What does a private investigator do?

First and foremost, good private investigators follow laws. Unlike on TV, they don’t break in windows or hack into hospital computer systems to get you intel. When you hire a private investigator, you’re hiring a professional to gather facts and find information for you. Although they can’t obtain certain information (such as health records), they do have access to information that most civilians do not. Often private investigators are hired to perform surveillance or background checks or investigate cases such as adultery, child custody, missing persons, hidden assets, or debugging, and theft or other crimes.

Private investigators can be hired to interview people and provide that information to the client, perform photo or video surveillance, monitor activity at a location where you suspect criminal activities or questionable behavior, track a person’s movements, find missing people, do deep-dive background checks, and more. Private investigation can be helpful if you’re trying to get a court order but need evidence. Private investigators can also help find birth parents. Nationally, the average price range for private investigation is $70-$210 per hour.