Private investigator

Sarah Martin

Salary: Dependent on case load and hours worked
Location: North London
Link: Sarah Martin

Investigator of the Year in 1998/9, Sarah finds being a woman an advantage in her line of work, running a PI company, Sarah Martin Investigations.

You need to be nice to people to enable them to open up to you without feeling threatened.

Profile

What made you want to become a private investigator? How did you get started in the job?

I didn’t set out to become a private investigator, I just fell into it. I worked in a job arranging security and liasing with the police and then as a debt collector, which lead to the private investigation work.

What training and skills did you need to get started? And what training is available now?

There aren’t any particular qualifications you need to work as a private investigator, but it does help if you have a basic knowledge of the law and a level of competency.

Most people come into the profession from a security, legal, military or police background - people who have had dealing with this area of work - but now it’s possible to get an NVQ in investigation.

I have a young woman training with me. She came for a week on work experience from on a legal secretarial course and decided she really wanted to train as a PI. After she finished her course, I took her on as a trainee whilst she undertakes her NVQ Level III in investigation.

If you want to do an NVQ, it’s possible to write to an organisation like the Association of British Investigators (ABI) and say what you’re interested in doing. They can circulate your details to their members and if a member is looking for a work placement trainee, they may take you on.

What personal qualities do you need to be a good private investigator?

You need to have common sense, empathy, compassion, a non-judgemental disposition, an understanding of people and a logical mind.

As a private investigator, you have no special rights like the police, you need to be methodical and creative in your approach to solve problems and you need to be nice to people to enable them to open up to you without feeling threatened.

Tell us a bit about your daily routine.

My daily routine varies so much from day-to-day. As a field agent, most of the time I’m out of the office. One minute you might be at your desk and the next, you receive an urgent phone call to go out on surveillance or on a process-serving job.

I can be out doing research and investigations anywhere in the UK or abroad - at the Family Records Centre, talking to neighbours, meeting a client or another agent or working inside a company.

The working hours are very unpredictable. Many times, I’ve found myself sat outside an address for a 10 or 15 hour observation period. You have to like your own company, as most of the work is on your own and therefore isolated, private and confidential.

Do you have a particular speciality?

I undertake general investigations which covers a whole list of things from video / photographic surveillance, finding missing persons, matrimonial work, interviewing witnesses, road traffic accident, uncovering fraud or thief in a company, serving court orders, employee vetting and much more.

But I also undertake undercover work. I originally training in drama and find it easy to slip into a new accent or character. You need to be able to blend in well and you need a retentive memory for speech, writing and the visual.

What do you love about your job?

I love the variation. Nothing’s the same. Even undertaking similar cases is completely different. Although the methodology is the same but the information you are uncovering is different.

I also love fitting the pieces together to get the whole picture - it’s an all-consuming career.

What do you hate?

This is not a very sociable job, definitely not nine to five - you have to work evenings and weekends at times. It can be very stressful and very emotional. You need to be able to stay personally detached from what you’re investigating.

It is not always a very happy job either. What you do can have serious implications for others. You have to be very thorough with your reporting because people’s lives can be changed dramatically by what you report. They could end up instigating divorce proceedings, loosing custody of their children, being prosecuted for theft for fraud or being fired from their work.

It’s very difficult in your private life. It’s a confidential business so you can’t talk about your work when you get home.

Have you ever use self-defence/martial arts in your job and under what circumstances?

I have trained in self-defence but brains are more important that brawn. You can get yourself out of a dangerous situation much better using your head if you stay calm and understand the nature and expectations of others.

What is the scariest situation you have ever found yourself in?

Some of the scariest situations are when you’re dealing in an area involving violent and unstable people.

It can also be quite daunting testifying in court, when there are people who don’t want you to. You have to be vigilant and watch your back in this business.

What training does your job require?

It’s very important to know about new regulations and legislation and to keep up-to-date with the latest technology. It’s up to me to sort out going to lectures and seminars to find out the latest news. In this respect I’m a member of the ABI, receive a monthly magazine, undertake lectures and training. I am also the Chairman of the Southern Branch and organise regular meetings, which are a chance to network with other people in the same line of work and discuss a variety of topical issues and problems.

Being a member of an association means you have contacts all over the UK.

What’s it like running your own company?

Each case is self-contained and has a file with an instruction, job and account sheet, various documentation and a report. The administration can therefore be quite straightforward as long as you are very well organised!

Confidentiality and security are also very important factors in running an office.

How difficult is it for women working in private investigations?

People are less threatened by a woman, so you can get closer to find out information. No one ever thinks twice about a woman sat in a car outside a house or are worried if they see a woman walking behind them at night. It definitely has it’s advantages being a woman.

For a business dominated by men, I have not encountered any prejudice against female agents. It doesn&’ matter who you are - male, female, black, white or disabled - it’s the results that count.

The details of this page are up-to-date for 2000

Your next steps

1. Investigate qualifications from the official training organisation for the security industry, SITO.

2. Find out more about the industry from the Association of British Investigators

This article has been reproduced from the BBC Training and Education, 2001.

Links:
Sarah Martin