Last summer, Consumer Reports asked 5,858 volunteers to ask for their credit report and examine it for any errors. And more than one-third of them did indeed find at least one error on their credit report. And this wasn’t the only time Consumer Reports and others have found such damaging results. And those errors matter; […]
Category Archives: Background Check Errors
Perhaps you had gone to court and successfully had a prior arrest or conviction expunged from your record. Or perhaps you were eligible for an automatic expungement—as is the case for many New Yorkers convicted of misdemeanor charges for marijuana possession. You were thrilled you could apply for a new job or an apartment, knowing […]
In 2014, 38,313 men in the United States shared the name “James Smith.” It’s impossible to know if any of them were related to each other, or the 34,810 Michael Smiths and 34,269 Robert Smiths also walking around. But we can expect that they, and the 32,092 Maria Garcias and 30,507 Maria Rodriguezes, all have […]
What’s in a name? There is a great deal of frustration, confusion, and even difficulty navigating normal life if you are among the 38,000 Americans named James Smith or one of the 32,000 Maria Garcias in the United States. If you have a common first- and surname combination, it’s likely that you’ve been misidentified as […]
Is your name James Smith? If so, you’re not just not alone, but as far from alone as it’s possible to be. That’s because this is the most common combination of first and last names in the world. And chances are you’ve developed a way to distinguish yourself, at least in your social circle or […]
CBS MoneyWatch contacted me for their story about employment background checks and the widespread violations of consumers’ rights under the Fair Credit Reporting Act. That federal statute entitles consumers to accuracy — not just with credit reports — but also for employment and housing background checks. Background check companies sometimes rely on partial information, like […]
A background check isn’t just about criminal records anymore. There are many things that someone could be searching for, from your credit rating to whether you’ve ever been pursued by a debt collector. According to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s 2019 report, there are a number of different scenarios in which businesses can request […]
According to a survey conducted by the Society for Human Resource Management, 60% of private employers check the credit histories of some of their job applicants, and 13% check the histories of all potential hires. https://www.tcpalm.com/story/specialty-publications/your-news/martin-county/reader-submitted/2018/06/07/credit-problems-may-hinder-job-search-wealth-management/681814002/
In Syed, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals held that a background check disclosure which included a liability waiver violated the FCRA. This case was significant because the Ninth Circuit is the first federal appeals court to definitively state that the FCRA “unambiguously bars the inclusion of a liability waiver.” The court also notably […]
TransUnion will pay $60 million to consumers it mistakenly labeled as possible terrorists or drug dealers, under an order issued Tuesday by a federal jury. The decision stems from a 2012 class-action lawsuit that alleged the credit bureau failed to notify consumers who were reported to lenders as being included on a “blocked persons” list […]