If you are thinking about using ShredMyRecord.com, here are a few things to consider before doing so. First of all, this company is a spin-off of ClearMyRecord.com — which has a list of consumer complaints and had a “D-“ rating from the Better Business Bureau— it is even run by the same people. Google search “ClearMyRecord.com Complaints” and see for yourself.
UPDATE – September 27, 2011. ShredMyRecord.com had advertised since early 2011 that it was able to remove criminal records from commercial background checks (similar fraudulent claims were made on ClearMyRecord.com dating back to 2008); however, effective September 27, 2011, ShredMyRecord.com stopped offering that service as a result of their inability to perform the service. We have not received word as whether or not refunds were issued to those who paid for the service during the past several months.
If you believe you were ripped-off by ClearMyRecord.com or SherdMyRecord.com, please click here to file a complaint and we will try to match you with an attorney who can represent you for free in an action to get your money back.
THE INFORMATION BELOW PERTAINS TO THE OFFERING THAT IS NO LONGER BEING MADE ON SHREDMYRECORD.COM
Now that you know who they are… time to dig a little further.
The Devil Is In The Details…
Buried in the fine print of the “terms and conditions” and guarantee are some alarming details and admissions.
1. The company does not even guarantee that the information on its site is accurate. In addition, it is not even guaranteed to be correct, complete or up-to-date. 1
2. They make no guarantee that your confidential information will be secure.2 Furthermore, they will not be liable if they lose or misuse your data. 3
3. You are going at it alone. So, after you pay a bunch of money for forms that are not guaranteed to be correct, then wait months for a court hearing, you may very well be left to argue against the district attorney or judge by yourself—or sent home and told to start over with the correct forms. 4
4. If you did manage to get your record cleared in spite of going at it alone with forms that are not guaranteed to be correct– so what. According to their fine print, ShredMyRecord.com does not actually notify ANY background check companies of your cleared record. Instead, they say they will tell any background check company who requests the data— but they give no indication what, if any, background check companies use their “data repository.” And really, what responsible background check company would use their data? They are a spinoff of a company with a bad reputation— not a government agency, law firm or other trusted entity. 5
From Alarming to Funny…
Well, if you were not scared by their initial disclaimers, they did give you something to laugh at. According to their terms, if after you realize that you wasted hundreds of dollars and months of your life, any legal action you undertake to get your money back has to occur in Kentucky— and if you win your legal action, the most they are liable for is $100. Hilarious. As if anyone in their right mind would travel to Kentucky for a legal proceeding for the chance to recover $100. These terms basically add up to “tough luck.” 6
Then there is Paragraph 17 that says that after you pay the fees for several months or years, they can terminate your account for “any reason” and “without notice.” Ready for this, they don’t even offer to give you your money back and claim they are not “liable.” 7
From Funny to Bizarre
The $5000 Guarantee
The company says that CEO Brian Poe offers a $5000 guarantee that a person will not lose a job because of a record they “shredded.” First of all, why not start with guaranteeing that the forms and information they sell are accurate? Or why not guarantee that the confidential information provided will be secure? It makes no sense. Well, the $5,000 guarantee doesn’t make much sense either once you read the details. First of all, if you use their service to expunge, seal or pardon your record, they provide no money back guarantee on your purchase price if your case is denied.8 Then, the $5,000 guarantee does not apply to ANY government jobs. The $5,000 guarantee only applies to private sector companies that have more than 100 employees9 — the problem with this is that most large companies have HR departments that would never be so stupid as to incur the liability of providing a “Certified letter of denial“ that says “that the unshredded arrest/criminal record was the sole/primary reason for denying employment” (which is required to claim the $5,000 ). Here is where it gets really bizarre. If by some miracle that you did find a careless HR representative dumb enough to provide such a “certified letter”, you then have to be able to prove to ShredMyRecord.com that you are not related to anyone of the 100 or more employees that work for the company— good luck finding a list of employees and proving that you are not related to any of them.
Okay, Now The Good News…
There is no need pay anyone for the services that ShredMyRecord.com offers. The resources below are reliable and free. 10
You can get free pardon assistance from actual attorneys at http://www.applyforpardon.com/
You can have your criminal record removed from many leading background check companies for free at http://www.ContinuingJustice.org
You can get free expungement and record sealing forms on this website
If you meet low-income requirements, you can often get free help from the public defender’s office, legal aid society or the state or county bar association.
Footnotes
- https://shredmyrecord.cmrrp.com/terms “the Company cannot guarantee that all the information on the site is completely current.”
- https://shredmyrecord.cmrrp.com/terms “THE COMPANY MAKES NO WARRANTY THAT… THE SITE OR THE MATERIALS WILL BE AVAILABLE ON AN UNINTERRUPTED, TIMELY, SECURE, OR ERROR-FREE BASIS.”
- http://www.shredmyrecord.com/privacy “We will have no liability however to you or to any third party arising out of any such loss, misuse, destruction, or alternation.”
- https://shredmyrecord.cmrrp.com/terms “You will not be represented in court or in front of any administrative, judicial, or other decision maker by the Company and the Company does not render legal advice.”
- https://shredmyrecord.cmrrp.com/terms “The Company will update the data repository and provide updated data to outside Consumer Reporting Agencies (CRA’s) upon their request. The Company will notify (at the email address we have on file) you when outside CRA’s perform inquiries specific to your personal identifying information.”
- https://shredmyrecord.cmrrp.com/terms “Any controversy, claim or dispute arising out of or relating to these Terms and Conditions, your use of this Site or service or the relationship which results therefrom (a “Claim”) will be settled (to the exclusion of the courts) by private and confidential binding arbitration before a single arbitrator held in the Commonwealth of Kentucky…”
- https://shredmyrecord.cmrrp.com/terms “the Company, in its sole and absolute discretion, may, without notice to you, suspend or terminate your account or your use of, or access to, this Site…”
- https://shredmyrecord.cmrrp.com/terms “The Company does not guarantee any outcome of any matter for which its services are utilized.”
- http://shredmyrecord.com/guarantee “The employer applied to must have at least 100 employee”
- https://shredmyrecord.cmrrp.com/terms “I may obtain information regarding free or low-cost legal representation through a local bar association or legal aid foundation;…”
Whats on your record?
The first step to removing your criminal record is to find out what, if anything, is showing up on your criminal background. If you are unsure of what exactly is holding you back from jobs or any of lives other opportunities we highly recommend visiting our partner, BackgroundChecks.com, where you can get a full national criminal history background check for a super low price.
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They cleared my record, were prompt, courteous and inexpensive. I tried to do it myself but was completely overwhelmed and I tried an attorney and he was far too expensive.
You’ll never print my comment, however I think you are off-base. You must be really worried about them as competition to act like a politician.
The fact that we spend thousands of dollars a year (not to mention countless hours) to give away free forms, free legal advice, free document creation tools, and free private database clearing services should make it clear that we are not worried about competition. However, we are worried about consumers being misled by guarantees that are so riddled with caveats as to make them virtually useless or them being duped into paying for a service they don’t need.
I am very curious, what service did they perform for you? My guess is that I have heard from more than 100 people who have used their service (either through removeit.org, clearmyrecord.com, or their other spinoffs) and not one has ever said they had their case granted. In fact Mickey, if you can prove that you used ShredMyRecord.com and that a court granted your request, I will gladly give you $100— no caveats or strings attached. That is how much I would love to see and write about how they actually succeeded on a case and provided good service.
We didn’t say they were not courteous. However, we did point out that all or close to all of the services they are selling can be obtained for free elsewhere and with less risk to confidential information.
Also, if you would like to have your cleared record removed from leading background check companies, here is a free service you can use: http://www.continuingjustice.org/our-projects/criminal-database-update
I look forward to hearing back from you.
3/11/2011
I find it very interesting that Mr. Higbee is also the chairman of recordclearing.org and they basically just shoot you off to his firms website. There must be other law firms that offer similar services and are competent. Also, when it comes to A ratings with the better business bureau, I suggect looking up the amount Mr. Higbee pays them. A number of recent articles state that large contributions to the BBB = high business ratings. That said, I believe the firm to be legitimate but I think full disclosure is inportant. Finally, I find it strange that the firm continues to deny any bad reviews and instead writes that the reviewer was a jealous competitor.
Hi Jason and thank you for the interesting comment.
RecordClearing.org is a free service that provides free forms and answers to legal questions from lawyers who handle record clearing cases. It is a great resource for those who cannot afford an attorney. The Foundation that supports this site also does several live events each year. Those who want to pay for representation can find a list of recommended attorneys (including my law firm) at: http://www.recordclearing.org/recommended-attorneys . Anyone can take a free eligibility test on this site to see if they are eligible and to receive a free quote from an experienced attorney, including Higbee & Associates.
RecordGone.com has received A ratings from the Better Business Bureau for 5 straight years. That is a result of successfully serving more than 8,000 clients and resolving to the client’s satisfaction every complaint (which there has only been a few) filed with the BBB. Getting an A rating with the BBB is very easy if you take care of your clients. If clients love you, the BBB will love you. Membership to the BBB is optional and the annual cost is a meager $350, which does not affect a rating. I would not trust any legal service or law firm that cannot maintain at least a B rating.
The best source for reviews on any company is Trustlink.org as the site will verify that the person actually used the business, and not a frustrated competitor. You can find reviews of RecordGone.com and other companies at: http://www.trustlink.org/Reviews/Recordgonecom-205970941 At last count, RecordGone.com has 80 positive and 1 negative.
God bless you for this site. I was considering contacting “ShredMyRecord.com” on my son’s behalf. We live in a small town and cannot get a job with his record. I hope you can continue to save others the heartache and misery of dealing with such people.
I actually had my hopes on this website and got ripped off. First of all I got my paperwork from them and when I took them to have someone look at them they told me that they would not accept them. But its sad to know that u put your money and trust into a website that can’t even give you the right paperwork. I feel like I should have saved my money because this was honestly a waste of time and money. Now I’m gettin a REAL lawyer.
Sorry to hear about your experience with ShredMyRecord.com. In what state is the record you are trying to clear?
I signed up with them gave them my credit card # they charged me since then I have emailed called and left messages time and time again CAN NOT get a responce from them I am going to the BBB and file a complaint I want my money back and nothing more to do with these losers
I don’t know what some of these sites claim, but I have tried and failed for years in getting my record cleared. I am 36 yrs old now and I have a collage degree in Engineering. But I have (2) felonies on my record from when I was a teenager (18 yrs old) and cannot for the life of me get any employer to give me a 2nd look.
Granted they are only Class-E felonies mind you, which were Vandalism O/$500 and Theft of a Bldg. But in the State of TN, I was told that since I entered a guilty plea, I was not eligible to have ANYTHING removed from my record. Ever. These sites told me that I could apply for Executive Clemency, but as far as I’ve seen on my own, that is impossible.
I wish there was a way, because that was 18 yrs ago and I have had a clean record ever since. Not even a traffic ticket. I’m married and have two small children to provide for. And that stupid crap on my record from the 1990’s is STILL impeding me to this day.
Matt I’m in the same situation u are in. My conviction occurred 11 years ago and since then I haven’t done anything. I’m married with two kids and took some time to be a stay at home mom. I’m trying to return back to work but have been getting rejected due to background. I have applied last year for a pardon and was told this can take years for my record to be cleared. I seen the commercials for shred my record and I have signed up with them to monitor my record. They told me instead of the employers actually seeing the time of crime u committed, it will now say that this person is currently in the process of cleaning their record or something like that. I don’t know what to do. Should I call back and cancel their monitoring service?
Based on what you wrote, I am very sorry to say that I believe you are being taken advantage of. I would ask for a refund and cancel the service immediately. I deal with lots of major background check companies and I know of none that use ShredMyRecord’s data. If they told you that this will change what employers will see when they do a standard background check, I believe you are a victim of fraud.
If they told you that in writing, please send it or anything else that you question to me. If you let me know about your record or case, I will do what I can to provide you with free assistance. You can call my law office at 714.617.8300, ask for Mat Higbee.
If you guys think that’s bad….I’ve been looking for stable, full-time, employment for over 4 years now. I plead guilty to a 3rd degree misdemeanor domestic assault charge that took place over 5 years ago, and I can’t even get employment at convenience stores.
Despite the fact that I plead guilty to the charge at the prodding of my attorney, simply because he said I couldn’t win the case, I never physically assaulted anyone in my household. I’m a former state licensed EMT, and a Surgical Technology graduate, and I can’t find work ANYWHERE. I’m also a husband, with 3 children. What, if anything, can I do at this point?
Thanks for reading.
I have been trying to get my records cleared for some time now and I have not been able to get anywhere with the courts at all. What I dont understand is that I was not convicted of the crime. The court drop the case do to the testimony of witness. At that time, I didnt know that It was required of me to request that the record by sealed and destroyed, and now its been years on years since I have been able to work. I dont understand how the or why the justice system choose to hinder the lives of others even after 6 or more years!.
Good morning to you sir. I too have a past criminal record. I too have been waiting for yrs for my record to drop off due to time. However time goes on lol. What are my opposition. I am 50 years old. And only have cable tv experience of 30 yrs. I also served 6 yrs in the united states Marine corps with a honorable discharge. Which means nothing any more in this day. I would very muuch like to hear your feedback especially if you can get me back on track to a good J.O.B. THANK YOU MATT FOR YOUR TIME AND CONSIDERATION in this matter.
Thank you for your service to our country.
I would be glad to evaluate your options and provide any advise. Would you would please post a follow-up question in the Forum section at: http://www.recordclearing.org/forum/
Make sure to tell me the approximate date, state and classification of offense for each conviction or dismissed case on your criminal record.
I went on thier website just for kicks and put murder as my charge and they said you qualify please give us your credit card #. haha
Thank you…
I saw the ad for shredmyreport.com and checked out the site. After going through the questionnaire and being asked for my credit card details, I decided to do some research on this site. Last thing I wanted to do was give my CC info to an unknown organization. I work in the IT field so I am aware of the on going phishing and identify theft attempts.
Thanks for your site here. I appreciate the resources you provide.
Doesn’t this all pretty much apply to freshstartlawcenter.com and lawyer David Huffman since he is copying shredmyrecord’s offer??? Are you not listing him just because he is in your lawyer club????
Freshstartlawcenter.com was not included on this page because some of the content on this page is not at all relevant to freshstartlawcenter.com. It has nothing to do with him being an attorney. One of our goals is to help consumers avoid scams or things that would mislead consumers, regardless of who is perpetrating it.
Though, Mr. Huffman’s guarantee is as riddled with caveats as those offered by ShredMyRecord.com (and the details are enough to lead one to conclude someone is copying someone else), we have not received any complaints about his service, which was just recently launched.
i was about to try and use shredmyrecord.com, but after reading all this, i have a change of heart. a few days ago i was turn down by t-mobile selling phones because of felonies that i got in 97. companies make it almost impossible to get hired with a criminal background. thank you for the info. have a great day
Please make sure to use the free resources that are available and do what you can to clear you record. If you have any specific questions, you can get free answers by posting the question in the forum section on this page. We are here to help.
Hello! I got my record sealed and received my paperwork from the courts about 2 weeks ago stating it was all finalized. However when I had a check ran on myself for a job listing this week my results were still found. I was going to go to shredmyrecord.com to have my name cleared from the other agencies but being unemployed puts a damper on that financially if its not going to work the way I need it to. I dont mindunderstand paying reallyfor but notbeing for something unreliable. Can I really do it all myself and if so how do I go about it? And even more, how long will it take. Time is Of the essence right now! I really hope you can help and thank you for your time!
-AL
Congratulations on getting the record sealed. Yes, you can do it on your own. To have your record removed from about 500 commercial databases, go here and follow the simple instructions. The Foundation will do it for you for free. Unlike ShredMyRecord, where not a single background check company is guaranteed to be updated, the Foundation will make sure the update gets passed on to about 500 companies. Best of all, the service is free.
I have a felony about to be eligible to be expunged in a few months and was considering using shredmyrecord.com. Thank you for saving me the trouble and the money. I haven’t been able to find any kind of job with this on my record-uttering a forged instrument. I’ve even been turned down for waitressing jobs. But in February I’m going to try to have it taken off my record. Thanks for all the web sites. It will really help.
Glad to help. If you need a recommendation for an attorney or additional sources of free assistance, please let us know.
Ten years ago, I was charged and convicted with “aggravated assault with a weapon”. I had a permit to carry, but was unfamiliar with Florida’s law about not exposing the weapon unless you used it. A man got in my face and all I did was step back and exposed the weapon, not even touching it, and threatened to use it if he continued his advance. I was arrested, charged, and jailed, not even being allowed bail! I was 64 years old at the time, had no prior felonies and only two prior misdemeanors. I pleaded guilty and received a year sentence because the judge told my lawyer that if I went to trial and was found guilty, he would give me three years! I felt pressured to plead guilty and accept the lesser sentence! All that occurred before Florida’s “stand your ground” rule went into effect. Now that this rule is in place, is there anything that can be done to clear my record (grandfathered)? As I am retired, I do not need to find work; however, I am still distressed over this because I strongly believe that I was wrongly convicted, having had a Florida permit and was merely standing my ground! I finally got my civil rights back last year!
Hi James. There might be grounds to appeal. I would suggest contacting a lawyer who does criminal appellate work in Florida.
my dream has always been to be in the military ever since i can remamber but i feel like i have screwed up my life and i need help to fix my Arrest record i have when i was 17 three years ago i was arrested for reckless driving Serving a years probation n while serving got stopped with Marijuana and transporting it only 2oz i really want to better my life for my new family is there anyway u can help
Thank you
I WAS THINKING OF USING SHED MY RECORD BUT AFTER I found these comments I changed my mind.I can not get a job because I have a thief background is there any way around my bad bacground or have i ruined my life and my kids because I can not get work and my husband just lost his job.Please me help if you can,thank you.
You definitely have not ruined your life. Plenty of people find jobs with backgrounds that are far worse. Can you tell me what state your conviction is in and what year you finished your sentence? I will see if I can find you a source of free or inexpensive help.
Just a word of thanks so I didn’t waste my time or cash! I figured it was a sham to start with. Just sounded to good to be. So thanks again!
Jerry
Ive been going through the ups and downs like most. i must say that there is a whole lot of injustice out there.My case involvled a city counselman, my attorney was disbarred because of drug use and numerious complaints and the local police are supplied vehicles by the victim. it will be 10 years since my conviction in 2013, since ive bought a home and have found respectable employment.I am a contributing member of society and have not been in trouble since, but if i lose my job im screwed ! No one will even consider hiring me with the way things are right now.
I pled guilty to a controlled substance charge in 1988. Since then, I have worked for 3 fairly good employers up until the economy went south. I returned to school to receive two Associates Degrees in technical fields, including graduating with honors. I have applied, and have been the only applicant to pass technical tests given, only to be promised a definate callback. I still haven’t heard back. Same results with other employers, but with one employer being professional enough to respond by informing me that I have a “very unique background”.
I assumed that my past criminal record was the obstacle between me and gainful employment so I responded to the shredmyrecord.com site and charged $79 to my credit card. I provided all of the required information and was checking the site for some inaccuracies when I found your site.
All I want is to get rid of this past embarassment, but also sparing my 3 children the embarassment all the same, w/out their knowledge. Can I recoup the $79 cost? I’m willing to forfeit the reimbursement in addition to some additional donations to consumer-safe sites such as this. Can you help? Please respond.
Thanks,
Dwayne
I was convicted of a federal mail fraud charge in 1993. I served 5 months in federal prison and was released at the end of 1993.
I’ve been totally clean ever since. I worked for a temp personnel company that I had worked for before my conviction for a couple of years after I was released. Then I started my own internet company in 1996 but with the down economy I need to start looking for work. Suddenly, I realized my past might become a problem.
Do you think there’s anything I can do in this case?
Thanks so much for the great information here!
My Fiancee got a dui back in 2010 in hawaii on the naval base, the court went after her over a year after her arrest. her attorney plead no contest. she can’t get a job for the life of her. she is very desperate and needs help. for the jack ass attorney who did that to her, she did a weekend in the federal detention center in hawaii and has paid a ton in fines and fees. she wants to work for FEMA or get a half way decent job but with a fed DUI no one will even consider her. I am asking anyone out there for help that is willing to be a good citizen and provide any advice. Thank you kindly
If we could all go back in time! Unfortunately, we can’t. I am a single mom of five. Luckily I still have a job. I just want to go to nursing school so bad. I am due for expungement next year, but I am so afraid the bon will still find it.. Any how I guess eventually I will find out.