, and Paper Before You Pick