Privacy and Cookie Policy

Last updated: 23 July 2026

We at Private Investigator protect your personal information through clear procedures, secure systems and responsible data-handling practices.

Private Investigators protects your personal information through clear procedures, secure systems and responsible data-handling practices.

Private Investigators protects your personal information at every stage, using secure systems and careful procedures to keep your data confidential.

This Privacy and Cookie Policy explains how we collect, use, store, disclose and protect personal information when you:

• visit privateinvestigator.co.uk, referred to in this policy as the “Site”;
• contact us about our private investigation services;
• request a quotation or Free 30-Minute Consultation;
• instruct us to provide services;
• communicate with us by telephone, email, post, live chat or another method; or
• are the subject of an enquiry or investigation undertaken for a client.

In this policy, any person who is the subject of a lawful enquiry or investigation is referred to as an “investigation subject”.

The Site is owned and operated by PD Consultants UK Ltd, trading as Private Investigators.

By using the Site, you acknowledge that your personal information will be handled as described in this policy. Where consent is required, including for certain cookies or electronic marketing, we will ask for it separately.

Who Is Responsible for Your Personal Information?

PD Consultants UK Ltd is the data controller responsible for deciding how and why personal information is processed through the Site and in connection with our services.

We process personal information in accordance with applicable United Kingdom data-protection and privacy law, including:

• the UK General Data Protection Regulation, known as the UK GDPR;
• the Data Protection Act 2018;
• the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003, known as PECR;
• the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025; and
• other applicable legislation, regulations and statutory guidance.

Our privacy and data-protection contact can be reached at:

Email: contact@privateinvestigator.co.uk
Telephone: 0800 061 4397

Where the Company is legally required to appoint a Data Protection Officer, details of that appointment will be made available through the Site.

Personal Information We Collect

Personal information means information relating to an identified or identifiable individual. It does not include information that has been irreversibly anonymised so that an individual can no longer be identified.

The personal information we collect depends on your relationship with us and the services being requested.

Information You Give Us

When you contact or instruct Private Investigators, we may collect:

• your full name;
• your home, business or correspondence address;
• your email address;
• your telephone number;
• information about your organisation or employment;
• details of the service you require;
• information you provide about an investigation subject;
• copies of correspondence and supporting documents;
• payment and transaction information;
• identity-verification information;
• recordings or notes of telephone calls, where permitted;
• your marketing preferences; and
• any other information you choose to provide.

You may give us this information when you:

• complete a contact or quotation form;
• request a Free 30-Minute Consultation;
• instruct us to provide private investigation services;
• speak to us by telephone;
• communicate by email, post, live chat or another messaging service;
• subscribe to communications;
• report a problem with the Site; or
• provide documents, photographs, video, audio or other evidence.

Please do not provide personal information about another person unless you have a lawful reason to do so.

Information Collected When You Use the Site

When you visit the Site, we may automatically collect technical and usage information, including:

• your Internet Protocol address;
• browser type and version;
• device type;
• operating system and platform;
• time-zone and approximate location settings;
• language preferences;
• browser plug-ins;
• pages viewed or searched;
• the date and time of your visit;
• referring and exit pages;
• links selected;
• page-response times;
• download or display errors;
• time spent on particular pages;
• scrolling, clicks and other page interactions;
• cookie identifiers and consent preferences; and
• information about how you arrived at or left the Site.

We use this information to operate, secure, analyse and improve the Site, subject to your cookie choices and applicable law.

Information Received from Other Sources

We may receive personal information from:

• our clients;
• subcontractors and specialist service providers;
• professional advisers;
• payment providers;
• publicly accessible registers and records;
• courts and tribunal records;
• credit-reference or information service providers;
• business and company information providers;
• social media and publicly accessible online sources;
• people connected with an enquiry;
• fraud-prevention and identity-verification providers; and
• other lawful information sources.

Information received may include names, addresses, contact details, identity information, company appointments, business interests, publicly reported legal proceedings and other information relevant to the service requested.

Payment-card information may be processed by an independent payment provider, such as Worldpay. Payment providers process information under their own privacy terms. We do not normally store complete payment-card details.

Information About Investigation Subjects

When we are lawfully instructed to conduct an investigation, we may collect and process information about the investigation subject and other relevant individuals.

Depending on the nature of the instruction, this may include:

• names and aliases;
• present and previous addresses;
• telephone numbers and email addresses;
• dates of birth and identity information;
• family, household or known associate information;
• employment and business information;
• company directorships and ownership interests;
• financial or asset-related information where lawfully available;
• court, tribunal, insolvency or public-record information;
• location and movement information;
• photographs, video footage and audio material;
• online and social-media information;
• witness or source information;
• information relevant to fraud, misconduct or legal proceedings; and
• reports, observations and supporting evidence.

Private Investigator only undertakes enquiries where we have identified a lawful purpose and an appropriate legal basis.

We gather, verify and preserve information professionally to produce Evidence to a Court Standard where required. We cannot guarantee that a court, tribunal or other decision-maker will admit or place a particular weight on any item of evidence.

Special Category and Criminal-Offence Information

Some instructions may involve information that receives additional legal protection, including information about:

• health;
• racial or ethnic origin;
• political opinions;
• religious or philosophical beliefs;
• trade-union membership;
• genetics or biometrics;
• sex life or sexual orientation; or
• alleged or proven criminal offences.

We only process this information where it is relevant, proportionate and permitted by law. Where required, we will identify both an Article 6 lawful basis and an applicable additional condition under UK data-protection legislation.

How We Use Personal Information

We may use personal information to:

• respond to enquiries;
• provide a Free 30-Minute Consultation;
• prepare quotations and service proposals;
• assess whether we can accept an instruction;
• verify a client’s identity and authority;
• administer and manage client accounts;
• enter into and perform contracts;
• plan, conduct and report on investigations;
• communicate with clients and relevant third parties;
• collect and preserve Evidence to a Court Standard;
• process payments and maintain financial records;
• manage complaints and data-protection requests;
• comply with legal, regulatory, taxation and accounting obligations;
• establish, exercise or defend legal claims;
• prevent fraud, misuse and unlawful activity;
• protect our rights, property, systems, staff, clients and the public;
• maintain the security and operation of the Site;
• analyse and improve our services;
• manage suppliers, subcontractors and professional advisers;
• maintain appropriate business records; and
• send marketing communications where legally permitted.

We will only use personal information for a new purpose where the law allows it or where we have obtained any required consent.

Our Lawful Bases for Processing

We do not rely on consent for every type of processing. The lawful basis depends on the purpose and circumstances.

We may rely on:

Consent

We may rely on consent where you have made a freely given, specific, informed and unambiguous choice.

This may apply to:

• certain non-essential cookies;
• selected electronic marketing communications; or
• any other optional use that we have clearly explained to you.

You may withdraw consent at any time. Withdrawing consent does not make any earlier lawful processing invalid.

Contract

We may process information where it is necessary to:

• take steps at your request before entering into a contract; or
• perform a contract with you.

This may include responding to your instruction, providing services, communicating with you, issuing reports and processing payments.

Legal Obligation

We may process information where necessary to comply with a legal obligation, including obligations relating to:

• taxation;
• accounting;
• fraud prevention;
• court orders;
• regulatory requirements;
• data-protection rights; and
• the reporting or prevention of unlawful activity.

Legitimate Interests

We process personal information where it is necessary to support our legitimate interests, or those of a client or third party, unless the individual’s rights and freedoms take priority.

These interests may include:

• conducting lawful investigations;
• tracing individuals;
• detecting or preventing fraud;
• protecting legal rights;
• supporting actual or anticipated legal proceedings;
• verifying claims or representations;
• protecting people, property and commercial interests;
• operating and securing our business;
• maintaining appropriate records; and
• improving our services.

Where appropriate, we assess the purpose, necessity and impact of the processing before relying on legitimate interests.

Vital Interests

In limited circumstances, we may process information where necessary to protect somebody’s life or physical safety.

Public Interest or Official Authority

This basis will normally apply only where processing is necessary for a task in the public interest or the exercise of official authority that has a clear basis in law.

When We May Be Unable to Provide Services

We may be unable to accept or continue an instruction if you do not provide the information we need to enter into or perform a contract, comply with the law or confirm that the instruction is lawful.

Where this happens, we will explain the position where reasonably possible.

Marketing Communications

We may send information about related services where:

• you have consented;
• the law permits us to contact you as an existing customer; or
• another lawful basis is available.

You can opt out at any time by:

• using the unsubscribe facility in an email;
• replying to a communication;
• emailing contact@privateinvestigator.co.uk; or
• telephoning 0800 061 4397.

Opting out of marketing does not stop essential communications about an existing enquiry, instruction, contract, payment, report, complaint or legal matter.

We will not sell your personal information to third parties for their independent marketing.

Disclosure of Personal Information

We may share personal information with carefully selected recipients where necessary and lawful.

Recipients may include:

• companies within our corporate group;
• specialist investigators and subcontractors;
• professional advisers, including solicitors and accountants;
• information and data-service providers;
• payment processors;
• website, hosting, cloud and technology providers;
• communications and live-chat providers;
• analytics and security providers;
• insurers;
• courts and tribunals;
• law-enforcement or regulatory bodies;
• government departments;
• prospective buyers, sellers or advisers involved in a business transfer; and
• other parties authorised by the client or required by law.

Subcontractors and service providers are only given access to information needed for their work. Where they act as processors, they must follow our documented instructions, protect the information and use it only for authorised purposes.

Some parties may act as independent data controllers and will be responsible for their own handling of personal information.

We may disclose information without advance notice where disclosure is reasonably necessary to:

• comply with a legal obligation, court order or lawful request;
• establish, exercise or defend legal rights;
• prevent or investigate fraud or unlawful conduct;
• protect the rights, property, security or safety of the Company, our clients or another person;
• enforce our contractual terms; or
• support a proposed sale, restructuring or transfer of all or part of the business.

Confidential Information Sources

Maintaining the confidentiality of lawful information sources may be important to our work and to the rights and safety of other people.

We will provide privacy information and respond to rights requests in accordance with applicable law. However, information may sometimes be withheld, restricted or redacted where a lawful exemption applies, including where disclosure would adversely affect another person’s rights, reveal confidential information, prejudice an investigation or conflict with legal privilege.

Any exemption will be considered on the facts of the particular case and will not be applied automatically.

International Transfers

Some service providers may store or process information outside the United Kingdom.

Where a restricted international transfer takes place, we will use a legally recognised transfer mechanism where required. Depending on the destination and recipient, this may include:

• United Kingdom adequacy regulations;
• the UK International Data Transfer Agreement;
• the UK Addendum to approved standard contractual clauses;
• another legally permitted safeguard; or
• a specific statutory exception where appropriate.

Where required, we will also assess whether the protection provided in the destination country is not materially lower than the protection required under United Kingdom data-protection law.

For more information about relevant transfer safeguards, contact contact@privateinvestigator.co.uk.

How We Protect Personal Information

We use appropriate technical and organisational measures designed to protect personal information against:

• unauthorised access;
• unlawful use;
• accidental loss;
• alteration;
• destruction; and
• unauthorised disclosure.

Measures may include:

• password and access controls;
• encryption where appropriate;
• protected cloud systems;
• secure internal databases;
• physical security;
• confidentiality obligations;
• role-based access;
• staff and contractor procedures;
• secure deletion and disposal;
• supplier due diligence;
• backups and resilience measures; and
• incident-management procedures.

Access is limited to people who have a genuine business need to know the information.

Although we take reasonable precautions, no internet transmission or storage system can be guaranteed to be completely secure. Information sent electronically is transmitted at the sender’s risk.

Where required by law, we will notify affected individuals and the Information Commissioner’s Office of a personal-data breach.

How Long We Keep Personal Information

We keep personal information only for as long as reasonably necessary for the purpose for which it was collected, including the need to:

• complete an instruction;
• deliver and confirm receipt of a report;
• respond to follow-up enquiries;
• meet legal, taxation, insurance and accounting requirements;
• deal with complaints or disputes;
• establish, exercise or defend legal claims; and
• maintain appropriate evidence of the services provided.

Retention periods vary according to the type of record and the circumstances of the case.

When deciding how long to retain information, we consider:

• the amount, nature and sensitivity of the information;
• the purpose of processing;
• the risk of harm from unauthorised use or disclosure;
• contractual and legal requirements;
• applicable limitation periods;
• whether the purpose can be achieved in another way; and
• whether secure deletion, anonymisation or restricted archiving is appropriate.

Investigation files will be securely deleted or destroyed when they are no longer required, subject to any continuing legal, contractual, insurance, evidential or regulatory requirement.

We do not promise to retain only an individual’s name after every instruction. Information that must be retained for a lawful business, evidential or legal purpose may be kept for the applicable retention period.

Your Data-Protection Rights

Depending on the circumstances and the lawful basis used, you may have the right to:

Request Access

You may ask whether we process your personal information and request a copy of the information, together with relevant supplementary information.

Request Correction

You may ask us to correct inaccurate information or complete information that is incomplete.

Request Erasure

You may ask us to delete personal information in certain circumstances. This is not an absolute right, and we may retain information where there is a lawful reason to do so.

Request Restriction

You may ask us to restrict how information is used in certain circumstances.

Object to Processing

You may object to processing based on legitimate interests or to processing for direct marketing.

Request Data Portability

Where processing is based on consent or contract and is carried out by automated means, you may be entitled to receive certain information in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format.

Withdraw Consent

Where processing is based on consent, you may withdraw that consent at any time.

Rights Relating to Automated Decisions

You may have rights in relation to decisions based solely on automated processing that produce legal or similarly significant effects.

We do not ordinarily make significant decisions about clients or investigation subjects solely through automated processing.

Exercising Your Rights

To exercise a data-protection right, contact:

Email: contact@privateinvestigator.co.uk
Telephone: 0800 061 4397
Post: [Insert privacy correspondence address]

You do not normally have to pay a fee.

A request for information needed to verify your identity and authority may be required. We may also ask you to clarify the information or processing to which your request relates where this is reasonably necessary.

We will respond within the period required by law. We will usually respond to a valid request within one calendar month. We may extend this period where the request is complex or where you have made several requests.

A request may be refused, or a reasonable fee charged, where permitted by law, including where it is manifestly unfounded or excessive.

Your rights may also be subject to exemptions. For example, we may need to protect:

• another person’s rights and freedoms;
• confidential information;
• legally privileged material;
• the prevention or detection of crime;
• taxation matters;
• regulatory functions;
• management information; or
• the integrity of an investigation or legal proceeding.

Any restriction will be considered individually and explained where legally permitted.

Data-Protection Complaints

You may complain if you believe that we have handled personal information incorrectly or failed to comply with data-protection law.

Please send your complaint to:

Email: contact@privateinvestigator.co.uk
Telephone: 0800 061 4397
Post: [Insert privacy correspondence address]

Please provide:

• your name and contact details;
• an explanation of your concern;
• relevant dates;
• copies of relevant correspondence; and
• the outcome you are seeking.

We will acknowledge a data-protection complaint within 30 days, investigate it appropriately and communicate the outcome without undue delay.

You also have the right to raise a concern with the Information Commissioner’s Office. We ask that you contact us first so that we have an opportunity to investigate and resolve the matter.

Cookies and Similar Technologies

Cookies are small text files or pieces of information stored on or accessed from your computer, telephone, tablet or other device.

Cookies and similar technologies may be used to:

• enable the Site to operate;
• protect the Site from misuse;
• remember your choices;
• provide live-chat or contact functionality;
• understand how visitors use the Site;
• measure performance;
• personalise content; and
• support relevant advertising, where used and consented to.

The rules apply not only to traditional cookies but also to comparable technologies that store information on or access information from a user’s device.

Types of Cookies We May Use

Strictly Necessary Cookies

These cookies are essential for the Site or a service you have requested to operate.

They may be used for:

• security;
• network management;
• fraud prevention;
• storing privacy choices;
• maintaining a session;
• processing forms; or
• providing functionality expressly requested by the user.

Strictly necessary cookies do not normally require consent, but we will still provide clear information about them.

Analytics and Performance Cookies

These cookies help us understand:

• how many people visit the Site;
• which pages are viewed;
• how visitors move around the Site;
• whether errors occur; and
• how the Site can be improved.

Analytics cookies will not be placed unless you have provided any consent required by law.

Functionality Cookies

These cookies may remember choices such as:

• language;
• region;
• display preferences;
• chat settings; or
• previous selections.

Some functionality cookies may require consent depending on whether they are essential to a service you have requested.

Advertising and Targeting Cookies

These cookies may record visits, pages viewed and links selected so that advertising or content can be made more relevant.

Advertising and targeting cookies are not strictly necessary and will not be placed without valid consent.

First-Party and Third-Party Cookies

First-party cookies are placed directly by the Site.

Third-party cookies are placed by external providers whose services appear on the Site. These may include:

• website analytics providers;
• live-chat providers;
• embedded media providers;
• advertising providers;
• security providers; and
• other integrated services.

Third parties may process information under their own privacy policies.

Where Zendesk or another live-chat provider is used, the provider may place cookies needed to operate or analyse the chat service. The cookies actually used should be confirmed through the Site’s cookie consent tool and current cookie audit.

Cookie Consent

When you first visit the Site, you will be shown a cookie notice or consent-management tool.

Except where an exemption applies, non-essential cookies will not be placed unless you consent.

The consent tool should allow you to:

• accept optional cookies;
• reject optional cookies;
• select cookie categories; and
• change or withdraw your choices.

Rejecting non-essential cookies should be as straightforward as accepting them.

You may change your preferences at any time through the cookie settings link displayed on the Site.

Controlling Cookies Through Your Browser

Most browsers allow you to:

• view stored cookies;
• delete cookies;
• block first-party or third-party cookies;
• block all cookies;
• receive a warning before a cookie is placed; or
• browse in a privacy mode.

Blocking all cookies, including strictly necessary cookies, may cause parts of the Site to stop working.

Refer to your browser’s help or privacy settings for instructions.

Cookie Details and Retention Periods

The Site should maintain an up-to-date cookie list showing:

• the cookie name;
• the provider;
• its purpose;
• its category;
• whether it is first-party or third-party; and
• how long it remains on the device.

Because cookies and embedded services may change, this information should be generated from a current cookie audit and displayed through the Site’s cookie settings tool or a dedicated cookie table.

Links to Other Websites

The Site may contain links to websites operated by partners, suppliers, advertisers, affiliates, social networks or other third parties.

Those websites have their own privacy and cookie policies. We are not responsible for their content, security or handling of personal information.

Review the relevant third-party policy before submitting personal information.

Children’s Personal Information

Our services are not directed at children and we do not knowingly invite children to submit personal information through the Site.

Information about a child may sometimes be processed as part of a lawful instruction. In those circumstances, we will apply appropriate safeguards and consider the child’s rights and best interests.

Automated Spam Detection

Visitor comments, contact submissions or messages may be checked through an automated spam-detection or website-security service.

Information supplied through a form may therefore be processed by the relevant security provider for the purpose of detecting spam, fraud, malicious content or misuse.

Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy and Cookie Policy to reflect:

• changes to our services;
• changes to the Site;
• changes to suppliers or cookies;
• operational changes;
• new regulatory guidance; or
• amendments to the law.

The current version will be published on this page with its effective date.

Where a change materially affects how we use personal information, we will provide additional notice where appropriate.