Checkr background check cost you work?

Who Checkr is and who relies on its reports

Checkr is a background check company based in San Francisco. It says its platform is used by more than 140,000 customers across industries. Its reports are especially common in gig work: Lyft’s help center says its U.S. driver background checks are run by Checkr, Inc., and Uber’s help center lists Checkr as one of the companies, along with HireRight and Samba Safety, that run its U.S. background checks.

For a gig worker, a Checkr report is often the difference between earning and not. Lyft, for example, says it requires an up-to-date background check to stay on the platform and conducts continuous criminal and driving record monitoring of active drivers. A bad record can surface years into the work and end it overnight. For job applicants, a Checkr report can quietly kill an offer.

Errors that show up on Checkr reports

Background check errors tend to come from how records are matched to people and how stale court data is handled. Common problems include:

• Wrong-person records. A criminal case belonging to someone with a similar name or date of birth gets attached to your report.
• Outdated case outcomes. Charges that were dismissed, expunged or sealed still appear, or appear without the final disposition.
• Overstated records. A misdemeanor reported as a felony, a citation reported as a crime, or a charge reported as a conviction.
• Duplicates. One case listed several times, making a single event look like a pattern.
• Driving record mistakes. Violations or suspensions that are not yours, or that were resolved.
• Old non-conviction records. Arrests and other non-conviction records more than seven years old, which the FCRA generally bars from consumer reports.

How to dispute a Checkr report

1. Get the full report. Log in to the official Checkr Candidate Portal, where Uber says drivers can request a copy of their report. If an employer sent you a pre-adverse action notice, it should include a copy of the report and a summary of your rights.
2. Confirm Checkr ran the check. Uber uses more than one screening company. If the report is not in Checkr’s portal, find out which company prepared it before you dispute.
3. Dispute with Checkr directly. Lyft’s help center says you can dispute inaccurate or incomplete results with Checkr through its applicant portal. Checkr says that if you find errors, you should contact the background check company directly to start a dispute.
4. Be specific and attach proof. Identify each wrong entry and why it is wrong. Include court dispositions, expungement or sealing orders, your ID, or proof that a record belongs to someone else (different middle name, birth date, or physical description).
5. Tell the employer or platform. Let them know you have disputed and ask them to hold their decision. Keep copies of what you send.
6. Keep a record of everything. Screenshots of the portal, emails, dispute confirmations, pre-adverse and adverse action notices, and deactivation messages.
7. Track the 30 days. A consumer reporting agency generally must complete its reinvestigation within 30 days of receiving your dispute (15 U.S.C. § 1681i(a)(1)). Checkr’s own materials describe its dispute investigations as generally taking about 30 days.

Your rights under the FCRA

• Accuracy (§ 1681e(b)). Checkr must follow reasonable procedures to assure maximum possible accuracy of what it reports. Matching records to people on name alone can fall short of that standard.
• Public records for employment (§ 1681k). When Checkr reports public-record information for employment that is likely to hurt you, it must either notify you at the time it reports it or maintain strict procedures to ensure the information is complete and up to date.
• Pre-adverse action notice (§ 1681b(b)(3)). Before an employer takes adverse action based on a report, it generally must give you a copy of the report and a summary of your rights, so you have a chance to respond.
• Disclosure and authorization (§ 1681b(b)(2)). An employer generally must give you a clear, standalone disclosure and get your written authorization before ordering a report.
• Reinvestigation (§ 1681i). Checkr must reasonably reinvestigate disputed information and correct or delete what is inaccurate, incomplete or unverifiable.
• Reporting time limits (§ 1681c). Arrest records and other adverse non-conviction information generally cannot be reported after seven years. Records of convictions are not subject to that federal limit, though some states impose their own.
• Your file (§ 1681g). You have the right to see all the information in your file and its sources.

What you may recover

If Checkr negligently violated the FCRA, you may recover actual damages, such as lost wages, lost job offers, lost platform earnings and emotional distress, plus attorney’s fees and costs (15 U.S.C. § 1681o). If the violation was willful, you may recover actual damages or statutory damages of $100 to $1,000, punitive damages, and fees and costs (§ 1681n). Depending on the facts, the employer or platform may have separate obligations too.

FCRA Attorneys handles these cases on contingency. No fee unless we win.

Get a free case review

The clock is running. An FCRA lawsuit generally must be filed within two years after you discover the violation and within five years after it occurred (15 U.S.C. § 1681p). If a Checkr report cost you a job or got you deactivated, save the report, the notices and your dispute, and request a free case review. FCRA Attorneys has offices in Dallas, Houston, Chicago, Los Angeles and Atlanta, and files FCRA cases in federal court nationwide, directly or with local counsel.

Questions about suing Checkr

Can I sue Checkr?

Yes, if the facts support it. Checkr prepares consumer reports, which makes it a consumer reporting agency subject to the FCRA. You may have a claim if Checkr reported inaccurate information without reasonable procedures to assure accuracy, or failed to reasonably reinvestigate your dispute.

Uber or Lyft deactivated me after a Checkr report. Who do I dispute with?

Dispute the report with Checkr. Lyft's help center says drivers can dispute Checkr results through Checkr's applicant portal, and Uber directs drivers to the Checkr Candidate Portal for status and report copies. Note that Uber says it also uses HireRight and Samba Safety, so confirm which company ran your check. The platform makes its own decision about reinstatement.

Do the employment protections apply to gig drivers?

Checkr's duties to report accurately and to reinvestigate disputes apply no matter how you are classified. Whether the employment-specific notice rules in § 1681b(b) also apply to gig work can depend on the facts and the court. A lawyer can sort out which claims fit your situation.

What does a case cost?

Nothing out of pocket. FCRA Attorneys works on contingency, with no fee unless we win, and the FCRA lets a successful consumer recover attorney's fees and costs from the company.

Related reading

• Checkr Background Check Statuses: What Pending, Clear, Consider, Suspended and Dispute Mean
• Which Company Runs Uber's Background Check, and Who Do You Dispute With?
• Deactivated From Uber Because of a Background Check: How to Dispute It and Get Back on the Road
• Got a Pre-Adverse Action Notice? What It Means and What to Do Next
• Background Check Dispute Letter: What to Write, What to Attach

Sources

• Checkr: company page (used by over 140,000 customers)
• Checkr Candidate Portal (official; lists One Montgomery Street, San Francisco address)
• Checkr blog: Understanding background check statuses and results (dispute status and process)
• Uber Help: Background check status (Uber uses Checkr, HireRight and Samba Safety)
• Lyft Help: Driver requirements (checks run by Checkr; disputes through Checkr; continuous record monitoring)

Updated November 2026. This page is general information, not legal advice.