Indiana: no state license covers chimney work. Here's what that means.

Indiana is the light-touch, CO-laggard state: no state chimney license (only plumbers are state-licensed), just a written-contract mandate over $150 and the Deceptive Consumer Sales Act behind it — and no statewide CO-alarm requirement for existing homes found. It sits in the Ohio/Illinois family (comparison: no state license, local patchwork, real seller disclosure), but with a weaker safety floor and one distinctive lever: the DCSA lets senior (60+) consumers seek treble damages for incurable or uncured deceptive acts — aimed squarely at the elder homeowners chimney scammers target. The credential vacuum is the pitch — there's nothing statewide to look up for the person on your roof.

No state license covers chimney work in Indiana. The state licenses plumbers but has no statewide general-contractor or home-improvement license — Indiana leaves that to local governments. What the state imposes is consumer paperwork, not a credential: the home improvement contracts chapter, Ind. Code 24-5-11, applies to any "real property improvement contract" whose price exceeds $150 (IC 24-5-11-4) and prescribes written-contract contents (IC 24-5-11-10: parties, supplier contact info, detailed description, start/completion dates, contract price). Licensing is LOCAL: Indianapolis/Marion County (Dept. of Business & Neighborhood Services) licenses certain trades; other large cities may run their own registration — not individually confirmed; do not name Fort Wayne/Evansville programs on the page. "Licensed and bonded" in Indiana usually means a city registration plus insurance, not a state exam or registry.

As wide as Ohio's and Illinois's (comparison). Statewide there is nothing to verify for chimney work beyond a written contract — no exam, no registry — and local licensing, where it exists, tests general trade/permit knowledge, not flue diagnosis. Individual certs (NCSG CCP/CCR; CSIA CCS, C-DET) and an independent audit fill a genuine vacuum.

Ind. Code 32-21-5 requires the seller of 1–4 unit residential property to complete a disclosure form adopted by the Indiana Real Estate Commission (IC 32-21-5-7), covering the known condition of "the foundation, the mechanical systems, the roof, the structure, the water and sewer systems" and other listed items; the prescribed form is the Seller's Residential Real Estate Sales Disclosure (State Form 46234). The form changed in 2026. The Indiana Real Estate Commission adopted an updated form, State Form 46234 (R9/2-26), as a final rule on March 11, 2026 (LSA Document #25-627; in.gov/pla/rulesingov/lsa-document-25-627, checked Sep 25, 2026 — the PLA page does not state the rule's effective date), and R9/2-26 is the version the state forms catalog now serves (forms.in.gov/Download.aspx?id=16805, checked Sep 25, 2026). On R9/2-26, section 1.D "Heating & Cooling System" lists "Woodburning Stove," "Fireplace," and "Fireplace Insert" as rows to mark Not Applicable/Rented, Defective, Not Defective, or Unknown, and section 1.B "Electrical System" has a row for "Smoke / Fire Alarms Carbon Monoxide Detectors." The words "chimney" and "flue" do not appear on R9/2-26. The older form (R6/6-14) asked "Are the furnace/woodstove/chimney/flue all in working order?" (copy at in.gov/health/eph/files/46234-fill-in.pdf) — that question is not on the current form, so the page must not quote it as current. Actual-knowledge basis; the form is not a warranty. No inspection is mandated at transfer; NFPA 211 Level 2 stays a NATIONAL STANDARD. (State Form 46021 is the separate tax "Sales Disclosure" — different document.)

The Deceptive Consumer Sales Act (DCSA), Ind. Code 24-5-0.5: a consumer relying on an uncured or incurable deceptive act may recover actual damages or $500, whichever is greater; for a willful act the court may increase damages to the greater of 3× actual damages or $1,000, plus attorney's fees (IC 24-5-0.5-4(a)). Senior consumers (age 60+, IC 24-5-0.5-2) relying on an uncured or incurable deceptive act "may bring an action to recover treble damages, if appropriate" (IC 24-5-0.5-4(i)) — a distinctive Indiana angle for elder chimney-scam targets (treble is available, not automatic). Violations of the home improvement contracts chapter are deceptive acts actionable by the AG or a consumer under IC 24-5-0.5-4 (IC 24-5-11-14). Separately, Home Solicitation Sales (Ind. Code 24-5-10) give a right to cancel before midnight of the third business day after the later of the agreement or the supplier's required notice (IC 24-5-10-8). The Indiana AG's Consumer Protection Division enforces; its home-improvement fact sheet restates "Indiana law requires home improvement contracts exceeding $150 to be in writing," notes "Licensing requirements vary from community to community," and takes complaints at 1-800-382-5516 / IndianaConsumer.com (in.gov/attorneygeneral/consumer-protection-division/files/CPD_Fact_Sheet-Home_improv_Scams.pdf, checked Sep 25, 2026 — GOV).

The Indiana AG's Consumer Protection Division pursues home-improvement fraud under the DCSA and IC 24-5-11, and the door-knock "we noticed your chimney" pitch is a textbook Home Solicitation Sales (24-5-10) + incurable-deceptive-act scenario — with the senior-treble provision especially relevant. Specific IN chimney-sweep enforcement actions: NOT CONFIRMED — patterns, not names.

Indiana has a statewide building code through the Fire Prevention & Building Safety Commission — the 2020 Indiana Residential Code, which adopts the 2018 IRC by reference — enforced by local building departments. IDHS's 2025 readoption review says the Commission is reviewing the latest national model codes for an update, with no adoption date set. The Commission's new 2026 Indiana Building Code final rule (2024 IBC with Indiana amendments; IDHS posting dated June 1, 2026, in.gov/dhs/files/Building-Code-LSA-Document-6.1.2026.pdf — DOC) covers Class 1 (commercial) structures only and leaves one- and two-family dwellings under the Indiana Residential Code (675 IAC 14); the Indiana Association of Building Officials still lists the 2020 Indiana Residential Code (2018 IRC base, effective Dec 26, 2019) as current (iabo.com/Current-Code, checked Sep 25, 2026 — REF). Chimney relines, rebuilds, and solid-fuel appliance installs are generally permit work where local enforcement exists; in some rural/unincorporated areas enforcement is light. Include the local-variance disclaimer.

No statewide burn-ban or stove-emission regime; outdoor wood boilers regulated locally where at all. Not a material content section for IN.

Indiana is the CO laggard of this set. No statewide CO-alarm mandate for existing 1–2 family dwellings was found. The Indiana Residential Code's R315 requires CO alarms in dwelling units with a fuel-fired appliance or attached garage for new construction, and IDHS's R315 guidance states: "Carbon monoxide alarms are not required to be installed in townhouses and one- and two-family dwellings when alterations, repairs or additions occur." No CO requirement at sale was found — the 2026 seller form (R9/2-26) only asks the seller to mark the condition of any "Smoke / Fire Alarms Carbon Monoxide Detectors" present; it does not require them. Some cities add rental rules (e.g., Bloomington — not re-verified). Absence is the finding: most existing Indiana homes carry no state CO-alarm obligation — a live safety talking point, not a gap to gloss.