Vetting a caregiver or nanny before they start in Litchfield Park

Caregiver in a Litchfield Park home, a family checking a household employee's background

In a city as small as Litchfield Park, hiring often happens by word of mouth. A neighbor's housekeeper has a free Thursday. Someone at church knows a caregiver who's looking for more hours. A friend's nanny is moving on and recommends her cousin. Most of these arrangements work out well, and a personal recommendation is worth a lot.

It isn't the same as knowing someone's history, though. When the person will be alone with your children, a parent with dementia or the inside of your house, it's reasonable to check. This piece explains what you can check yourself, what private investigators add, and the legal rules that apply when a background check is used for a hiring decision.

Start with the free public checks

Arizona Adult Protective Services, part of the Department of Economic Security, publishes a registry of people with substantiated findings of abuse, neglect or exploitation of vulnerable adults. If you're hiring someone to care for an older or disabled family member, search it. The entries are specific. Some describe caregivers using a client's credit card or a representative payee making unauthorized withdrawals.

Court records are also public. A search of Maricopa County court records by the person's name can show civil judgments, evictions, criminal cases and protective orders. Search name variations, including maiden names and second surnames.

And check references properly. Call them yourself. Ask the previous family how long the person worked for them, what their duties were, and whether they'd hire them again. The pause before that last answer tells you a lot.

The consent rules, and why they apply to you

People are often surprised to learn that hiring a nanny or caregiver can make them an "employer" for the purposes of federal background check law.

The Federal Trade Commission's guidance under the Fair Credit Reporting Act says that when an employer gets a background report from a company in the business of compiling them, the employer must:

tell the applicant, in writing and in a stand-alone document, that a report may be used for employment decisions
get the applicant's written permission
certify to the company providing the report that they've done so

If you decide not to hire someone because of what's in the report, there are further steps: you have to give them a copy of the report and a summary of their rights before you make the final decision, then notify them afterwards.

The FTC has previously written to a nanny-screening company reminding it that businesses which compile information on people for employers to screen workers are consumer reporting agencies, and must get these certifications from the families who use them. A licensed private investigator who regularly does pre-employment work will know where they sit in this, and will usually have their own consent form ready. If they don't mention consent at all, ask.

This is a legal area with real teeth, and the details depend on how the check is done. If you're unsure, ask an employment lawyer before you start.

What a private investigator adds

A licensed private investigator can go further than a homeowner with a search engine, with the applicant's consent:

confirm identity, including prior names and addresses, so the court search is run on the right person
search criminal and civil records in other counties and states where the person has lived, which a Maricopa-only search would miss
check professional licenses or certifications the person claims, such as nursing credentials
verify past employment directly rather than relying on reference numbers the applicant supplies
look into driving history where the law allows, if the person will be driving your children or your parent

A private investigator will also tell you what they couldn't verify. "I found nothing" and "I couldn't check that" are different answers, and you should know which one you're getting.

They won't get into the person's medical records, bank accounts or sealed juvenile records, and they won't use deception to pull protected information.

A note on small-town sensitivity

In Litchfield Park, people know each other. The caregiver you're checking may also work for two of your neighbors. Be discreet with what you learn, and don't pass it around. If the check turns up something that makes you decide not to hire, follow the adverse action steps and keep it between you and the applicant.

Choosing someone

Ask the private investigator how they handle consent forms, what their pre-employment report covers and how long it takes. Check their license through the Arizona DPS Public Services Portal. Our guide on verifying an Arizona private investigator license walks through it.

Every private investigator listed on Served & Found in Arizona is a member of the Arizona Association of Licensed Private Investigators. You can browse private investigators in Litchfield Park or the full Litchfield Park page. If your worry is about a partner rather than an employee, our piece on infidelity investigations in a city this small covers how discretion works here.

Get the signed consent form before the check starts, not after.

See the board: everyone in Litchfield Park · private investigators only.