What To Know When Hiring an Private
Investigator
Looking to hire an Investigator? below are some simple
tips you can apply when choosing one.
• Arrange for the 1st meet up to be
in the investigator office.
Unless you really busy, as a rule of thumb, it would be
good to visit your Investigator at his office. Doing so would enable you to ensure you
private investigator runs a proper office. Also by meeting
up the investigator in person, it would give you more confidence in his/her work. Avoid
using email as your only form of communication. This is to avoid miscommunication and allow
the investigation to be conducted in the most effective way needed. At the office,
ensure that:
1) the PI
firm and PIs conducting your case are insured.
2) Make
sure your private investigator has a valid license. This is usually displayed at the
office.
• Make sure your investigators has years of
experience in private investigation especially so in cases related to yours. Being a
ex-cid, policeman, CIA or FBI does not mean a thing if he has no experience in private
investigation. Thou such experiences would help, a good private investigator is one whom has
gained experiences in the field and had proper training in PI work as well being equipped
with the advance equipment required for the investigation.
• Make sure you get a contract indicating the job
scope you are engaging him for.
• Some PI firms post results which are provided by data
companies/organisation such as Corporate Searches, International Searches/Personal Searches,
Litigation/Writ of Summons Searches, etc., which could be obtainable easily from
organisations such as Accounting & Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA), DP Information
Group, Info Asia, etc. This information is resold to their clients at a huge mark up. Your
full report at the end of the investigation should not consist of such information
only.
• Can the private investigator you hired testify in a
court of law? If he can, how often has he done so?
When hiring an investigator, it is essential to go
through the above points before committing to him/her.
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