Recent attacks by contractors coming into the home show how important it is to perform thorough background checks on contractors. Often in-home contractors are over looked and no background check at all is performed on this person who gets access to your home to fix the cable or perform electrical work etc… The list goes on and on. The landlord or property owner should thoroughly background check any contractor coming into a tenant’s apartment. It is also the responsibility of the tenant to inquire to the landlord or owner that they do not want contractors in their home unless they have passed a proper background screening. Whether the landlord uses their own maintenance people or outside contractors it is crucial that these individuals have been properly vetted prior to entry.
Recently in St. Louis, Missouri a woman was sexually assaulted by a cable repairman. The woman is suing three companies and claiming the crime could have been prevented if better background checks had been performed. The StLouisToday.com stated that no previous employers or personal references were performed and that the criminal background check was inadequate. At a minimum a contractor background check should include a thorough criminal background check, sex offender registry search and social security number validation with address history trace.
Another recent case from Franklin, NY has a woman claiming theft by a contractor. Thousands of dollars in stolen jewelry was taken while workers were in her home. She then found out that the contractor/employee had a rapsheet going back ten years which included such offenses as theft, drugs and resisting arrest. In this case the owner admitted to performing a background check and still hired the thief anyway.
It is very important to properly background check any person given access to a tenant’s apartment and this onus falls on the landlord/property owner. However it is important to note that the tenant should insist to the landlord or owner that they want to make sure anyone including contractors entering their home have passed a reliable and proper background check. To learn more about background checks on contractors entering rental properties please read recent TenantScreeningUSA.com press release