It is anticipated that all private investigators will be regulated and licenced by 2012, however until then, unless you have been given a recommendation by someone who has used an agency and can vouch for their professionalism, the locating of a good agency can be somewhat ‘hit and miss’.

There are ways however to minimise the risk of selecting an agency that perhaps does not meet your needs in providing a professional service. The list below is not exhaustive, but gives you a good starting place to ask some questions of your potential investigator - don’t be afraid to ask the questions as any professional investigator will be pleased to answer any queries you have – if they are reluctant to do so then that tells its own story!

1.    ARE THEY AFFILIATED TO A PROFESSIONAL INVESTIGATION BODY? As private investigators do not need to be licenced yet, all good agencies should have an affiliation to one or more of the following recognised industry bodies:

• World Association of Professional Investigators (WAPI)

• Institute of Professional Investigators (IPI)

• Association of British Investigators (ABI)

If you are not satisfied or are at all concerned, go to the registered body website and email them to check if the agency is a full member.

2.    ARE THEY INSURED? All agencies are required to have professional indemnity insurance, make sure they do as this covers you if there is an issue.

3.    ARE THEY DATA PROTECTION REGISTERED? Any agency you employ will have access to your and possibly other individuals private information and data – the agency  should be registered with the Information Commissioners office and be prepared to advise you of their DPA registration number.

4.    LISTINGS – most reputable agencies will be listed in Yellow Pages, Yell.com, Thomsons local or some such similar listings publications.  Please note however that this can be seen as a negative indicator, that is, having this listing does not guarantee that the agency will be professional, however if they are not listed anywhere, then there is a pretty good chance that they are not going to be as professional as you would like!

5.     CHECK THAT THE AGENT IS PROFICIENT IN THE FIELD THAT YOU ARE LOOKING FOR.  Ask what the agency specialises in, what experience the agents/operatives have and what professional qualifications they hold. In WIA’s case, surveillance is our specialism and as such, we only use professional police or military trained surveillance operatives.

6.    WILL THE AGENCY PERFORM A RECCONAISANCE VISIT? All good agencies will offer a ‘recce’ of the operation in order to provide you with a written estimate of the cost prior to the commencement of the task.

7.     WHAT WILL THE FINAL REPORT LOOK LIKE? Professional agencies will provide you with a full briefing report, outlining the processes used and results obtained, with photographic evidence if necessary.  A one page overview or email is not sufficient and is not acceptable…..

8.   DOES THE AGENCY OFFER A FREE INITIAL CONSULTATION? The professional agent will always deal with you courteously and will offer you free advice on your first consultation, whether that be by phone or in person.

if you need to understand more in relation to selecting the right private investigation company for the task in hand, please feel free to contact usfor a no obligation consultation and/or advice

WIA are registered with the Information Commissioners Office (DPA Registration:Z129344X)