Transparency is one of the most important parts of the AgencyBenchmark standard. This page explains exactly how we verify, score, and update agency profiles.
We review business registration information, stated addresses, website and domain ownership, management and ownership details, industry experience, contracts and policies, pricing transparency, safety and safeguarding practices, and reputation and references. Every agency also completes a live video-call walkthrough of its office, and may optionally host an in-person visit.
We accept official registration and incorporation documents, business licenses, signed model agreements and policy documents, screenshots and archives of public claims, correspondence, and photographic or written documentation from video-call and in-person office visits. Evidence is assessed for consistency, not taken at face value.
Every agency is scored out of 100 points across 11 weighted checkpoints. Each checkpoint stores the points earned out of its maximum, plus a one-line note explaining the result.
75–100 — Trusted Agency, achievable through video-only verification. 60–74 — Basic Verified. Below 60 — Verification Incomplete: not publicly listed, and no score is shown.
Every agency completes a live video-call walkthrough of its stated office as part of standard verification, worth 2 of the 100 points. An in-person visit is optional and worth 15 additional points — where an agency opts in, an AgencyBenchmark representative visits in person and documents the inspection, with travel and accommodation self-funded by the agency. Either visit type confirms a location was inspected on a given date — it does not, by itself, vouch for the agency's future conduct.
Reports submitted through our Report an Agency form are logged against the relevant profile and reviewed alongside existing evidence. A submitted report does not automatically mean an agency has violated any law or standard — it is treated as evidence to be assessed like any other.
Agencies are notified when a report or finding may affect their profile and are given the opportunity to submit a response or additional evidence before any status change is published.
The full 100-point score is recalculated at every renewal cycle, using the same 11 checkpoints and weights applied to every agency. Where a previous score exists, profiles show it alongside the new one — for example, "Previously 87/100 — 12 Feb 2026" — so visitors can see whether an agency's verification is improving over time. Every profile also displays its most recent assessment date.
AgencyBenchmark verification is valid for one year from the date of assessment and must be renewed annually. As the renewal date approaches, agencies are invited to go through the full assessment again. Profiles past their renewal date are marked "Verification Expired" — the breakdown shown reflects the agency's last completed assessment until it renews.
If an agency or member of the public identifies an factual error on a profile, they can flag it for correction. Corrections are reviewed against source evidence before the profile is updated.
An agency that disagrees with its status or score can formally challenge the finding, providing additional evidence for a second, independent review before a final decision is published.
Applying is free, and every agency is assessed against the same published criteria.
