Short answer
A general contractor can get a Google or Yelp review taken down when the review breaks that platform's published content policy. Reputation Medics files the case for $397 per Google review and $697 per Yelp review. Pay upfront. If the specific item is not removed within 30 days, the removal fee is automatically refunded.
Yes, when the review breaks a published platform policy. A truthful account from a real customer stays up, however harsh it reads. Google, Yelp, and the sites we file with make the final removal decision. What we guarantee is the automatic refund of the removal fee if the item stays up past 30 days.
$397 per Google review, $697 per Yelp review, and $497 per harmful link on another site. One price per item, no retainer. Pay upfront. If the specific item is not removed within 30 days, the removal fee is automatically refunded.
Reviews that map to a published policy: a reviewer who was never a customer, a competitor or former employee, off-topic content, private details about staff, prohibited language, or specific factual claims your records contradict.
Filing happens after payment and onboarding details are received. The 30-day window in the refund term is the clock that matters: if the specific item is still up after 30 days, that removal fee comes back automatically. Google, Yelp, and the sites we file with make the final removal decision. What we guarantee is the automatic refund of the removal fee if the item stays up past 30 days.
On the kitchen remodel job type, a $27,492 job at a 29.9% gross margin is $8,220 of gross profit. That is the arithmetic on a single job, using the cited benchmarks below.
The start form takes a few minutes if you have these four things in front of you. Nothing else is required to open the case. The full list is below.
Gross profit is the job value multiplied by the gross margin in the same row. Nothing is projected. Every job value, close rate, and margin below is cited in the sources at the end of this page.
| Job type | Average job value | Close rate | Gross margin | Gross profit per job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kitchen remodelMinor kitchen remodel, standardized scope (Zonda/JLC). | $27,492 | 27% | 29.9%24.9% – 30.1% | $8,220 |
| Bath remodelMid-range bathroom remodel (Zonda/JLC). | $25,251 | 27% | 29.9%24.9% – 30.1% | $7,550 |
| Deck additionWood deck addition, roughly 16' x 20' (Zonda/JLC). | $17,615 | 27% | 29.9%24.9% – 30.1% | $5,267 |
| Exterior upgradeManufactured stone veneer and similar exterior scope (Zonda/JLC). | $11,287 | 27% | 29.9%24.9% – 30.1% | $3,375 |
Run your own numbers on the General Contractors revenue calculator.
Every case cites a documented policy violation. If the review maps to none of these, we say so before you pay.
Not a real customer
The reviewer never bought from you. Wrong business, a competitor, or someone repeating a story they were told.
Conflict of interest
A competitor, a former employee, or anyone with a stake in making the rating drop.
Off-topic content
A complaint about something other than the work you did, or a rant about an unrelated dispute.
Personal information
Names of staff, phone numbers, addresses, or other private details the platforms prohibit.
Hate speech, threats, profanity
Language that breaks the platform's prohibited-content rules regardless of whether the visit happened.
Defamatory or provably false claims
Specific factual assertions about the job that your records contradict.
A build or major project is the largest cheque most homeowners ever write to a contractor. They compare three to five bids and use reviews to decide which bids they even request.
The bid shortlist
Before a homeowner asks for a quote, they read the newest reviews on Google and Houzz, Angi and GuildQuality. A one-star about missed deadlines or a deposit dispute keeps a general contractor off the shortlist, so you never learn the job existed.
The deposit worry
Homeowners fear paying a deposit to a contractor who disappears. A review that says exactly that, even from someone who only got an estimate, confirms the worry and ends the conversation.
The spouse or partner veto
One person picks the contractor, the other checks the reviews the night before signing. A single unresolved accusation at the top of the profile is what a cautious partner points at.
Nothing here is a promise of removal, because that decision belongs to the platform. This is the sequence and the timing the platforms themselves publish, plus the day the fee refunds if the item is still up.
Day 0 · Free scan and eligibility read
We pull the live review or page from Google and Houzz and Angi, quote it verbatim, and say which policy it breaks. If nothing breaks a rule we say so and take no fee.
Days 1-3 · Filing with the job record
The estimate, invoice or dispatch record shows whether the reviewer was ever a customer, and whether the job named in the review was yours or another company with a similar name.
Days 3-10 · Platform moderation
Yelp says reported content goes to its moderators and that evaluation may take several days, with an email when it is finished. Google evaluates the report against its prohibited and restricted content policy. Most decisions land inside this window.
Days 10-21 · Appeal where the first report is declined
A declined report is not the end. Google provides an appeal route for reviews it decides to keep, and a second filing that cites a different policy ground and better evidence is often what moves it.
Day 30 · Automatic refund
If the item is still live 30 days after payment, the fee refunds automatically, without a request, a form or a phone call. $397 Google, $697 Yelp, $497 harmful link.
The start form takes a few minutes if you have these four things in front of you. Nothing else is required to open the case.
Wrong company
Mistaken-identity reviews are common in the trades and clean to report
Similar company names, shared trade names and franchise territories mean a general contractor regularly receives reviews about work another company performed. The estimate and dispatch record establishes it, and the filing cites the genuine-experience ground.
Google Maps Help — Prohibited and restricted content policy for Maps user contributions
Reading the newest first
Homeowners collect a few quotes and read the newest reviews before they call
BrightLocal's 2025 consumer survey tracks how people read local reviews during research, including the weight placed on recent negatives. A fresh one-star at the top of the profile is what a homeowner sees while they are still building the shortlist.
BrightLocal, 2025 — Local Consumer Review Survey 2025
16 CFR Part 465
Buying reviews to bury a bad one is a federal violation, not a shortcut
Since October 21, 2024 the FTC rule on consumer reviews bans fake reviews, insider reviews presented as customer reviews, and paying for positive or negative reviews, with civil penalties available per violation. For a general contractor that leaves two lawful moves: earn real reviews, and report the ones that break platform policy.
U.S. Federal Trade Commission, 2024 — Rule on the Use of Consumer Reviews and Testimonials (16 CFR Part 465)
Policy grounds only
Google removes reviews that break a policy, not reviews you dislike
Google's own help documentation says any review can be reported but only content that violates its policies is eligible for removal. That is why a case starts by matching the wording to a named policy: fake engagement, off topic, impersonation, harassment, personal information or conflict of interest.
Google Business Profile Help — Report inappropriate reviews on your Business Profile
You pay the removal fee upfront so we can begin work. If the specific item is not removed within 30 days, we automatically refund that removal fee to your original payment method. Google, Yelp, and other third-party sites make the final removal decision.
Google, Yelp, and the sites we file with make the final removal decision. What we guarantee is the automatic refund of the removal fee if the item stays up past 30 days.
Often, yes. Both Google and Yelp expect reviews to describe a genuine customer experience. Where the person never signed a contract and the review describes work that was never performed, we file it on that basis. Where they describe the estimate visit itself, it is usually a real experience and not removable.
Anything that links the reviewer to the competitor: a matching name, a company page, a pattern of one-stars on rival firms. We assemble the conflict-of-interest report from that. You do not need to prove intent, only the relationship.
No, that is a harmful link case at $497. Complaint-site pages have their own removal and de-indexing routes, and the free scan will tell you which route applies before you pay anything.
2025 Cost vs. Value Report (with 2024 comparison)
Zonda / JLC · 2025
38th annual report: contractor-quoted job cost for standardized project scopes across ~119 U.S. markets. Primary industry data. Limitation: costs model one standardized project spec per category, and resale values are appraiser/agent estimates rather than realized sale prices.
Remodelers' Cost of Doing Business Study (FY2024 data)
NAHB · 2024
Average gross profit margin of 29.9% and net margin of 6.3% for residential remodelers, with a recent-year range of 24.9%–30.1%. Used as the margin benchmark for remodel-and-replace trades. Limitation: self-reported financials from a self-selected sample of NAHB member firms, not broken out by individual trade.
Home Improvement Close Rate Benchmarks
Siro · 2026
Close rates measured from recorded in-home sales calls: 26.9% blended across home-improvement trades, 29.1% for windows and doors, 16.0% for decks and patios. Limitation: proprietary dataset drawn from one vendor's own client base, not an association or academic survey. No trade association publishes close-rate data for any of these trades.
2024 Local Consumer Review Survey
BrightLocal · 2024
Star rating and review sentiment vs. click-through from search and maps. Used for the click-through drag curve.
Reviews, Reputation, and Revenue
Harvard Business School · Michael Luca
Peer-reviewed link between review sentiment and revenue. Used for the sentiment drag curve.
Prohibited and restricted content policy for Maps user contributions
Google Maps Help
The policy list a removal report has to cite: fake engagement, off-topic content, impersonation, harassment, personal information and conflicts of interest.
Local Consumer Review Survey 2025
BrightLocal · 2025
Annual consumer survey on how people find, read and act on local business reviews, including how much weight they give the newest negative reviews.
Rule on the Use of Consumer Reviews and Testimonials (16 CFR Part 465)
U.S. Federal Trade Commission · 2024
Federal rule effective October 21, 2024. Bans fake or AI-generated reviews, reviews by insiders presented as customers, and buying positive or negative reviews. This is why removal has to be argued on policy grounds instead of countered with bought reviews.
Report inappropriate reviews on your Business Profile
Google Business Profile Help
Google's own documentation of the report route: any review can be reported, only reviews that break a content policy are eligible for removal, and the decision is Google's.
Yelp for Business Support Center
Yelp states that reported content is evaluated by its moderators and that the evaluation may take several days, with an email sent when it is done.
Paste the review, tell us which platform, and pay the removal fee for that item. If it is still up after 30 days the fee comes back automatically.
Starting with home services and construction. Google, Angi, HomeAdvisor, Houzz, BBB, Nextdoor and Yelp.
Home Services
Angi, HomeAdvisor, Thumbtack: homeowners scrutinize every review.
Explore Home Services →HVAC Contractors
Emergency calls go to the top-rated shop. Make sure that's you.
Explore HVAC Contractors →Roofing Contractors
High-ticket buyers verify every review before signing a $30k contract.
Explore Roofing Contractors →Kitchen & Bath Remodeling
Six-figure projects demand pristine reviews. We protect the pipeline.
Explore Kitchen & Bath Remodeling →Window Replacement
Homeowners compare 3–5 quotes. Your reviews decide who signs.
Explore Window Replacement →Garage Door Services
Emergency and install buyers both filter by rating. Own both.
Explore Garage Door Services →Painting Contractors
Interior and exterior buyers scrutinize every review. Convert them.
Explore Painting Contractors →Pool Installation
Six-figure builds require airtight reviews and defensible reputation.
Explore Pool Installation →Luxury Home Builders
Luxury and estate-home builders: reputation protection for the highest-ticket residential construction segment.
Explore Luxury Home Builders →