How and what do I need to set up a private investigation outfit as a business and how do I go about it,?

Question

I want to open a private investigation outfit as a business to investigate cases for individuals, firms, companies, etc. I would like to know what are the requirements, licensing, dos and don'ts, how many people needed to start with and agencies to liase with the whole works, fees to charge as a rookie, equipments / gadgets needed, etc, etc,.

Answer 1

I can not believe some of the answers I have just seen.
As a professional investigator I should tell you this is not a business that can just be jumped into. If you are starting out there are many on line educations schools that can help you learn the ways of private investigation. One school I always recommend is Penn Foster career school. They have an on line course just for Private Investigation, and they are accredited by the Higher Education of Distant Learning. This is an on line course, and this is a direct link to the information of that course. http://pennfoster.com/pi/index.html
I recommend even starting as an intern at another agency.
As for licensing, some states require private investigators to have license and some don't. You can easily check those laws on your states website.
As for do's and dont's that is something you will have to educate yourself on. There are too many to explain, and to many that vary state to state even county to county and city to city.
As for gadgets, you should not go and by a bunch of gadgets. It will become very costly, and some may sit around for months or even a year or two before they are ever used.
The main thing is to only start out with necessity's. Computer, desk, printer, fax, copier. You can find a lot of things at garage sales and such which can cut cost dramatically.
You may even want to take a photography class if you plan on doing any kind of surveillance work.
Most importantly be sure you know all laws and regulations. Remember ignorance of the law is no exception to the law.

Answer 2

you don't need any kind of liscence.

you can start by advertising in your local paper and in your freee adds paper and in your yellow pages.

dont spent too much because you might not get any clients. then when you do get clients, give them a pne off free consultation. you can work out from this what equiptment you will need, and therefore - what kind of fee to charge.

you can either charge a fee per our, or a whole case fee - its up to you and you can negotiate this in the consultation.

good luck!

Answer 3

First, you need to study up on the law so you know the do's and don'ts.
Second, your fees will have to be low.... like 25/hr to start out.
Third, you have to produce results, and that means cameras w/ and w/out night vision.

Answer 4

As an individual that wants to do investigation, it would seem imprudent to ask others to do your research...shows lack of skill.

Answer 5

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Answer 6

sir i would advise you to try a different profession