Despite popular beliefs, private investigators do much more than sit outside homes and businesses collecting information. Like other industries, private investigation can take many forms, ranging from missing persons investigations to insurance fraud cases.
Private investigators cover a wide variety of cases depending upon their specialty. For example, there are intellectual property private investigators who primarily focus on making sure that patents aren’t being violated and that copyrights aren’t infringed upon by competing companies. This is a highly used service in the technology industry as new startups emerge.
Some specialist accountants double as private investigators, and can go over legal paperwork to determine whether or not fraud is taking place.
Some landlords even use a private eye to determine what the tenants are up to. This is all well within the boundaries of the law and never puts the clients at risk.
The type of investigation that is conducted depends upon the subject matter. Investigators generally use their own independent specialty to break down and analyze the target. However, the way an investigation is conducted is determined by the client’s requests, and the amount of information that can be gathered. This is where an investigation begins. The organizing and uncovering of facts and figures is the side of private investigation that many people are unaware of, but it is nonetheless essential to the job. There are four steps private eyes must take in order to produce the most thorough investigation possible. These are:
- Analyze the case with the client. Go over the legal and ethical situation, and determine if the case is acceptable. This is also when the client gives all known information about the case to the investigator.
- Come to a feasible budget and timeline for completing the case.
- Gather evidence in a legally sound manner. Any evidence that infringes upon the rights of others will be dismissible in a court of law.
- Thoroughly critique the evidence to determine whether or not anything was missed during the investigation, and then present the findings the client.
Private investigators may use their skills and persuasion to obtain the information they are looking for. But once everything is said and done, the client is the ultimate arbiter on whether or not the case is solved, so presenting the evidence in a useful and accountable manner to the client is very important.
The private eyes at Melbourne Investigations understand all the ins and outs of the industry. We investigate suspected infidelity, theft, Workcover fraud, and missing persons. To find out if we can help in your situation, contact us.
