# Check an ESA vendor before you spend

A step-by-step method for families: find the official vendor record, match it to the exact vendor and program, ask the vendor and the program the right questions, and keep a paper trail.

- Level: Practitioner
- Length: 60 minutes
- Exam questions: 9, pass mark 80%, up to 3 attempts
- Certificate: valid for 12 months

## What you will learn

- Find where a program records its approved vendors, and tell an official record from an independent finder.
- Match a record to the legal business name, the place and the exact program, and record the date.
- Ask the vendor and the program the questions that each one can answer, and keep the answers in writing.
- Check a named professional credential with the body that issues it.
- Keep a paper trail of invoices, approvals and dates for each purchase.

## Lessons

1. [Find the official record](https://esavendors.fyi/academy/check-an-esa-vendor-before-you-spend/find-the-official-list.md) (15 minutes)
2. [Match the record and write down the date](https://esavendors.fyi/academy/check-an-esa-vendor-before-you-spend/match-and-date-the-record.md) (14 minutes)
3. [Ask the vendor and the program](https://esavendors.fyi/academy/check-an-esa-vendor-before-you-spend/ask-the-vendor-and-the-program.md) (16 minutes)
4. [Keep a paper trail](https://esavendors.fyi/academy/check-an-esa-vendor-before-you-spend/keep-a-paper-trail.md) (15 minutes)

## Questions

### Does this course tell me which expenses my program approves?

No. Only your program can say that. The course shows you how to ask the program, and how to keep the answer.

### Does the certificate let me act for a program or approve a vendor?

No. It is a certificate of completion from this site. It is not a professional qualification, a licence or a program role.

### What if my program publishes no vendor list?

Ask the program in writing where it records approved vendors. Keep the reply, and keep full receipts for every purchase.

Also on the [web page](https://esavendors.fyi/academy/check-an-esa-vendor-before-you-spend).