Chad HarrisonJudgment creditors have been known to employ all sorts of tactics to improve their chances of successful enforcement. For example, it is not unheard of for a creditor to hire a private investigator (PI) to lend a helping hand. While doing so is both possible and legal, there are a few things to know about the practice.
Why Some Creditors Do It
For starters, it’s helpful to know why some creditors bring in PIs. The most common reason is to assist with investigative efforts. Unfortunately, investigation is often an integral part of successful enforcement. It is necessary when judgment debtors fail to cooperate fully.
A case in point would be a debtor who responds to interrogatories by purposely giving inaccurate or incomplete information. For example, a debtor may fail to disclose certain assets he wants to protect against collection efforts. So when it comes time for interrogatories, he does not list the assets alongside things like his primary residence and retirement account.
Experts in Investigation
Private investigators are obviously experts in the investigative field. It is in the name. A skilled PI knows how to find certain types of assets. Let us say a debtor owns a number of investment properties that are considered nonexempt under state law. A private investigator could find those properties through a combination of records searches and searches of proprietary databases.
A skilled private investigator can easily discover where a person works. A debtor claiming to be unemployed has no defense when a PI discovers where he works, what his job is, and his regular work schedule.
Investigation Is Where It Begins and Ends
Investigative services are invaluable in the judgment collection game. But when they are provided by a PI, that’s where the PI’s services begin and end. All a PI can really do is provide information a creditor can utilize for enforcement purposes. As far as I know, no PI assists with enforcement itself.
On the other hand, there are specialized collection agencies whose entire focus is judgment collection. Judgment Collectors out of Salt Lake City, UT, is one such agency. Not only do they thoroughly investigate, but they also make contact with debtors to encourage them to pay.
Collection agencies are also familiar with the enforcement mechanisms creditors often use to get paid. Utilizing those mechanisms is part of the service. Do you need to file a writ of execution against the debtor? A collection agency can handle that. Likewise for requesting a debtor’s examination or placing a lien on the debtor’s property.
Private Investigators and Skip Tracing
The services of a PI could prove invaluable in a case where a judgment debtor skips town and leaves no forwarding information. Judgment Collectors says it does happen. But private investigators utilize a tool known as skip tracing to hunt deadbeat debtors.
Without getting into all the details of how they do it, skip tracing is a proven strategy that has been used by PIs, bounty hunters, and collection agencies for decades. At the hands of a skilled professional, skip tracing can yield incredibly helpful results.
Note that a judgment collection agency can also employ skip tracing techniques. Most due. An agency’s compensation is usually tied to its collection success. So agencies use every tool at their disposal to increase their chances of collecting.
A private investigator can be helpful during the judgment collection process by providing valuable information. But if a creditor is going to bring in outside help, a judgment collection agency might be a better option. You get the same investigative help along with additional services.
Chad Harrison
