Choosing between national and local investigative firm.

Local versus National

Why would you choose one of the national P.I. firms rather than someone local to deal with your business? First, the two aren’t mutually exclusive. In many cases, a national firm has a local office, with investigators that work near to you. This may be important in a case that requires on the scene surveillance.

Thanks to technology, though, it’s not unusual for a private investigator to get the information that you need without ever leaving his office. Like other types of detective agencies, national P.I. firms often take cases where the computer and the telephone are far more important tools than a gun and a set of jimmies. Among the most requested services of national P.I. firms are background checks on prospective employees and spouses, credit checks and skip traces for accounting and finance companies, asset searches in divorce cases and cell information for various reasons. None of those investigative services require the on-the-spot presence of a private investigator, and many people are far more comfortable hiring someone over the telephone than slipping up a darkened stairway.

National P.I. firms can also supply teams of investigators to cover investigations that may require sleuthing in far-flung cities – or simply need more manpower than one ‘tec working solo. It’s far easier – and less expensive – for a national P.I. firm to get someone on the scene in several different cities at once than it is for a single detective working alone to jump a plane and jet all over the country.

While many of the clients that national firms do business with are individuals, there are also many business clients. Insurance companies may have an association with a national P.I. firm to handle surveillance in insurance fraud cases, for instance. Credit and finance agencies that handle collections may also maintain an association with a national P.I. firm to handle process serving and other services that require an on site investigator in a far off city.

National firms are likely to hold their employees to strict adherence of the rules. This can be extremely important in a case where legal action is involved. People may believe that techniques to “Get the information by any means” is far less likely to be tolerated in a large firm than it is in a small office. This can be vital to clients who are building evidence in a court case, where illegally obtained information can jeopardize the work of months.
 

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