What is a Private Investigator?

What is a Private Investigator? Why should you use one? Is it worth the money? These questions and others will be addressed in this article to help you decide whether or not you could use a Private Investigator in your life.

What is a private investigator?

A private investigator (or detective) is an individual who is hired case by case to find and analyze facts for many different reasons, whether they be personal, legal or financial. People hire private investigators for multiple reasons, including needing help providing infidelity of a spouse, exposing fraud or finding missing people. A private investigator works mainly in an office setting, but depending on their cases, also spends time out of office conducting surveillance.

What kind of duties can a private investigator perform?

Private investigators can perform many duties depending on their specialty, their experience and their education level. Depending on the case, they conduct surveillance, find and verify information, conduct interviews and in some cases, find missing persons. A good private investigator will use multiple tools and tactics including GPS tracking devices, video surveillance, online investigations, cameras, etc. A good private investigator will abide by laws, have expert tailing tactics, notice little details that others might overlook, have excellent research skills, take detailed notes during an investigation and will be open and honest about their education and experience.

Are private investigator’s licensed to do their job?

Some places require a private investigator to be licensed to perform their duties and some do not. It is important to find this out before you commit to hiring a private investigator, as this could lead to certain legal implications down the road. Either way, because they are not a police office and they are not above the law, it is important that your private investigator understands the privacy laws in your province. This is important not only for liability, but because you want to be sure any evidence he or she collects will be admissible in court.

When should I consider hiring a PI?

Sometimes your gut tells you something is wrong in your life. It is important to listen to this gut instinct, whether it be about your wife’s suspicious behaviour, risky moves your co-worker is taking or unexplained movements of your tenants. If it is financially possible for you, it may be a good idea to look for private investigators in your area with experience in the specific field you are looking for (i.e. infidelity). A private investigator is often equipped with more experience and tactics to discover information that you would be unable to find yourself and therefore can be a more efficient and effective way to find the information you need. Importantly, a private investigator can present this information in court if need be.

Take care when deciding to hire a private investigator. Be sure you are ready to commit financially to whatever purpose you are hiring them for. Above all, be prepared to hear the information they may present you with. Make sure you decide whether hiring a private investigator is right for you before you make that call.