How to Become a Private Investigator: Career Advice IIMany people are of the opinion that most PI's are former police officers or government law enforcement agents. The fact is, the majority of Professional Investigators have little or no training or experience in those fields. Almost anyone, man or woman, no matter his or her age, background or experience (with the exception of convicted felons, of course) can become a Professional Investigator.
Q.? Is a police background essential?
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"A lot of people think you need to have some kind of law enforcement background to be a Private Investigator. Not true at all. Our business is comprised of people who are streetwise and able to go out and get the information.?You've got to be a go-getter. Nothing to do with police work, or police techniques. Being a PI is gaining information and knowledge. We go to a lot of seminars and read a lot of articles. But, when it comes to 'formal' schooling, there's no formal.?I think even if you went to the John Jay School of Criminal Justice they could not get you ready for doing investigations." - Peter Crummy |
Private Investigation TrainingMany states require Professional Investigators to serve an apprenticeship or internship with an established, licensed PI or with an investigative firm. Several Professional Investigator schools exist that offer entry-level schooling and training that may or may not enhance on-the-job training and the time-given acquisition of basic skills.
Q. ? What if I have no special training?
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"Having a background as a truck driver can be very sensible experience for the investigative business.?Say you're doing an undercover job for a trucking firm. The man's been a trucker: that could be very essential. A man comes to me and he says 'I've worked 20 different jobs in my life.'? I ask him to tell me about each and every job he's ever worked - what he did for a living.?That man is going to be vital to me if I need to put him on the job.?I might need someone to pose as a real estate agent.?We employ pretexts all day long in the investigative business." - Bob Brown |
Private Investigator LicensingMost states require PI's to be licensed.?Some states have no licensing requirements whatsoever. Requirements vary widely. Ask your state department of professional regulation for up-to-date information.? Some counties and cities also require special licensing. You should visit occupational licensing departments, which are usually located in courthouses. See State Licensing Information for Private Investigators
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"Every state is different. Go to your local law library and obtain a copy of the statute that regulates agencies. Call the Division of Licensing in your state capital and ask them what chapter pertains to investigative agencies." - Mike Askew |
Q.?Each state has a different set of rules governing the licensing of Private Investigators. What are Virginia's requirements, for example?
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"I teach a sixty-hour course and about twenty hours of that course involves the study of rules and regulations for PI's in Virginia. We have rules and regulations governing PI's because the state wants to make sure if a person goes out and practices the investigative profession, he or she is fully aware of responsibilities. The remaining forty hours of the course are devoted to such things as surveillance. The students actually go out on field exercises and do surveillance.?They do photography work and report writing. Several hours are dedicated to appearing in court."?- Linnea Sinclair |
Specializing as a Private InvestigatorEarning the credentials to do business as a Professional Investigator can be a very rewarding and fulfilling accomplishment, both personally and financially.?PI's often work alongside law enforcement officers, attorneys, and business leaders.?Private and public organizations, insurance companies, and banking institutions call upon PI's to perform important investigative work, such as surveillance: tailing, stakeouts, videography, still photography, and audio recording.
Also:
- Detection of listening devices and cameras (bug sweeping)
- Undercover and covert operations
- Corporate espionage and competitive intelligence
- Background: conduct, habits, credibility, character & reputation
- Relationship, marital, and custody investigations
- Skip tracing
- Locating missing heirs and witnesses
- Conducting injury or wrongful death investigations
- Investigating accidents, fires, damage to property
- Locating assets, stolen property
- Providing patrol, guard, and bodyguard services
- Gathering evidence for civil and criminal proceedings
- Serving legal papers
- Investigating employee theft, loss prevention, narcotic & alcohol abuse
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"Some of the most recent trends are in on-line searching, pre-marital investigations, worker's compensation, and claims for insurance companies.?Locating missing persons, of course, has always been a mainstay in the private investigative profession.? Financial investigations is a field that needs a large number of investigators.?brokerage firms, banks, lawyers - even private individuals - require this service.?It could bring big dollars in for the right investigator." - Roger Gibson |
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"Product liability is one high-paying investigative specialty. In many instances, the request is for someone to find a defect in a vehicle or conveyance - be it a car, motorcycle, or bicycle. We've handled cases from helmets to mechanical chairs." - Mike Askew |
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"Computer fraud.?There has been a dramatic increase in this type of investigation, and someone capable of handling it would certainly be in a good position to earn many dollars. It's a specialty area that requires a good knowledge of computers." - Nick Beltrante |
The Private Investigator's Arena
The investigative and security industries are big and getting bigger. Each year new high-tech clients vie for the services of experienced PI's who understand the diverse technologies and possess the up-to-the- minute skills required to meet those particular demands.?Following are just a few of the industries that contract with and hire Professional Investigators.
Retail Investigations
More than fifty percent (50%) of employees steal from their employers. Shoplifters abound.?Security personnel and Professional Investigators work undercover to prevent theft and revenue loss.
Attorneys?
Attorneys depend on PI's to investigate many situations. PI's assist attorneys in cases ranging from relationship and child custody disputes to corporate espionage to product liability litigation to wrongful death and personal injury.
Insurance Investigations
PI's earn more from the insurance industry than from any other single industry.?PI's investigate and prove suspicious and fraudulent claims for insurers, investigate false injury claims and other fraud, perform background and assets checks.?Some insurance investigators provide skip tracing services: the more hits, the more lucrative the tracer's earnings.
Computer Crime
As computers become more and more a part of our daily lives, the crooks become wiser in ways to use them to commit crimes.?This area of investigative endeavor promises to pay handsome rewards to those well-versed in the computer sciences.
Industrial Espionage Investigations
A prosperous company hires a high-paid expert to work on a problem concerning an important component in one of its major systems.?Two years later, that same expert (the expert that management thought would produce the magic solution from his hi-tech bag of tricks) has quit the team and departed for a better life with a major competitor.?And he's taken the company secrets with him.
To prevent this and other costly corporate espionage, firms hire PI's to weed out spies and wrong doers. Experience and knowledge of the inner workings of corporations and businesses are prerequisite training for this type of assignment.
Professional Investigators Associations
Beyond the organizations and associations that function at the local and state level in your area, there are several national professional associations you might consider joining.?By aligning yourself with these groups, you will benefit from the educational, networking and business opportunities each affords. PI's who begin networking from the beginning of their career enjoy the greatest success. Attend association meetings and functions.?You'll increase your knowledge of the industry as a whole and broaden your base of contacts.
How to Become a Private Investigator: Career Advice - Part 1
Secrets of Top Private Eyes ~ Twelve of the nation's top investigative experts expound about the investigative industry as a whole, explain networking and how to go about connecting with the best viable information sources. These interesting and successful Private Eyes enjoy telling about the plying of their craft and their day to day activities. Here is living proof this unique and lucrative industry is wide-open and offers many, many opportunities.
If you are serious about becoming a Private Investigator, or want to know more about the investigative industry as a whole, take the first step toward actualizing your ambitions: purchase and study Secrets of Top Private Eyes, the complete course (see below). You owe it to yourself to investigate each and every aspect of any trade, craft, or business you have an interest in - before making a career commitment.
Secrets of Top Private Eyes - Private Investigator Training Course, the how-to teaching manual and videotape set, have been in extensive use nationwide since 1993 as a training course for new investigators.?The course has been continually revised and updated until the present. None have been returned.
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