First Advantage Background Check Settlement Provides Discounts for Class Members

Certain job applicants who were subject to a First Advantage background check as part of the application process are receiving discount codes as part of a class action settlement with the company.

Individuals are Class Members if First Advantage LNS Screening Solutions Inc.’s records indicate that, between Aug. 17, 2012, and Nov. 20, 2020, First Advantage provided a background report about them to a potential employer without first having the employer certify that the individual had authorized the report and provided a signed form from the individual authorizing the report.

As part of the settlement agreement, Class Members are being mailed a notice containing discount codes: a $15 discount on Instant Check and a $15 discount on Resume Check, as well as nine free full file disclosures.

The $15 discount codes will expire two years from the date of final approval of the settlement. 

The nine free full file disclosures expire three years from final approval; Class Members may only obtain one such disclosure per quarter.

The final approval hearing is scheduled for May 3, 2021, after which Class Members will be able to use their discounts.

Also as part of the settlement, First Advantage has agreed to certify that its clickthrough certification includes — and will continue to include — a past-tense certification regarding user disclosure and authorization on employment platforms.

The company also will certify it has made sample disclosure and authorization forms available on its website, that it includes sample disclosure and authorization forms in new-client information materials, and that its compliance process includes random audits to ensure compliance with user disclosure and authorization obligations.

The deadlines for Class Members to exclude themselves from or object to the First Advantage background check settlement have passed.

A pair of class action lawsuits had alleged the First Advantage background check reports violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). One of the two also alleged violations of the California Investigative Consumer Reporting Agencies Act (ICRAA) and the California Consumer Credit Reporting Agencies Act (CCRAA).

The FCRA established standards for how consumer credit information is handled and reported. Violations have the potential to harm a person’s chances at qualifying for a loan or low interest rate, and could even cost an applicant a job.

Employers are required to provide proper notification, in writing, of their intent to obtain a credit report as a part of the hiring process. This notification must be a stand-alone document and must inform the applicant that negative information on the report could cost them the job.

Employers that choose not to hire an applicant based on the information in their credit report must provide notice of that decision, along with a copy of the report, to the applicant.

More information on the First Advantage background check settlement is available on the settlement website.

Have you ever undergone a background check during the job application process? Tell us about your experience in the comment section below.

The plaintiffs are represented, respectively, by Peter R. Dion-Kindem of Peter R. Dion-Kindem PC and Shaun Setareh and H. Scott Leviant of Setareh Law Group.

The First Advantage Background Check Class Action Lawsuits are First Advantage Credit Cases, Case No. JCCP4961, in the Superior Court of the State of California, County of San Mateo.

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