Type “driveway sealing” into Kijiji or Facebook Marketplace in the GTA and you’ll get dozens of results — guys with a truck, a sprayer, and a cash price. Some of them do perfectly good work. Others will take your $200, mist a thin coat of watered-down sealer over a dirty driveway, and be unreachable by the time it flakes off in October.

The difference between those two outcomes usually comes down to the questions you ask before anyone touches your driveway. Here are the seven that matter most — what a good answer sounds like, and the red flags that should send you looking elsewhere.

1. “What’s included in your prep work?”

Why it matters: Preparation is the job. Sealer bonds to clean asphalt or it doesn’t bond at all — everything else is details.

Good answer: A specific list: blow off debris, power wash, degrease oil spots, then crack fill. If they describe the prep unprompted and in order, you’re talking to someone who does it right.

Red flag: Vague hand-waving (“oh yeah, we clean it”) or jumping straight to the sealing. If prep isn’t a named, separate phase of the job, it isn’t happening. This is also the core of our own 5-step process — ask anyone you’re considering to walk you through theirs the same way.

2. “Do you hand-apply or spray the sealer?”

Why it matters: Spraying is faster and cheaper for the contractor. Hand application with a squeegee lays down a thicker, more even film and works the sealer into the asphalt’s pores.

Good answer: “We hand-apply with a squeegee, two thin coats.” Some reputable operators spray a first coat and back-brush it — that’s legitimate if they say so upfront.

Red flag: They dodge the question, or the price seems too good to involve hand labour. A surprising number of fly-by-night operators spray one thin pass and leave. If you’re paying for a multi-year result, you want to know the sealer actually got into the asphalt.

3. “What type of sealer do you use?”

Why it matters: Oil-based and water-based (asphalt emulsion) sealers behave differently — different cure times, different durability, different smell on application day. There’s no single “best” for every driveway, but there is a wrong answer: “I dunno, the black stuff.”

Good answer: They name the type, explain why they prefer it, and can tell you the cure time. Bonus points if they ask about your driveway’s age and condition before recommending one — new versus old asphalt sometimes calls for a different product. (We wrote a full breakdown: oil-based vs. water-based sealer for Ontario winters.)

Red flag: They can’t name the product, or they get defensive. A contractor who doesn’t know what’s in the pail doesn’t know how long it’ll last either.

4. “Are you insured?”

Why it matters: They’re working on your property with industrial chemicals. If sealer ends up on your neighbour’s interlock, or someone gets hurt, “sorry” doesn’t cover it.

Good answer: “Yes, we carry liability insurance” — and they can show proof if asked. This is table stakes for any legitimate operator.

Red flag: Cash-only, no business name, no paperwork of any kind. Insurance costs money, which is exactly why the cheapest quotes often come from the people who don’t have it. That $180 Kijiji special gets expensive fast if something goes wrong.

5. “Can I get that quote in writing?”

Why it matters: A verbal number over the phone has a way of growing once the crew is standing in your driveway.

Good answer: A written quote that breaks down what’s included — cleaning, crack filling, number of coats, sealer type, and the total price. It doesn’t need to be fancy; it needs to exist.

Red flag: “Don’t worry, it’ll be around two-fifty.” Around. Around is doing a lot of heavy lifting in that sentence. This is also why we publish our price ranges openly — a contractor who’s cagey about pricing before the job will be cagey about it after, too.

6. “How do you handle cracks?”

Why it matters: Cracks are where water gets in, and water plus an Ontario winter is what destroys driveways. Crack filling should be a distinct step with its own material — not sealer slopped over the top.

Good answer: They describe filling cracks with a proper crack filler (hot rubberized or quality cold-pour), worked into the crack, and they can tell you which cracks are fillable versus which ones signal deeper problems.

Red flag: “The sealer fills them in.” It doesn’t — not for long. Sealer is a surface coating, not a crack repair. Anyone who tells you otherwise is either cutting corners or doesn’t know the difference.

7. “What happens if I’m not happy with the result?”

Why it matters: This is the question that separates businesses from guys with sprayers. A real answer requires the contractor to still exist in six months.

Good answer: Something concrete — a callback policy, a workmanship warranty in writing, a real phone number and business name you can find online. Even a simple “call us and we’ll come make it right” backed by actual reviews means something.

Red flag: No reviews anywhere, no website, no business name — just a first name and a cell number. There’s nothing wrong with small operators, but accountability needs some paper trail.

The “Leftover Sealer” Scam (Yes, It’s Real)

One more thing, because it happens every spring in the GTA: someone knocks on your door and says they just finished a job nearby and have sealer left over, so they’ll do your driveway cheap — today only, cash. Sometimes it’s a legit crew drumming up work. Often it’s thinned-out product (or worse, used motor oil cut with something dark) applied with zero prep, and the “contractor” is gone before it rains. A real business doesn’t need to go door to door with mystery product. If the deal only exists for the next twenty minutes, let it expire.

The Short Version

A trustworthy driveway sealing contractor in the GTA will: describe their prep without being asked, hand-apply the sealer, name their product, carry insurance, quote in writing, fill cracks as a separate step, and have some findable track record. Anyone who can’t do most of that list isn’t competing on quality — they’re competing on price, and you’ll pay the difference in longevity.

For the record, that’s the standard we hold ourselves to — our full process is published here, our prices are published here, and we’d be happy to answer all seven questions before you book. Get your free quote — Markham, Richmond Hill, Vaughan, Aurora, Newmarket, Stouffville, and surrounding York Region.