Legal Private Investigator: Is It Legal to Hire a Private Investigator?

Legal Private Investigator: Leveraging a Private Detective to Get Results

 Licensed private investigators offer a crucial service by helping people or businesses obtain information about other people or companies. Private detectives are good at finding information or gathering relevant data legally to help in a wide range of cases.

Such information is useful in solving missing persons’ issues or shedding more light on infidelity investigations, background checks, and many others. Hiring a legal private investigator is a smart choice for any person or business looking for such services.

If you’re considering hiring a private investigator knowing what private detectives can do legally and what they aren’t allowed to do is essential.

Most states require that private investigators undergo training, security checks, and uphold the regulations and laws of this security industry as part of their investigator licensing process.

Let’s explore more about private investigators and their critical legal responsibilities.

What a Legal Private Detective Can Investigate

There are different reasons why someone would consider hiring a private detective to help in obtaining information.

These include:

Background checks

A business may ask a private investigator to carry out background checks on a new employees. A private investigator may offer their service to someone seeking to learn as much as they can about another person before making serious commitments, like business deals or even marriage.

Insurance fraud

An insurance fraud investigator plays an instrumental role in helping insurance companies legally investigate and verify fraudulent claims and locate possible offenders.

Corporate investigative services

Organizations can hire licensed private investigators for many reasons, including:

  • Reducing the potential of dishonest employees causing fraud or corruption
  • Finding missing company assets
  • Enhancing the company’s security systems

Missing person Search

Private investigative agencies can carry out a missing person search and help find those unintentionally or intentionally missing.

Infidelity investigation

A private detective can gather evidence to help a client determine whether their spouse or partner is cheating.

What a Legal Private Investigator in Tampa Cannot do

Private investigators must strictly follow federal and local laws while they work to access information and collect evidence for their clients. Here are some of the unlawful methods that your private investigator should never use:

Carrying a police badge

A private detective should never impersonate police officers. It means that they don’t have to carry a badge, wear a police uniform, or intentionally mislead witnesses about their position in law enforcement or government agency.

Recording phone conversations

According to federal law, a legal private detective cannot record a conversation of witnesses without consent from one person on the call. Phone records requirements vary from state to state, with some requiring both parties to consent to the recording.

Trespassing and mail tampering

A private investigator must never trespass into other people’s property during the course of their investigation. They must obtain the owner’s consent or permission before they can enter the property. Federal law also prohibits mail tampering.

Accessing protected confidential information

From financial and credit data to criminal and phone records, various private information types require the person’s consent or a subpoena to access.

Private investigators must follow the best practices in conducting their investigations and ensure they adhere to all federal and local laws when gathering evidence. They must never use bribery or unethical methods to obtain information to avoid the concern of inadmissible evidence or committing offenses.

How Private Detectives Conduct Legal Investigations

Licensed private investigators use a wide range of tactics to obtain information about the subjects of their case. They can conduct surveillance, monitor movements, and gather records to learn more about their subjects’ activities and character. Some of the information they can collect includes the phone number, previous and current addresses, marriage status, homeownership, etc.

Private detectives can conduct extensive stakeouts to learn about their subject’s movements. Private detectives conduct searches on various online databases to find criminal records, mortgage records, voter registrations, etc.

An experienced private investigator can also interview associates, family members, and friends to gather evidence. Most importantly, they will investigate the matter within the law to ensure that all the evidence stands up in court.

Contact Sig 14, Inc. for a Reputable Legal Private Investigator

Are you looking for a professional, trustworthy, efficient, and reliable private investigator? Sig 14, Inc is one of the best private investigative agencies in Tampa Bay, Florida. We offer an extensive range of investigative services that cover background checks, corporate investigations, and insurance fraud to mission person and infidelity investigations. We carry out all these services with the utmost professionalism and within the legal provisions. Contact us today to schedule your free consultation.