James R. Cook - Private Investigation

WHAT IS A PRIVATE INVESTIGATOR?

2006-06-29T07:31:00.000-07:00

A Private Investigator is someone trained in the art of investigation and licensed to do so. Training is usually in specific areas of investigation utilizing a variety of techniques and may include previous experience of police work. A Private Investigator is capable of using small fractions of information and provide a client with what they need to know. For example: using a name, previous address or phone number an investigator can locate that person's current whereabouts and return this information to a client.

Investigators can provide time and money saving services to their clients by going to where the information is. Trained to know where to look for information and utilize search agents of a wide variety which can provide fast, accurate and effective results.

Price Guide

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Please note: - all cases are different, that is why they are all treated in the individual way they demand. Prices are therefore dependent on individual circumstances and the amount of information already known. It is therefore, not possible to predict individual prices and we cannot provide firm prices until clients provide all known facts. Results vary, widely, from case to case. In some cases, a 50% deposit will be required up front with the remainder payable on completion of the contract.

Surveillance

£300.00 per 8 hour day, plus expenses:

Mileage - @ £0.50 / mile

Hotel - around £50.00 / night

De-bugging

£35.00 per room (dependant on room size)

Vehicle Tracing

£150.00 per 8 hour day

Tracing Missing Persons

£250.00 per 8 hour day, plus expenses:

Mileage - @ £0.50 / mile

Hotel - around £50.00 / night

If any of these questions relate to you, call me.

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How can I tell how my childcare worker is treating my child properly?

How can I tell if my spouse is cheating on me?

How can I tell if my partner is cheating me out of money?

How can I tell if my employees are stealing?

How can I tell if someone is wiretapping or bugging my conversations?

How can I tell if someone is covertly video taping my home or my office?

How can I protect the privacy of my phone calls, faxes and data information?

How can I protect my valuables from theft and pilferage?

How can I track or trace my cargo shipments locally or around the world?

How can I physically protect myself, my employees, my family members, from threatening behaviour, street crime, terrorist attacks, at home, at the office, or when travelling abroad?

01522 724447

07710 315546

seekers@findtheanswer.co.uk

The Ethics of the Private Investigator

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To perform all professional duties in accordance with the highest moral principles and never be guilty of conduct which will bring reproach upon the profession of the Private Investigator.

To verify the credentials of clients and that they have lawful and moral reasons to instruct an investigator.
To respect privacy of clients and their lawful confidence.
To ensure that services are adequately secure to protect privacy and to guard against inadvertent disclosure of private information.
To conduct all investigations within the bounds of legality, morality and professional ethics.
To ensure that all employees and other persons paid to assist an investigation adhere to this Code of Ethics and to accept responsibility therefore.
To respect the best interest of our clients by maintaining the highest standard of proficiency and reporting to our clients all the facts ascertained whether they be advantageous or detrimental, and nothing be withheld from clients save by the dictates of law.
To work towards the achievement of the highest professional objectives and to observe the precepts of truth, accuracy and prudence.

To guard our own professional reputation and that of our Professional Associates and Clients.

Dealing with staff theft

2006-06-28T02:58:00.000-07:00

There's no nice way to put this - your staff could be ripping you off.

Bars, restaurants, cafes and shops are all prime targets for staff pilfering from the till, lifting goods from your shelves or offering 'very special' deals to friends and family.

Money is thrown at the problem of customer theft in the shape of CCTV, store detectives and tagging but staff theft is more insidious and much harder to track down. Face it, employees are in the perfect position to steal from your business; they are aware of the weaknesses in your systems and they know who the supervisors and security guards are.

Last year the British Retail Consortium revealed that stores lost £426 million to staff theft. Meanwhile figures produced by the Centre for Retail Research in 1999 are equally worrying: they estimated that staff-related crime was responsible for a remarkable 50.8 per cent of total store theft. These figures might sound shockingly high, but they could underestimate the scale of the problem. Stealing from within a business is often covered up and the blame placed on customers - after all it's a brave manager that owns up to making some bad recruitment decisions.

To make matters worse, staff typically steal more than customers and you're much less likely to recoup the stolen goods or cash. According to 1999 figures from the Centre for Retail Research (CRR), when a shoplifter is stopped they have an average of £45 on them, while the average amount a member of staff steals is a whopping £498.

"The big difference with shoplifters is that 95% of the time you actually get the goods or the property back. With staff theft you only get an average of £35 back," explains Professor Joshua Barnfield, a firector at the CRR.

And it's your profit that's walking out of the door, not turnover. If somebody is taking £10 a day on a turnover of £1,000 that's only 1% and you might think you can live with that. But if you're pulling in 6% profit (£60) on that £1,000, then thiefs are taking one sixth of your profits. These losses need to be seen as a percentage of net profit not of gross turnover.

Of course it's not just retail stores that are at risk, any business that deals largely in cash transactions could fall victim to staff theft.

So what can you do about it? Professor Barnfield advises business people to be realistic: "You're never going to get rid of the problem, all you can do is weigh the scales a bit more in your favour".

"In Sickness and in Health" - Is skiving costing you?

2006-06-28T02:43:00.000-07:00

Absenteeism from work in the UK is at an all time high!

Have you noticed a few empty desks in your office? Industry in the UK loses billions of pounds through staff sickness with the average British worker taking 7.2 days off. Of course, most absenteeism is genuine, however unwarranted long weekends and staff pulling "sickies" threaten companies ability to cover the cost of absence.

The Confederation of British Industry estimates that up to 15% of absenteeism is not genuine; this is where we can help.
Any assignment undertaken is handled discreetly; this may involve discreet surveillance, background research or a combination of different skills, for example in computer interrogation and analysis. Evidence may be collated in a manner that is presentable in Court or Industrial Tribunal.

For more information and to find out how we can help, call 01522 724447 or email seekers@findtheanswer.co.uk

Is your company suffering the effects of MOONLIGHTING?

2006-06-28T02:37:00.000-07:00

Moonlighting - not just the name of an 80's detective series, but an issue that may have serious implications for you as an employer.

Let's face it, you may think your employees work for you, but it may often be the case that your money is paying for someone's time elsewhere. This may be when they are "sick", or during time when you think they are fully employed. Most full time employees are required to work full time for one employer only, however some will invariably breach the terms of their contract by "moonlighting" for others.

If an employee carries out work for another which they have agreed to do only for their main employer, then any profits they make are legally due to their main employer. Of course, if the secondary work does not fall within the description of their normal work they need not pay over any profits, although their employer will still be able to recover compensation in law from the employee for any actual loss as a result of the breach of contract.

For more information about moonlighting and how to deal with it, contact Seekers on 01522 724447 or email seekers@findtheanswer.co.uk