When hiring home healthcare workers, it's easy to think you should focus only on popular pre-employment checks, like education verification and drug testing. Don't get us wrong—those things absolutely matter. But another background check exists that's equally important: MVR checks.
What is an MVR check?
A motor vehicle record (MVR) check provides a report of a person's driving history. It includes the following information:
| ● Accidents | ● Suspensions |
| ● Endorsements | ● Traffic violations |
| ● License class | ● Unpaid child support (in some states) |
| ● License expirations | ● Unpaid parking tickets |
| ● Restrictions | ● Vehicular crimes |
| ● Status |
An MVR check gives employers insight regarding whether the applicant can be considered a safe driver.
Why should home healthcare agencies run MVR checks as part of their pre-employment screening?
Your workers are driving on behalf of your home healthcare agency. This creates liability and puts your agency at risk. Running an MVR check on new hires reduces the risk.
But here's the thing: running an initial MVR check isn't enough. You should also continuously monitor your employees' driving records with MVR monitoring.
What is MVR monitoring?
MVR monitoring keeps track of a person's driving record on a go-forward basis. The initial MVR check provides the baseline. MVR monitoring alerts you if something changes on the person's record going forward, like a DUI or speeding ticket.
Why do home healthcare agencies need MVR monitoring?
Again, your home healthcare workers drive as part of their jobs. They bring clients to appointments. They might run to the drugstore to pick up prescriptions.
And just because an employee's initial MVR check comes back clean, it's not enough. What if they get a DUI two months from now? Can you rely on them to tell you?
Imagine if your employee is driving with a suspended license and they get into an accident while bringing a client to a doctor's appointment. Beyond the safety factor and risk of injuries and fatalities, consider what your agency is facing: lawsuits, skyrocketing insurance premiums, and brand damage.
How does MVR monitoring benefit home healthcare agencies?
In addition to peace of mind, MVR monitoring offers several other key benefits:
✔ MVR monitoring can act as a deterrent. When people know they're being monitored, they behave differently—and usually for the better. (Think of security cameras and random drug testing.) MVR monitoring can have the same effect by encouraging employees to drive responsibly.
✔ MVR monitoring can help lower insurance premiums. Many insurance companies run MVR checks as part of their underwriting process.
✔ MVR monitoring is budget friendly. MVR monitoring only costs a few dollars per month per driver, and the cost can be offset by not having to run full MVR checks each year on everyone who drives on behalf of your company.
✔ MVR monitoring protects your clients, your employees, and other people on the roads—and it also protects your agency. The goal is to keep everyone safe.
Who should perform MVR checks and MVR monitoring for home healthcare agencies?
Make sure you work with a reputable background check company like Good Egg. Our team understands MVR-specific requirements, so you don’t need to.
When you use Good Egg to facilitate your MVR checks and monitoring, you can count on the following:
● Compliant with DOT, FCRA, Driver's Privacy Protection Act (DPPA), and related state laws
● Available as a one-time MVR check pre-hire, an annual re-screen, or continuous monitoring service on employees' driving records
● Easily bundle them with our other employee screening solutions
● Our experts are always available to answer questions and help interpret the reports so you can make the best hiring and ongoing employment decisions
We'd love to work with you. Get in touch with us online.
