Private Investigator Frequently Asked Questions

The registered office for Sentry Private Investigators Ltd is situated in Birmingham, but we operate across the whole of the West Midlands, East Midlands and East of England.

Yes, private investigations conducted by SPI are entirely confidential. We are legally and ethically bound to keep your data and the results of the investigation confidential. This means we cannot disclose any information gathered during the course of the investigation without your permission.

Yes, UK private investigators are legal but we operate within strict parameters and we hold no additional powers beyond what a regular citizen holds. We are highly trained in our fields and we have a clear understanding of the laws surrounding our profession.

When taking on the services with SPI, it's important to provide us with as much information as possible about the situation you want us to investigate. This will help us understand the scope of the investigation and determine the best course of action. The information requested will be related the the background of the situation, case specific details, dates and times, contact information and budgets.

Sentry Private Investigators make no bones about the fact that we are a highly professional private detective agency. The network we operate with are all from former military, police and government agency backgrounds that shed a wealth of industry expertise, knowledge and experience. SPI hold full membership with the Association of British Investigators (ABI) meaning we are vetted from the offset to ensure our practices are legally compliant and conducted to the exceptional standards they expect from their affiliated members.

The cost of a private investigator in the UK depends on which service is required. SPI offer certain investigative services at fixed rates (people tracing, GPS tracker deployments etc), and covert surveillance services at rates which can vary due to task requirements. To see our full price list, please visit our Pricing page.

At present, private investigators in the UK do not require licensing to operate as many other country's around the world do. The minimum requirement for private investigators to legally operate in the UK is to be registered as Data Controllers with the Informations Commissioners Office (ICO) as we handle peoples personal data on a daily basis. SPI are registered Data Controllers with ICO.

As the UK private investigations industry is not regulated by any government agency, it can be difficult to know which investigative providers are trustworthy. Before employing a private investigator you should conduct your own due diligence by checking if the investigators are registered Data Controllers with the Information Commissioners Office and professionally insured. It is also advised to only use a private investigator who is affiliated with a professional association. This should eliminate any level of doubt with regards to qualifications, industry experience and legal compliance. SPI tick all the boxes and are on the approved investigative providers list with the Association of British Investigators (ABI).

Quite simply, yes. Covert surveillance is legal providing the client has a legitimate interest as to why he or she requires the service. If a husband or wife suspects infidelity within the relationship, then he or she does has a legitimate interest for the surveillance. If a business owner suspects an employee has submitted a fraudulent workplace injury claim, then the business owner has a legitimate interest for conducting surveillance.

A. Hiring a private investigator UK is very straight forward. That being said, we need to know a fair amount of information in order for us to best assist with an enquiry. On occasion, it can be difficult for a client to open up about his or her ongoing concern but we like to stress that SPI are professionals and we have heard/seen it all from experience. Once we are to speed with the situation, we simply provide a quote for the appropriate service and we get to work once instructed.

It depends who you approach to provide your investigative services, how long the investigation takes to complete and exactly what services are required. SPI offer services at competitive rates against the industry market, and where multiple services are required, we do offer reduced rates. Please contact us for an immediate quote.

Sentry Private Investigators provide support to businesses with our confidential corporate investigative services. Companies may be facing hardships due to an employee who is claiming large sums of money for a suspected fraudulent injury at work claim. Medical professionals tend to side with the claimant when injuries are exaggerated in the doctors office which is where the services of a private detective are necessary. We evidence in high definition film, the true extend of the employees injuries by means of covert surveillance operations. Please see our Investigative Services page for a general list of corporate investigation services we provide in across the UK.

A. This depends on the type of private investigation being carried out. If a client suspects his or her partner is cheating, we advise on setting up a surveillance operation at a time when best to evidence these suspicions. It may require a single surveillance session when the suspected cheating partner is on a night out. Or, the partner could be away for the weekend where observations will be required for the duration. Cohabitation investigations tend to require multiple surveillance sessions at different time of the day, spanning over a longer period of time to evidence the extent of occupancy.

To hire a private investigator in you have already taken the first step by researching investigative providers online. Conducting due-diligence is very important when considering who to employ as your investigative provider because there are plenty of untrained and ill equipped people out there claiming to be professional private investigators. With SPI you have the assurance of professionalism as we are on the approved investigative providers list with the Association of British Investigators (ABI). All you need to do is call now or Email with your case details and we will get to work

The world is the limit when it comes to a private investigators equipment. The gadgets readily available on the market are endless. A covert surveillance operative that is just starting out in the investigations industry will be minimally equipped with a high definition camcorder (main camera), a suitable covert camera (they come in many forms), a GPS vehicle tracker and a reliable vehicle suitable for surveillance operations.

SPI, nor any other reputable private detective agency offers guarantees on investigations. Due to the very nature of the type of work we do, we simply do not guarantee anything. We do however offer 'no find, no fee' people tracing services which eliminates any financial risk when trying to locate someone.

Covert surveillance operations provide evidence in forms of video and stills imagery. We have no control over what a data subject gets up to, but it is our job to monitor and capture the evidence as it is presented to us. Task objectives will be made clear from the offset and the surveillance teams will understand exactly what questions need answering. Our training and experience has taught us to know when and where we need to be in strategic positions to gather the evidential imagery.

Our private investigator services are tailored to the private and corporate sectors. From covert surveillance operations to open source intelligence gathering, we have a solution for your investigative requirements. For more information, please visit our Investigative Services page.

When contacting Sentry Private Investigators, your investigation will be taken care of by one of our experienced case handlers from start to finish. Any questions or concerns you have will be dealt with quickly and efficiently and you will be guided through the entire process to give you peace of mind.

Sentry Private Investigators recognise that we provide services that businesses hope to never need. We support business when they are in time of need due to serious internal issues or concerns within the workplace. For instance if an employee has submitted a suspected fraudulent workplace injury claim, or prolonged suspicious periods of employee absence. Our corporate investigation services are designed to gather evidence which in turn positions businesses in informed positions on how best to proceed with their ongoing situations.

With our close connection to the British Armed Forces and the fact that we have signed the Armed Forces Covenant, SPI offer 10% discounted rates to all serving and members of HMforces.

In the UK, private investigators have the same powers as regular citizens. However, we are trained and we are clear on the legal boundaries which for obvious reasons, we must abide by. Providing we have a legitimate interest to investigate someone, we can proceed with the private investigation. Methods of investigation may involve covert surveillance, online tracing, background checks, vehicle tracking and more. Data protection impact assessments are conducted prior to any investigation where the correct method is determined based on effectiveness and proportionality.