U.S. UNCOVER

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Q.   Where should I perform the criminal records search?
A.    In the county of the applicant's residence.  Statistics show that well over 90% of crimes are committed in the county of residence.  In second place is the county of previous employment.  To be sure, you should do both but if you are doing only one, definitely the county of residence.  If the applicant has moved recently, it is highly recommended that you search the county of previous residence.

Q.   What is the difference between a 'county' and a 'statewide' criminal records search?
A.    County searches generally return Felony and Misdemeanor records and may include arrests that are still pending adjudication.  Statewide searches in most states will return Felony Convictions.  These differ nationwide with some states offering Felony and Misdemeanor  convictions in a statewide search.  Generally, these convicts will have been incarcerated.

Q.    Will all counties nationwide return Felony and Misdemeanor records?
A.     No.  Most will, however there are certain counties that contain many 'district' courts where misdemeanors come from.  In these cases you will need to perform two (2) searches; one in the Superior Court (Felony) and another in the District Court (Misdemeanor) relating to the applicant's residence.  Call us to find out if a county search offers both or only Felony.

Q.    How does U.S. UNCOVER obtain criminal records from every court in America and offshore?
A.     We obtain them directly from the courts.  We are 'online' with many courts nationwide and in those we are not, we have people go into the court to search the records for us.  These people are professional researchers.  They make their living this way and are reliable and competent.  We are 'networked' with them across the nation and in 75 foreign countries.

Q.    Why would I want to do a Social Security Number (SSN) verification?
A.     The answer is in the description - 'VERIFICATION'.  We do not only 'validate' that the SSN was legally issued, we verify that the SSN belongs to the applicant.  Additionally, we return an 'address history' on your applicant so that you can see where the applicant has lived.  You may want to search those counties as well.  For instance, if an applicant is 40 years old and the address history shows they spent most of their adult life in Texas and they've moved to your county 1 1/2 years ago, you might want to search Texas in addition to or instead.  Additionally, an SSN verification can return length of time at the address, a date of birth and a telephone number.

Q.    If I search for Felony and Misdemeanor records, why should I do a Sex Offender search?
A.     In some states and counties, searches only go back 7 years.  If a convict became a known Sex Offender or Predator prior to that it won't show up in a criminal records search.  Be advised that both males and females are in the Sex Offender registries.  If your applicant will have anything to do with or be anywhere near children, you may want to consider this search.

Q.    What is a Wants & Warrants search?
A.     It's a nationwide search to determine if your applicant is a 'wanted' individual or if any warrants have been issued for their arrest.  Presently, it is no longer available on a nationwide basis, but may be performed in a single state where available.