Canadians who don't think tenant background checks are important may
think twice
VANCOUVER, June 1, 2012 /CNW/ - A thorough tenant screening would have revealed red flags for Luka Rocco
Magnotta - who allegedly dismembered a human body in his Quebec
apartment and sent a foot to the Federal Conservatives - and for Angus
Mitchell, who allegedly shot his ex-landlord and two others this week
in a disgruntled rampage in B.C.
A recent survey revealed that one-third (34 per cent) of Canadians don't
believe criminal record checks are important when it comes to tenancy
and property rentals. These high profile crimes might cause those
respondents to reconsider.
Magnotta's landlord had only performed a credit check, which did not
reveal that Magnotta reportedly had been convicted on four counts of
fraud in Ontario, served 16 days in pre-trial custody and received a
further nine-month conditional sentence and 12 months' probation.
"Unfortunately, getting paid the rent is only one aspect of finding a
good tenant," says Dave Dinesen, President & CEO of BackCheck, Canada's
largest provider of criminal record and employment reference checks. "A
proper screening, which involves credit, criminal, employment and
previous rentals, would have uncovered red flags."
A thorough tenant screening package from BackCheck costs $89. "The cost
of doing a thorough screening is small compared to the time, stress and
financial impact of incidents arising from bad tenants," says Dinesen.
"We typically turn tenant background checks around in just 1-3 days."
In the case of Mitchell, a background check would have revealed he had
reportedly been fired by several employers, and had been evicted
multiple times.
Other survey statistics show that 86 per cent of Canadians would not be
discouraged from applying for a property rental if they had to get a
background check.
"While some renters would be discouraged, it may be for good reason,"
explains Dinesen. "According to Corrections Canada, one in 10 Canadians
have a criminal record."
About BackCheck
BackCheck, founded in 1997, is Canada's largest provider of background
checking services, and one of the largest providers of background
checking in the United Kingdom. Led by founder and CEO Dave Dinesen,
BackCheck has for 15 years served nearly two thirds of the Financial
Post 100, as well as thousands of Not-for-Profit organizations, medium
and small businesses, and government. The first company to deliver
background check results securely online in Canada and to offer a
completely online criminal record check, BackCheck has continued technology innovation with the goal of
maintaining the highest security, greatest customer satisfaction, and
delivering the fastest results. For more information on BackCheck,
visit www.backcheck.ca.
Photos available upon request:
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Dave Dinesen, President & CEO, BackCheck
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BackCheck head office in Surrey, BC
