Well work in Tennessee is regulated, and knowing the basics protects you as a property owner. This page is general information, not legal advice — requirements can change, and the State of Tennessee is the authoritative source for current rules.
What Tennessee Regulates
Tennessee's water-well program covers, among other things:
- Water-well drillers — constructing new wells and related well work.
- Pump installers and repairers — installing and servicing well pumps.
- Water-treatment device installers — installing treatment equipment on well systems.
An important detail: licenses are issued to individuals, not just to company names. The person responsible for the regulated work on your property is the one whose license matters.
How to Verify a License
- Ask the provider directly for the name of the licensed individual and their license number before regulated work begins.
- Verify the license's current status through the State of Tennessee's official resources (the state environment/water resources agency administers the water-well program).
- Check that the license category matches the work — a drilling license, a pump-installation license and a treatment-installer license are distinct.
- Do the verification before the work starts, not after.
What This Website Does and Does Not Certify
Upper Cumberland Well Pump accepts service requests and routes them to independent providers. Accepting or routing a request is not a certification that any provider holds a current license, insurance or any qualification. The site does not maintain a vetted-contractor list and does not claim licensing status on any provider's behalf. Verification belongs to you and takes a few minutes — it is the single best consumer protection available for this kind of work.
Why It Matters Practically
Licensing exists in this trade for concrete reasons: a badly sealed well can channel surface contamination into groundwater, an improperly set pump fails early, and well construction records (well logs) that licensed drillers file become the documentation the next owner — or the next repair — depends on. Insisting on licensed work is not paperwork fussiness; it is how the system stays safe and documented.
Upper Cumberland Well Pump is an independent referral service that helps connect property owners with local water-well and pump-service providers. Upper Cumberland Well Pump does not directly perform regulated well drilling, pump installation, pump repair or water-treatment work unless expressly stated. Provider licensing, qualifications, insurance, availability, pricing, scheduling and service terms must be confirmed directly with the provider.