Blog - Alpha 1 Legal Services

RFID Skimming

Friday 6 Feb 2015 - 04:01:19

As promised, this week we are going to look at RFID Skimming. First of all we need to know what RFID is. RFID is short for Radio Frequency Identification. In simple terms this is when electromagnetic fields are used to store and transfer data. This technology can be used as a chip that is not […]

Private Investigator Spy Apps?

Friday 30 Jan 2015 - 10:51:59

Private investigator spy apps? An integral part of the modern, professional private investigator tool kit is the mobile phone. Of course these days they are not just a phone but they are a smartphone. They are great. Almost everybody has one. One of the best things about them is the ability to download apps. Apps […]

Bankruptcy Process Server

Saturday 24 Jan 2015 - 02:36:31

It’s seems a long time ago that we looked at insolvency and how a bankruptcy process server is involved. There are plans to make changes to the minimum and maximum amounts of money that determine whether a debtor can be allowed on a Debt Relief Order (DRO) or issued a bankruptcy creditor notice. You can […]

Surveillance Guidelines in Care Homes

Friday 16 Jan 2015 - 11:16:26

Surveillance guidelines – Welcome back to our blog, this week we are providing a brief summary of the last 6 guidelines issued by the Care Quality Commission in respect of the use of CCTV and covert surveillance camera systems by the providers of care facilities. What Are The Covert Surveillance Guidelines? Remember that this is […]

Surveillance in Care Homes

Saturday 10 Jan 2015 - 12:58:59

Surveillance in care homes? Since our last post the Care Quality Commission have published guidelines for health and social care workers regarding the use of surveillance in their facilities. This and next week’s post will summarise those guidelines. A care provider must have reasons for using covert surveillance in care homes. Common acceptable reasons are the […]

Covert Camera Systems

Friday 19 Dec 2014 - 01:15:00

This week we are continuing the theme of covert camera systems and CCTV in care. There have been many terrible reports about the mistreatment of not just vulnerable elderly people but also disabled people that live in residential care. There have been numerous incidents in the news over the last few years and a Panorama […]

Covert Cameras in Care Homes

Saturday 13 Dec 2014 - 12:57:15

Last month we looked at the different covert cameras that can be used to catch a cheating husband or wife. This week we are going to look at the use of covert camera systems in care homes. What is the evidence for covert cameras? There are 18,000 care homes in the UK that provide either […]

Private Investigator & Safety Regulations

Saturday 6 Dec 2014 - 01:36:18

Private Investigator safety? As technology progresses, the technology companies find cheaper and cheaper ways of doing things and so the cost to the consumer is vastly reduced. Only 20 years ago the price of a CD burner was in the tens of thousands, now they can be bought for just a few pounds. This is […]

Private Investigator Services And The Police

Friday 28 Nov 2014 - 01:46:43

If you are a regular reader of our blog you will perhaps remember that back in September we wrote about how the police service were asking victims to help them solve the crimes that had affected them. This was in part due to the drastic cuts in police numbers and funding. Well, failing police forces […]

How to Catch a Cheating Husband With DVR’s

Saturday 22 Nov 2014 - 04:46:03

How to catch a cheating husband? This often requires a Private Investigator to record images from a distance with limited light or dark conditions. In this weeks post we look at the advantages and disadvantages of the different night vision technologies that help the Private Investigator work throughout the night. How to Catch A Cheating husband? […]

Cheating Wife

Friday 14 Nov 2014 - 06:46:53

In our recent posts we have generally classified the cheat as the husband, although relationship statistics released earlier this year show that 14% of married women admit to cheating. The same research revealed that the average length of an affair is 2 years. If you suspect you have a cheating wife or girlfriend a professional […]

Cheating Husbands

Friday 7 Nov 2014 - 11:06:38

We are staying with the theme of catching a cheating husbands again this week as we look at the features of the cameras available in today’s market that a professional Private Investigator keeps in their investigation tool kit. Probably the most sophisticated technology for surveillance is the MK1 Eyeball, (for the uninitiated this is the […]

Catch Cheating Husband

Saturday 1 Nov 2014 - 02:38:22

We are venturing back to the bread and butter work for most private investigators. Yes you’ve guessed it, we are talking about catching cheating husbands again. In this post we will be looking at how a private investigator can help you find the truth. Catch Cheating husband – Methods Employed Some women are very cautious […]

Bankrupt

Monday 27 Oct 2014 - 04:52:10

Last time we looked at what’s involved in serving a statutory demand when someone owes you money. As promised, this week we are going to explain the next step in the process should the statutory demand not result in payment. What Is The Process Of Being Made Bankrupt? So you’ve served the Statutory Demand, waited […]

Statutory Demand

Saturday 18 Oct 2014 - 01:38:03

It’s coming up to Christmas. For most people it’s a time of festive fun, but unfortunately it all comes at a cost and there are many people out there that end up spending more than they can actually afford and getting into unmanageable debt. If you have provided a product or service and not received […]

Cheating Husband Prenuptial

Friday 26 Sep 2014 - 09:26:46

It’s been a while since we last looked at cheating husband,wife,boyfriend,girlfriend and divorce, so we thought we would revisit this issue, but from a different perspective, a cheating husband prenuptial. When the divorce stats began in 1858 there was 24 divorces in the entire year as oppose to 118,140 in 2012. There were 262,240 marriages […]

A Process Server Is Worth The Money

Friday 19 Sep 2014 - 09:09:23

The UK government has put a pot of money aside to help people pay for legal services and has been around since 1949. Before this there was something called Poor Man’s Laws, the fees of a court appointed counsel would be waived. Legal Aid is one of the many benefits of living in the UK. […]

Police Cutting Back?

Saturday 13 Sep 2014 - 01:07:39

Last time we looked at how the police are already asking civilians to investigate crimes that they have been the victim of. This week it’s been reported across the media that the powers that be want to reduce the number of serving Chief police officers. Are the Police Cutting Back? The BBC interviewed Irene Curtis […]

Investigators, still a Job for the Police?

Saturday 6 Sep 2014 - 10:10:14

Did you know Great Britain has a national network of investigators & Police, well it does. In 2013 according to the Office of National Statistics (ONS) there were 129,584 full time serving police officers in England and Wales. The Telegraph published an interesting report yesterday about how the police are needing the public to support […]

Private Investigators Investigate Fraud

Friday 29 Aug 2014 - 01:46:11

Whether your case involves benefit, insurance or corporate frauds there are things that should be considered when you investigate fraud. This post looks at the top 10 things that need to be taken into account to ensure a successful conclusion to a case when you investigate fraud. The Law. Investigators carrying out an investigation of […]

Private Investigators on TV

Friday 22 Aug 2014 - 10:41:16

Private Investigators on tv? We are fast approaching the end of the summer holidays and we thought we would take a lighthearted look at popular ones. It has been harder than it sounds to gather a list of fictional private investigators rather than the classic cop sleuths we are inundated with. So here are our […]

Private Investigators Support Solicitors

Saturday 16 Aug 2014 - 09:12:56

Private Investigators support solicitors, however, we can all guess why a member of the general public would want to hire a private investigator firm. The classics are to trace missing relatives or confirm the faithfulness of a partner. However, as a solicitor you might consider the option of using a one-stop shop. This is where […]

The Private Investigator Data Protection

Friday 8 Aug 2014 - 10:00:20

We all need a data protection refresher course every now and then. This post looks at the Data Protection Act 1998 and the implications for Private Investigators. Recent reports in the national newspapers about the activities of Glenn Mulcaire highlight the need to bear the Act in mind when carrying out investigations. It should be […]

Vehicle Tracking Use

Friday 25 Jul 2014 - 09:29:51

With vehicle tracking use, back in May this year we wrote a detailed post that looked at the different types of technology that is used in vehicle tracking devices, we are going to build on that this week by looking at the circumstances where it will be useful and the guidelines that should be followed. […]

Private Investigators Use Drones

Friday 18 Jul 2014 - 10:27:40

Drones are like the remote control planes and helicopters we had as children. However technology has moved on in leaps and bounds and some models are no longer just toys as they carry recording equipment and can even connect to the internet and download data in real time. Up until very recently hi-tech drones have […]

UK Investigation Company Wins Award

Friday 11 Jul 2014 - 09:39:56

This week we are taking a break from looking at all the different aspects of private investigation and it’s associated tasks. UK Investigation Company Wins Award So what are we looking at instead? Yes, you’ve guessed it, the M and A Awards. UK Investigation Company Wins Award, But who? Yes, it Alpha 1 Legal Services! […]

Licensing Professional Investigators

Friday 4 Jul 2014 - 11:18:59

We are half way through the year and getting ever closer to the government’s introduction of Professional Investigators Licensing, and with this licence will come the regulation of the industry. In this post we will be looking at the Top 5 benefits that licensing will bring for both the general public, as well as to the […]

Counter Surveillance Techniques

Friday 20 Jun 2014 - 09:42:45

One of the main themes in our blog has been surveillance, whether it’s been the equipment used or the benefits of using surveillance techniques to catch a cheating husband, wife, girlfriend, boyfriend or partner. For this mini series of posts we will be looking at counter surveillance techniques. The first post is about using counter […]

Hire Process Servers, How To?

Saturday 14 Jun 2014 - 12:56:45

How do you hire Process Servers? To hire process servers in the U.K. is easy. It is estimated that there are somewhere in the region of about a thousand Private Investigators working as Process Servers in the UK. A Process Server is someone who delivers court documents and legal documents to companies and members of […]

Hire Private Investigator

Friday 6 Jun 2014 - 08:52:48

How to choose a Private Investigator? There are a lot of Private Investigation companies out there, In fact it is estimated that there are around 10,000 investigators in the UK, so we need a few ways to narrow down the options and ensure you hire the right investigator. So, how do you choose the right […]

RIPA & Surveillance

Friday 30 May 2014 - 10:00:13

In this post we will be looking at the definitions of the different types of surveillance and how RIPA affects it. First of all, let’s define covert surveillance: Covert meaning hidden and surveillance meaning watching or monitoring a person or thing with or without using technology as an aid. This can be either by following […]

Evict Travellers, How do I?

Saturday 24 May 2014 - 10:34:43

Need to know how to evict travellers who set up their mobile homes on your land without your permission. So how do I evict travellers? Did you know that trespass is not actually a crime? It is a civil matter. By mobile home, we mean things like camper vans, tents, or caravans. This means […]

Tracking Vehicles

Friday 16 May 2014 - 09:37:23

These days vehicle tracking systems are becoming an integral part of a surveillance strategy, whether it is to find out if your partner is cheating, or you need to monitor the whereabouts of employees that frequently travel on company time in a company car, or even remain compliant with the terms of an insurance policy […]

Investigator Essentials

Friday 9 May 2014 - 02:23:48

Builders have hammers, plumbers have plungers. Every trade person has their own collection of essential tools without which their job would be nigh on impossible. Private investigators are no exception. Private Investigator Essentials This post looks at the top 5 tools every local private investigator should own. 1. Cobra Deluxe Spy Stick. Retailing at approximately […]

Child Abduction

Friday 25 Apr 2014 - 11:04:42

In this weeks post, we have gone for a change in direction as we tackle the sensitive subject of parental child abduction. Child abduction (parental), the CEOP (Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre) has reported the rather startling fact that in total over 140,000 missing children every year. This equates to one child every 3 […]

Tackling Benefit Fraud

Friday 18 Apr 2014 - 08:59:26

Continuing on with the theme of investigating fraud, this week are going to look at the murky world of the people that claim benefits that they are not entitled to. Fraud…….It’s a huge problem that cost the UK taxpayers approximately 2 billion pounds in 2012. In December last year the Express ran a story which […]

Fighting Fraud With Surveillance

Friday 11 Apr 2014 - 09:27:28

Do you know why your insurance premiums go up even when you haven’t made a claim? Most people would hazard the correct guess that it is really down to the cost of fraudulent claims. Fighting Fraud………According to the Insurance Fraud Bureau the Association of British Insurers estimates the real cost to the average insurance policyholder […]

Forensic Data Recovery

Friday 4 Apr 2014 - 11:13:21

These days we all have constant access to digital data through the ever-evolving range of electronic mobile devices. We all have our own digiprint (a bit like a footprint but harder to eradicate) that leaves a trail across our social media platforms, call and text histories. This makes it much harder to get away with […]

Cheating Spouse?

Friday 28 Mar 2014 - 10:05:15

You may have noticed that in the last few posts there has been a theme. We have looked at the different ways you can find hard evidence that you have a cheating spouses. This was including the use of a private investigator. So you have found out that your one true love is no longer […]

Catch Cheating Partners

Friday 21 Mar 2014 - 12:04:50

Can you tell if your husband, wife, girlfriend or boyfriend is cheating? What do you do if they deny it? How do you know if you have a cheating partner? We can help catch cheating partner. The statistics from the Journal of Marital and Family Therapy 2014 shows that 41% of married people admitted to […]

Surveillance Equipment Essentials

Friday 14 Mar 2014 - 09:15:14

Have you ever wondered what surveillance equipment a private investigator keeps close when they are on a surveillance stakeout or attempting to catch a cheating husband or wife? This post will answer that question for you. However, it is worth noting that new technologies are released regularly and so there may be ‘gadgets’ not on […]

Track a Cheating Husband.

Friday 7 Mar 2014 - 04:46:45

When questioned about installing a Global Positioning System (GPS) most people would say that you would use it for trying to catch out a cheating husband, wife, girlfriend or boyfriend. There are however more reasons that you might want to use them, for example to track an employee who is carrying expensive merchandise or important […]

ICO – Data Protection

Friday 28 Feb 2014 - 09:39:59

ICO – Data protection should be at the top of the list of things to be concerned about for everyone. ICO – Data Protection, The law that was issued in 1988 states that any information, in any format, (digital, paper, visual or audio) that is held about a person must be secure, must be up […]

Tracing People with Private Investigators

Sunday 12 Jan 2014 - 11:52:38

Most people have certain preconceptions about the role of the private investigator. But in reality there are a number of different services offered. One task frequently carried out by our private investigators is the tracing of individuals. Most commonly this involves the tracing of debtors. But these skills can also be put to good use […]

Process Servers & Statutory Demands

Monday 6 Jan 2014 - 09:49:59

When serving Statutory Demands, our process servers have recently had to clarify the timings needed between the letter of appointment being sent out and the Bailiff / Investigator re-attending for service. The main provision concerning the time for service is found in the Practice Directions: Insolvency Rules [2000]. These state that “a first class pre-paid letter […]

Travellers Evicted from Illegal Camp

Sunday 29 Dec 2013 - 11:00:15

A private landowner was given a shock during the bank holiday weekend when an illegal traveller camp was set up on their retail park. This occurred to the north of Gloucester on Saturday afternoon. Within no time, the camp was set up. Once the land was occupied, the owners tried to negotiate with the travellers to […]

Private Investigators Help to Trace Debtors

Friday 20 Dec 2013 - 12:47:10

According to a recent report British taxpayers will have to pay for graduates who have left the country without paying debts. Private investigators have been called in to track down overseas graduates from UK universities who have left the country owing millions of pounds. We have found at Alpha 1 Legal Services, that we are […]

Trespassers and Private Land

Saturday 14 Dec 2013 - 01:01:11

In this country the scarcity of land is fast becoming a large problem for people. Many years ago, before the land was so densely populated, it was easier for travellers to pitch their camps wherever they so wished. People travelling to summer festivals sometimes think they can camp anywhere they please. For local landowners who […]

Private Investigators Image

Saturday 7 Dec 2013 - 12:36:40

The private investigators image that springs to mind, when one thinks of private investigators is the type of private eye or snoop that was romanticised in cinema. Like Jack Nicholson’s character in Chinatown, the British Sherlock Homes or even Hercule Poirot as made famous by Agatha Christie. However, professional investigators services are in demand in […]

Private Investigators In The UK Win Top Award

Saturday 23 Nov 2013 - 12:41:50

Alpha 1 Legal Services, one of the leading private investigator companies in the UK, is pleased to announce it has been voted as “UK Investigation Company of the Year 2014/15” at the Acquisition International M&A Awards. Private investigators win award! Alpha 1 Legal Services operate not only across the country with a number of legal […]

Private Investigators & Process Serving

Saturday 16 Nov 2013 - 01:35:44

As a professional process serving company it never ceases to amaze and mystify us here at Alpha 1 Legal Services, particularly on a Friday. At approximately 4:30 in the afternoon, we will receive a stream of calls from solicitors, government departments and other agencies with a request process serving to serve documents upon an individual or […]

Anti Fraud Surveillance Services

Sunday 10 Nov 2013 - 12:42:22

Being a private investigation company using anti fraud surveillance services in the UK on a daily basis, we are often called upon to investigate false claims of sickness on behalf of employers and government departments. Our fraud surveillance services are used nationwide. In most cases their suspicions are not unfounded, which is why they engage a […]

Private Investigators and the Use of Vehicle Tracking Devices

Sunday 20 Oct 2013 - 11:58:12

I have mentioned to clients many times, how beneficial our vehicle tracking devices can be in their enquiries. They are a great tool for providing intelligence to our investigators as to the movements and habits of someone (when deployed legally I might add). Gradually over the last year we have seen a surge in demand for hire […]

Private Investigators and Licensing in the UK

Saturday 28 Sep 2013 - 02:52:08

The Parliamentary Home Affairs Select Committee report has now been published. The Report makes a number of recommendations to Parliament, for the licensing of the Private Investigators industry which includes: – 1. The term “Private Investigators” be protected for use by those regulated. 2. An introduction of a two-tier system of licensing of a private […]

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