§ 145.003.Presumption of No Negligence

Title 6. Miscellaneous Provisions · Chapter 145. Liability for Negligent Hiring by in-Home Service Companies and Residential Delivery Companies · Last amended 2009 · Last verified August 29, 2026

In one sentenceSection 145.003 gives a company that ran the check a rebuttable presumption of no negligence, provided the record showed no listed conviction within 20 years for a felony or 10 for a misdemeanor.

Full Text of § 145.003

Text sizeJump to: (a) (b) (c)

(a)This section applies only to an action against an in-home service company or residential delivery company that:

(1)arises out of a criminal act or omission by an officer or employee of the company as to whom the company has obtained criminal history record information under Section 145.002(1);

(2)is brought by or on behalf of a person whose home the officer or employee entered while in the performance of the employee's job duties, without regard to where the criminal act or omission occurred; and

(3)seeks damages from the company for the negligent hiring of the officer or employee.

(b)In an action to which this section applies, an in-home service company or residential delivery company is rebuttably presumed to have not acted negligently if:

(1)at the time a person was hired, the company obtained criminal history record information regarding the officer or employee under Section 145.002(1); and

(2)the criminal history record information shows that, in the 20 years preceding the date the information was obtained for a felony or in the 10 years preceding the date the information was obtained for a Class A or Class B misdemeanor, the officer or employee had not been convicted of, or placed on deferred adjudication for:

(A)an offense in this state classified as:

(i)an offense against the person or the family;

(ii)an offense against property; or

(iii)public indecency; or

(B)an offense in another jurisdiction that would be classified in a category described by Paragraph (A) if the offense had occurred in this state.

(c)A residential delivery company or an in-home service company that sends two or more employees together into a residence shall be deemed to have complied with the requirement in Section 145.002 as long as at least one of those employees has been checked as described in Section 145.002 and, while they are in the residence, that employee accompanies and directly supervises any employee who has not been checked, and the residential delivery company or in-home service company maintains a record of the identity of any such nonchecked employee for at least two years.

End

Plain-English Summary

The reward for compliance, and the provision that gives the chapter its force.

Subsection (a) confines it to a particular action: one arising out of a criminal act or omission by an officer or employee as to whom the company obtained criminal history record information, brought by or on behalf of a person whose home the employee entered in the performance of job duties — without regard to where the criminal act occurred — and seeking damages for negligent hiring.

The "without regard to where" clause matters. The harm need not happen in the home. An employee who identifies a target during a service call and returns later, or acts elsewhere, is within the section — which is the pattern the chapter was written for.

Subsection (b) supplies the presumption, on two conditions: the company obtained the record information at the time the person was hired; and that information showed no conviction or deferred adjudication within the lookback periods for the listed categories.

Two lookback periods: 20 years for a felony, 10 years for a Class A or Class B misdemeanor.

Three categories of offense: an offense against the person or the family; an offense against property; or public indecency — together with out-of-state equivalents.

The presumption is rebuttable, so it shifts the burden rather than ending the case. Evidence that the company knew something the record did not show, or ignored what it did, can overcome it.

Subsection (c) allows a supervision alternative for teams. Sending two or more employees together satisfies the check requirement if at least one has been checked and accompanies and directly supervises the unchecked employee throughout, with a record of the unchecked employee’s identity kept for two years.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does the background check get a company?

A rebuttable presumption that it was not negligent in hiring, in a negligent hiring claim arising from the employee’s criminal act.

How far back must the record be clear?

20 years for a felony and 10 years for a Class A or B misdemeanor, for offenses against the person or family, against property, or public indecency.

Does it matter where the crime happened?

No. The section applies without regard to where the criminal act or omission occurred, provided the employee entered the home in the course of their duties.

Can an unchecked employee ever enter a home?

Yes, if accompanied and directly supervised throughout by a checked employee, with a record of their identity kept for two years.

Amendment History

Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 228, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 2003.
Amended by:
Acts 2009, 81st Leg., R.S., Ch. 751 (S.B. 627), Sec. 4, eff. September 1, 2009.

Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from Texas Legislature Online (statutes.capitol.texas.gov). Enacted by the Texas Legislature. Current through May 14, 2026. Last verified August 29, 2026. · Official source