General information about the law of England and Wales, not legal advice. Take advice from a solicitor where a decision depends on your circumstances.
Understanding private investigation
What an investigator can do, what remains private, and how to decide whether professional help is appropriate.
What a private investigator can and cannot legally do in the UK
No special police powers. Proper authority, proportionate methods, and the limits on private records.
Read the guideCan a private investigator get phone records, bank statements, or messages?
Private records, proper authority, and lawful alternatives to intrusive access.
Read the guidePersonal safety, relationships, and tracing
First steps for unwanted contact, family concerns, finding someone, or recovering money.
Intimate image abuse and revenge porn: free help
Support services, evidence preservation, and takedown messages you can use without instructing an investigator.
Read the free guideHow to tell if you are being followed or tracked
The signs, how to check your car and phone safely, what to record, and when the police need to be involved.
Read the guideWhat to do when someone is impersonating you online
The first hour, what the platforms will and will not do, the offences involved, and the limits of identifying who is behind it.
Read the guideEvidence for the family court: what helps and what backfires
What the court gives weight to in children and money cases, what it holds against you, and how investigator evidence is assessed.
Read the guideFinding a lost relative or birth family
The free routes to try first, the regulated route for adoption searches, what a lawful trace adds, and why the traced person is given the choice.
Read the guideHow to find someone who owes you money
Tracing a debtor, what the court can order once you have an address, and when a professional trace is worth paying for.
Read the guideBusiness, employment, and insurance
Checks before a decision, preserving evidence of suspected wrongdoing, and knowing when to investigate.
How to check a company or person is genuine before you pay
The checks you can run in an hour, the warning signs that should stop a payment, and when formal due diligence is worth it.
Read the guidePre-employment checks: what an employer can lawfully ask and verify
Right to work, DBS levels, references, social media, and credit checks, the rules on spent convictions, and when to go further.
Read the guideAn employee is suspected of fraud: the first steps
Preserve evidence, keep the circle small, stay fair, and decide who investigates, before anyone is confronted.
Read the guideA personal injury claim looks exaggerated: what an insurer can lawfully do
The indicators, proportionate surveillance, open-source checks, disclosure timing, and what fundamental dishonesty actually requires.
Read the guideAlso on the site
Longer reference pages
Legal and regulatory framework
The statutes that govern investigation in the UK, what each one permits, and what we refuse under it.
Choosing an investigator
The questions to ask any firm, the warning signs, and what you can check for yourself.
Glossary
The terms used in reports, engagement letters, and court, explained in a paragraph each.