How to find someone who owes you money

Start with what the debt is worth

Tracing and enforcement both cost money, and neither is worth pursuing for a debt that will not cover them. Before doing anything, be honest about three things: how much is owed, whether you can prove it, and whether the person is likely to have anything to pay it with. A debtor with no job, no property, and no assets can be found and sued and still not pay.

An agreement, invoices, and messages may support the claim, but the debtor may dispute liability or raise a defence. Limitation periods depend on the type of debt, jurisdiction, and events such as payment or acknowledgment. Many simple-contract claims in England and Wales have a six-year limit; get advice if time may be an issue.

What you can find yourself

A good deal of tracing is desk work you can do in an afternoon.

• The electoral roll. The open register is available through commercial search services for a small fee and shows where someone is registered to vote, if they have not opted out.
• Companies House. If the person has ever been a company director, the register shows the addresses they gave and the companies they are connected to. A correspondence address is not necessarily a home address or a suitable address for every form of legal service.
• The Land Registry. You can search a known property in England and Wales to check its registered owner. An individual-name search is restricted; it is not a public search for everything any person owns. Ownership also does not establish where someone lives. See HM Land Registry’s name-search rules.
• Social media and the open web. Public posts and business listings may provide leads. Check dates and identity, and avoid unnecessary collection or sharing of personal information. Public availability alone does not make every use lawful.
• Mutual contacts. Where appropriate, ask someone to pass on a neutral request for contact. Avoid disclosing the debt or repeatedly approaching relatives or colleagues. Consider safeguarding, harassment, and privacy risks.

Keep a note of what you searched and when. If the matter reaches court, you may need to show that you made reasonable efforts to find the person before asking for an order that dispenses with serving them in person.

What a professional trace adds

A trace combines relevant public records with any licensed data the firm is actually authorised to use. A licence is not unrestricted access to private records. Record the lawful basis, purpose, and proportionality of the search, check source quality, and assess transparency obligations and any applicable exemption.

A trace is priced as a fixed fee, and a reputable firm will tell you the fee before starting and quote for a confirmed result, which means an address the person is currently living at rather than one they were last connected to. Our fees page sets out how that works.

Agree the expected timescale and definition of a confirmed result before work starts. The report should state the evidence supporting an address, when it was checked, and remaining uncertainty. A failed trace should identify the searches completed.

What we will not trace

We assess the claimed debt and the purpose of the search before accepting work. A fabricated debt must not become a way to find an estranged partner. Our missing persons page describes safeguards. Any contact and privacy-notice arrangements depend on the lawful scope and applicable requirements, rather than a blanket promise of secrecy.

Once you have an address

An address on its own recovers nothing. It lets you do three things.

Consider the pre-action steps. Before issuing a claim, check the applicable protocol, explain the dispute and supporting information, and allow the required response period. The Debt Claims Protocol generally covers a business claiming a debt from an individual, including a sole trader. Consider settlement and obtain advice if the debt is disputed.

Issue a claim. In England and Wales, many money claims of £10,000 or less are normally allocated to the small claims track, but exceptions and procedural requirements apply. Check eligibility for the official money-claim service. A default judgment depends on service, deadlines, and the applicable rules.

Consider enforcement. A judgment does not guarantee payment. The official enforcement guidance explains applications, fees, and limits. Potential routes include:

• A warrant of control, under which enforcement agents attend the address to take goods, subject to eligibility, fees, and restrictions on what can be taken.
• An attachment of earnings order, which takes payments from wages, and needs the name of an employer.
• A third-party debt order, which freezes and takes money from a bank account, and needs the bank.
• A charging order over property the person owns, which secures the debt against the property and can lead to a sale.
• An order to attend court for questioning, under which the debtor is required to answer questions about their means under oath, and which is where an investigator’s asset report is often most useful.

Asset tracing for larger debts

For a larger debt, proportionate asset enquiries may help identify possible enforcement routes. Distinguish registered ownership from actual value, security interests, and assets belonging to a company rather than the individual. A solicitor assesses whether the evidence supports enforcement or an urgent application; locating assets does not secure them. Our due-diligence service can be scoped to those questions.

Getting documents served

Court documents sometimes have to be served on the debtor personally, and the permitted method depends on the document and procedural rules. A process server attends the address, hands the documents over, and provides a statement of service for the court. Where a trace has confirmed an address, service can be arranged at the same time.

This is general guidance within the scope identified above. It is not legal advice and does not take account of your circumstances. Before a legal, employment, or court-related decision, seek advice from a solicitor in the relevant jurisdiction. Harwick provides investigative services; legal advice is a separate professional service.

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