Care.com background checks receive scrutiny after wrongful death lawsuit

wrongful death lawsuits against both the nanny and Care.com. The website allows caregivers to post information for free, and charges families a monthly subscription fee to access information about potential nannies, caregivers and babysitters. There are three levels of subscription: a $37 per month standard subscription; a “preferred” subscription for $59 per month that includes basic criminal background checks, Social Security number verification, and a sex-offender registry check; and a $300-per-month “premier” subscription that utilizes the same checks as the “preferred” subscription, as well as reviews a candidate’s record for driving incidents, civil judgments and restraining orders. The website’s terms of service claim that it does not assume liability “that may result from the use of information provided on our site.” However, despite these different subscription options, some of the caregivers indicated that these checks were not conducted as Care.com led parents to believe. One caregiver said that he never provided Care.com with his Social Security number, so they could not have done a check on that even if a family had requested one. Another caregiver indicated that Care.com relied solely on a check-box on its website to confirm whether a person was legally eligible to work in the United States, and did not verify that the information was accurate. It appears that errors are also common when attempting to review background check information via the website. Care.com did not comment about the lawsuit or their background checks.]]>