If you are at a point in your life when you require a Private Investigator at this point in your life, you have my apologies. In most cases, it is not for a positive reason (although hopefully, it is). However, if you do need to reach out for help and are at the point of meeting with us or another service, here is what you need in order to help both your Private Investigator and your case.
When you meet with your PI, they will expect you to come to them with some basic information. This information will help to paint a better picture of how the Private Investigator should approach the case in the best possible way and, in turn, will get you the results faster than if they have to discover the starting information themselves. I am going to give you a few examples of what you need in certain scenarios based upon some cases we have done in the past to show you how the right information will help you and the detective.
Since this is one of the most common requests we receive, the first scenario is the cheating spouse surveillance. We did a case in Bellaire, Queens, a few years back where we were hired by a gentleman that was concerned that his “stay-at-home” wife was being unfaithful. When we met with him to discuss how to proceed, he had some updated photos and the make and model of her car, as well as when she would drop off and pick up the children at school. He also knew her general plans for the day and what her usual habits were (where she stopped for coffee, what stores she shopped at, her routine at the gym, etc.). This is an excellent example of what to come prepared with for your Private Investigator as a starting point. With that starting information, we were able to follow her and find out that she was actually not going to the gym but actually meeting up with someone in Queensborough Hill instead. This was not part of the “routine” that the husband knew about, but it was certainly part of hers. We followed her for several days and discovered that she had found a different way to exercise other than the gym apparently. She and this mystery person would go to his house for the day and then she headed off to pick up the children from school. Because we had such great information to start with, we were able to get the information we needed to the client in a short amount of time. It was very much appreciated by the client as well because now he had confirmation that his gut was telling him the truth and could now make a decision based on facts.
The second example of cheating surveillance is when the suspected cheater is working. If this is the case, we would need you to give us additional important information to make the surveillance go much more efficiently. For example, know the name and address of the place where the person works. Also, if there are multiple exits, which one do they commonly use? How do they typically travel to and from work? Is it by public transportation, and if so, what route is taken and by what means? Do they have their own vehicle or do they carpool with someone else? We would need the make, model, color and plate of that vehicle. What is their daily routine? Does it fluctuate on certain days? All of these pieces of information are extremely important to the case as our assigned investigator may now go into the case as informed as possible.
We also had a case regarding a background search in Forest Hills, Queens. We had a landlord who was about to rent out a unit to what appeared to be a nice young couple. Due to recent events during the “Covid Era,” they were obviously nervous about renting again. They had a bad tenant that skipped out after not paying rent for over a year. But due to the laws at the time, she could not do anything about it. So she did the smart thing and came to us to do a background search before accepting the potential new tenants. She had them sign an agreement for a background search (very important), and we went to work with the information she had on the form. If you are a landlord, you should always have them fill out a form that gives their name, current and former addresses, a copy of their driver’s license or other government photo id (such as a passport, etc.), and a social security number. With that, we dove into our databases and did a complete background search to find out if they had a history of any sort. In this case, there were no issues. However, when we did a similar search for another landlord in Rochdale, Queens, it was a very different outcome. The Landlord had come to us for a background check on a potential tenant. They did not have a release to do a background search signed by the person, so we needed to have them get one before we could start. Once they had the signed release with the necessary information, we could begin. The prospective tenant had a list of bankruptcies and was currently being sued by a previous landlord for back rent in the amount of over $5,000. So you see, it is much better to be proactive when allowing someone to rent from you. The money you pay now is well worth the peace of mind you will have to rent to them. While no one has a “crystal ball” to predict the future and what someone could potentially do if they have a “clean past,” there is a much better chance that they will not be a problem in the future. You should also always ask for at least one reference to check with as well. If someone gives you a hard time about signing a release to perform a background check, take that as a “red flag” and walk away.
The last scenario is the Worker’s Compensation situation. We often receive calls from employers who have heard from someone that an “injured” employee out on WC is not actually injured. Now please allow me to add a disclaimer to this – not everyone that is on Worker’s Compensation is automatically “faking” an injury. Sometimes it happens, but in many cases, people are truly injured. We have seen both sides of these situations. When you come to us to confirm the situation, you need to give us all the information that you have on the person for us to properly perform the surveillance. For example, we need the current address for starters, along with a photo (which can be the driver’s license that you most likely took a photo of when the employee was hired). We can also use any other information you have, but the most important would be the type of injury they are claiming and what the restrictions are that they are unable to return to work. This is huge. The final piece of information needed is what leads you to conclude that they are no longer qualified to be on Worker’s Compensation.
We had a case several years ago where an injured employee (aka claimant) had hurt his back and shoulder on the job. He had been out of work for a few years when the employer contacted us. He heard that this person was no longer suffering from his injuries and yet would not return, claiming he was still suffering from them. The employer gave us every piece of information we would need when we met. We then got to work. We found that the Claimant was no longer at the same residence and had moved to another home. He also had purchased a boat and was caught on video trailering the boat, saltwater fishing, and then returning with a large catch, which he appeared to effortlessly lift and carry into the back of his waiting truck before heading home. We then continued the surveillance the following day, where we saw the same claimant limping into his doctor’s appointment for his periodic check-in with the Worker’s Compensation doctor. Afterward, he went home, ditched the cane, and went to a bar-b-que at Flushing Meadows Corona Park, where he lugged his “catch” out of the truck and helped move the picnic tables before playing a game of Lacrosse with the kids. Slam dunk.
Now, as I stated before, this is not the rule but the exception. We have also done cases where the person is still genuinely hurt and deserves to be compensated, and we reported that to our client. We have always prided ourselves on our integrity in this business, so let me just say that we will give you our honest impression of what we see. So if the Claimant is not hurt, we will find your proof to bring to the Worker’s Comp board. However, if we, in our opinion, do see that the claimant appears to be showing signs of ongoing injury, we will show you that as well. Because of our ethics and our insurance background, our findings to date have never been questioned. So remember that if you need to hire someone for solid proof of Worker’s Compensation fraud by an employee.
The main point that I am trying to make is that if you come to a meeting with all the information you can gather, it will help the process. When we need to begin searching for information before starting, it not only delays the process but also makes it more expensive. If we need to, for example, do a search on a person before beginning our surveillance to find out where they are, then that is additional time and cost to you. But when you come up with all the correct information, it enables us to begin sooner and get results for you much faster. So make sure to do your homework and then reach out to us to handle it. It will help us both obtain the answers needed faster (and cheaper) in the end.
We have ranked once again in the top three for “Professionalism and Reputation” out of the top 17 Private Investigators in New York City by Expertise and have since 2020, so you will be in excellent hands.
Investigreat, LLC is a recognized full service Private Investigation Agency that is fully licensed, insured and bonded, handling cases all over Connecticut as well as Queens NY, Brooklyn NY, Bronx NY, New York City, Staten Island and Long Island NY. Terri, along with her husband Adam, have been working cases for Legal Teams, Insurance Companies, Private Businesses, Municipalities, School Systems and general investigation services for the public since 1992.
Investigreat, LLC | Private Investigators serving Connecticut, Long Island City, Jamaica NY, Brooklyn NY and Queens NY | Office Numbers: 860-899-1710 or 718-412-1845 | Text: 718-309-1269