Care.com Will Pay $480K to Settle Caregiver Background Check Claims

A $480,000 settlement with Care.com will resolve claims that the family care services website misrepresented the background checks it conducts on care providers.

The settlement is the product of an enforcement action by the Massachusetts attorney general’s office. Under terms of the settlement, Care.com will make payments to customers who ordered certain types of background checks.

The company also agrees to change the ways it promotes its background checks so that consumers will be better informed.

Since 2007, Care.com has been an online source for personal care services like senior care, child care, pet care and housekeeping. In addition to providing these services, Care.com offers background checks on the individuals who provide them.

According to the attorney general’s office, Care.com represented that its $59 Preferred and $79 Preferred+ background checks would cover criminal records from the states and counties in which the prospective caregiver lived for the past seven years. The company contracted these background checks with Sterling Infosystems Inc. and its corporate predecessors.

Care.com allegedly failed to honor that representation regarding Massachusetts criminal records. Background checks from Care.com reportedly covered Massachusetts Superior Court records but neglected to cover records from District Courts. In Massachusetts, most misdemeanor records and some felony records are maintained by the District Courts.

The settlement requires Care.com to reserve almost $126,820 to be paid as restitution to consumers who purchased Preferred or Preferred+ background checks from Jan. 1, 2013 to Feb. 11, 2016. About 2,900 consumers will qualify for these payments.

An additional $355,000 is to be paid to the state government.

Care.com has also agreed to provide Massachusetts consumers with fuller and more specific disclosures about the scope of its background checks. When conducting a county-level criminal search, Care.com will disclose what courts are searched, the geographic reach of the search, any type of crimes that may not be searched, and how far back in time the search will look.

Consumers will also be informed that they can order a separate search of the state’s Criminal Offender Record Information system, maintained by the Department of Criminal Justice. The CORI system covers criminal records for all Massachusetts state courts, and it offers special processes for seeking background checks on home health aides and child care providers.

“This settlement will provide restitution for families who were misled, and requires Care.com to ensure that parents know what they are getting when they purchase a background check,” said Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healy in a press release.

Care.com continues to deny Attorney General Healey’s allegations, and it maintains that it has complied with all applicable law at all times. The company says it agreed to the Care.com settlement solely to avoid the risk and expense of drawn-out litigation.

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Representing Attorney General Healey’s office are Assistant Attorneys General Abigail Taylor, Director of the Child and Youth Protection Unit, and Jared Rinehimer of the Consumer Protection Division.