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Pitch N Hire · Background checks

Verified against the source, with a right of reply.

Six checks, verified against issuing authorities and previous employers rather than against a database aggregate — and where a record does not match, the candidate gets a fair chance to clarify before anything is reported.

Sold by Pitch N Hire Background checks Reply in one business day
5 days
for over 90% of cases

Full cases finalised within five working days; preliminary checks typically complete within four hours.

6
verification services

Identity, criminal record, address, employment history, education and credit history.

100M+
checks conducted

A lifetime volume figure published by Pitch N Hire, alongside 3,000-plus clients worldwide.

13
sectors served

From cybersecurity and fintech to healthcare, biotech, telecom and AgTech.

01

What Background checks is

Background checks verify identity, criminal record, address, employment history, education and credit history before you hire, and they cover contractors and freelancers on the same terms as employees. Packages are scoped to the role: a finance or leadership hire may warrant credit and comprehensive employment history, while a field or customer-facing role prioritises identity, address and criminal verification.

The process is four stages and the third one is the one that matters. Consent and information intake, where the candidate authorises the check and supplies documents. Verification against sources — issuing authorities for identity and education, previous employers for work history, relevant records for criminal and address. Then discrepancy handling: where a record does not match, it is flagged, re-verified, and the candidate is given a fair chance to clarify before anything is reported, so a decision rests on confirmed facts rather than on an unexplained mismatch.

On turnaround, we will use the published figures rather than the ones that have been circulating: preliminary checks are typically completed within four hours, and over 90% of full cases are finalised within five working days. The honest driver of speed is how quickly source records respond and how complete the candidate's information is at intake — a package is only as fast as its slowest single check.

02

What it does

Six checks, scoped to the role rather than sold as one package.

01

Identity verification

Personal details verified against the issuing authority, which is the check that reduces identity-fraud risk and the one everything else depends on being right.

02

Criminal record and address

Criminal history revealed against the relevant records, and provided addresses verified for record precision — the pair most field and customer-facing roles need.

03

Employment history

The work journey validated with previous employers rather than inferred from a CV, confirming professional claims including dates and role rather than only the fact of employment.

04

Education verification

Academic qualifications confirmed with the issuing institution. This is frequently the slowest component, and it is usually the one that sets the timeline for the whole package.

05

Credit history where it matters

Financial background for roles where it is relevant — finance and leadership hires typically — rather than run indiscriminately on every candidate.

06

Consent, discrepancy handling and a clear result

Consent captured at intake, discrepancies flagged and re-verified with the candidate given a chance to clarify, and a component-by-component result rather than a single pass or fail.

03

How it runs

Four stages. The published turnaround applies to the whole of it, not to a single component.

  1. Consent and intake

    The candidate authorises the check and supplies identity documents, past employers, qualifications and addresses. Getting accurate details here is the single biggest lever on speed.

  2. Verification against sources

    Each element validated against the appropriate source — issuing authorities for identity and education, previous employers for work history, relevant records for criminal and address checks.

  3. Discrepancy handling

    Where a record does not match, it is flagged and re-verified and the candidate is given a fair chance to clarify before anything is reported — so decisions rest on confirmed facts rather than on assumptions.

  4. Reporting

    A clear, component-by-component result. Preliminary checks typically complete within four hours; over 90% of full cases finalise within five working days.

04

Who it is for

Anyone making a hiring decision where the cost of being wrong exceeds the cost of checking.

HR leaders in regulated sectors

Fintech, insurtech, healthcare and biotech among the thirteen sectors served, where verification is a policy requirement rather than a precaution.

Hiring managers running contractors

Contractors and freelancers are covered on the same terms as employees, which is the gap most screening programmes leave open.

Staffing agencies verifying before submission

Agencies who would rather submit a verified candidate than have a client's check surface a discrepancy after an offer.

05

What it does not do

Four honest limits — the first is a correction to a figure that has been circulating.

  • The published turnaround is over 90% of full cases within five working days, with preliminary checks in four hours. A 72-hour signed-report promise has appeared on this site and elsewhere; it contradicts the vendor's own published figure and is not a commitment we will make.
  • No price is published, and inventing one would be worse than saying so. Screening is priced per check — identity and employment verification sit at the cheaper end, multi-jurisdiction criminal, education and credential checks cost more, and packages bundle a fixed set per candidate.
  • Work authorisation is not one of the six checks. Right-to-work and document-expiry tracking sit in the vendor management system, which is a different instrument. Pitch N Hire VMS →
  • No country coverage list is published for this service. What genuinely varies by market is how fast source records respond — and the slowest single component sets the timeline for the whole package.
  • Verification is not placement. If you also need the candidates found and vetted end to end, that is a staffing engagement with this check inside it. Permanent staffing →
06

Answers

How long does a background check take?

Preliminary checks are typically completed within four hours, and over 90% of full cases are finalised within five working days. Electronic identity and database searches return quickly; court records, education and international searches depend on third parties, and the slowest component sets the overall timeline.

What is actually checked?

Identity, criminal record, address, employment history, education and credit history — scoped to the role. A finance or leadership hire may warrant credit and full employment history; a field role may prioritise identity, address and criminal verification.

What happens if something does not match?

It is flagged, re-verified, and the candidate is given a fair chance to clarify before anything is reported. Decisions rest on confirmed facts rather than on an unexplained mismatch, which protects you as much as the candidate.

Do you check contractors and freelancers?

Yes, on the same terms as employees. Contingent workers are the population most often left unscreened, and they frequently have the same access as permanent staff.

What does it cost?

No price is published for this service. Screening is priced per check and depends on which checks you run and where the candidate has lived and worked; packages bundle a fixed set at a per-candidate price. Ask for a quote against the roles you actually screen.

Is consent required?

Yes — consent is captured at intake, where the candidate authorises the check and supplies the details. A check run without it is not a check we would run.