Question for our resident Lawyer and those who...

[Tyek]

Play one on TV


The soccer season is ending and softball is firing up. ASA changed their background check policy this year, so I signed up online, filled out the form and paid my fee to get my background check in case I end up helping coach.

The results showed pending for 2 weeks, I called and they had not received. I have one of the most common last names in the country, so I figured the chances of my Name coming up on a list to research were pretty strong, they would confirm none were me and I would get approved, the same as every year.

Today I received a letter from the Background check company informing me a copy of my arrest records was being sent to the Company or Organization that requested it, then shows the ASA address they were sending the report. The report has a persons arrest record that has the same first name (spelled differently) a completely different middle name then mine, and the same last name. He lives in a state I have only visited when I was a kid and was arrested 2 times for sexual battery in 2007. It is clear this company ran my name, (one of his alias names was spelled like mine, (with no middle name) otherwise his 4 other spellings were completely different.) and did no research before sending this off to my league.

Thankfully I know the entire board. They know me, they know I was in there league during the time this supposedly happened and in fact we may have had a game during the day of one of the arrests, but if I was new I would be screwed. I am not even talking about coaching, I am talking about the whispers that would have haunted me. I started thinking about the letter and realizing this company also sends this information to companies that use their services, so this false report could have cost me a job.

Monday I will be calling them. My mom works for an Attorney and a Letter will be drafted expecting an apology and a letter being sent to ASA explaining how they screwed up. My league is also calling the corporate office to complain about the new process, since I was the first to go through it and it produced this. So my question is, what other rexourse or thing should I be pursuing with this. I am not talking finincial, this is not to line my pocket, but it seems to me that if your business is to do background checks, you would research a bit if a hit came back. This could have seriously screwed my life up. any thoughts or ideas are appreciated.

Edit- just realized one of the arrests was on my son's birthday, so I was apparently so excited to touch a kid I skippd his birthday to fly to Oregon got arrested and still hid it from my family and friends...nice

[Noysyrump]

not too far fetched, hell you are molesting an alien in your avatar pic.

Yeh basicaly, the most you could do is ruin their buisness by having your league dump them as well as spread the word. Honestly I am also dumbfounded by such shoddy work ethic from a company that could really ruin somones life. I'd aim for financial restitution myself, if only to get them to change thier own work ethic.

Hell if they botch the first job, can you expect them to get better?

[Winnow]

How old is that alien in your Avatar pic in human years?

[Sirensa]

Likely the best you could probably get is an apology and letter that they messed up. You didn't actually suffer any sort of damage. The fact that you could have probably doesn't matter. I'm sure you can get your league to dump them and spread the word they are sloppy in their research, but I'm guessing that's the best you'll get. A letter from your Mom's attorney-employer will probably be taken more seriously than a letter from you, but no reason you couldn't call them yourself. Get someone fired if possible!~

[Tyek]

How old is that alien in your Avatar pic in human years?

That's Green Man from It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SsehZcMrEOc

Green man shows up at .55

[Leonaerd]

[Aabidano]

I'm sure you can get your league to dump them and spread the word they are sloppy in their research...

...and be sure to tell them why they are being dumped.

Without a legal\financial impact they won't change their practices at all, the cost has to rise to a certain point to make the business case not to be sloppy pay for itself.

They might be nice folks and made a mistake, but I really doubt it. Being sloppy is faster and more profitable. They aren't being paid enough to actually do the job properly, I'd guess a simple public records search no human ever reviews.

[Xyun]

This is the reason unique names are so important.

[Aabidano]

This is the reason unique names are so important.

Or that US personal privacy protections\standards need to be greatly strengthened along the lines of those in the EU. Everything about you, including medical information is bought and sold by anyone with the cash to blow here.

Which might have the side effect that the information mining\trading companies might branch off into something useful, rather than continuing to be the ticks that they are.