Now that summer is well and truly gone here in the UK the need for international investigations is not as required as the school summer holidays so I want to discuss the pros and cons of conducting an investigation overseas as it takes some serious planning.
The most common client for us when the need to work abroad arises are businesses in order to follow their staff or to watch competitors. Another main reason is criminality as with jurisdiction regulations forcing police forces to stop at borders we don’t always need to.
That said, we have travelled for high profile clients to evidence cheating!
Before commencing any international investigation we do need to take some considerations though!
The first thing you need to check when looking to work abroad are what are the rules of that country for private investigators. For example Middle Eastern countries such as the UAE are very strict on investigators working in their country and do not like spying of any kind there. Switzerland a haven for offshore bank accounts and a neutral territory again do not like spying of any form and will arrest on site and force heavy penalties on anyone caught operating there.
The next main thing is logistics. Cars, accommodations, equipment, flights, phone/comms plans, visas and cover stories.
These things will make or break the job before it’s even started. If we can’t get our kit there such as cameras, vehicle trackers, drones et al then we need to be able to source it locally and then the question come about budget as it gets expensive before any following even takes place.
The last consideration, is it worth hiring a UK based agency for work abroad or is it easier to source locally? The pitfalls here are huge as trusting a foreign agency with your sensitive data, to get the job done and not rip you off are all a risk. Something a potential client needs to consider.
Apart from the obvious pro for us of the James Bond feeling being a travelling spy there are a lot of pros to hiring us to work abroad for our clients.
When you hire us to work abroad you know you are getting the same service as you would back home with clear communication back to you and good solid evidence gained when possible.
There’s no worry of having to battle any language barriers or differences of cultures. As a client you know who you are employing and as always there are no hidden fees!
This is our problem to deal with. As a client there isn’t a need when dealing with a British investigation agency as we will negotiate all the local requirements leaving you free to simply receive the evidence and reports.
We can usually act with the same speed of our UK operations. If the subject of investigation is travelling soon, not next day but that same week we can deploy saving you hassle of finding and negotiating with a local area investigations.
As always we will deploy or make arrangements so our normal UK capabilities are taken or supplied in country so that the level of service is achieved regardless of geography and border controls.
The cons, here are the negatives for both the investigators on the ground in country and potential clients. Some aren’t super obvious;
Employing a British investigation agency to work abroad is going to add in big costs towards; cars, hotels, flights and then the rate of pay for agents is on a daily basis rather than our normal hourly basis.
We have to abide by local laws so we potentially risk huge fines if operating illegally and in some cases we simply can’t operate at all in places such as The UAE and Switzerland as mentioned.
Depending on the nature of the task we are employed to carry out we can’t always get our equipment there and need to source it locally. Things like cameras are fine of course however, vehicle trackers or larger covert bespoke built cameras are harder to get across. The easy way is to ship them but this adds into time on task. Long term cases this remedy is perfect for.
Having local knowledge abroad isn’t just knowing your way around, it’s knowing all the quirks of the area. Having a VERY good understanding the culture. You need to blend into your surroundings so knowing the flow is everything.
I’ve worked across Europe and my language skills aren’t great but I know enough to get a chocolate chaud in most places. Having a basic and I mean very basic is essential as the locals understand effort and are usually happy to help so long as you make an effort in their tongue.
Working international investigations is no small feat and requires a certain type of character that is able to blend in anywhere and be extremely comfortable outside of their comfort zone.
As an agency and surveillance operative it can be a very lucrative way of working and for client’s it can save you a lot of money by avoiding scam agencies abroad.
As always, thank for reading! Dan
