Investigator rates vary as much as the assignments we take
on. Most are charged by the hour, with the hourly rate changing by the expertise
required. Some assignments though are
charged for the actual search, or inquiry …… in the paragraphs below we attempt
to give you an idea of how charges can work.
Australian privacy laws are quite strict, and much of the
information we collect nowadays is by using surveillance. This means we have an
agent (or more) in the field gathering information by observation. It might
involve following a business associate, partner, or employee to see what they
may be getting up to. This is charged in a very straightforward manner – by the
hour. Most PI firms will charge an
hourly rate PLUS gst PLUS mileage PLUS travel time to and from the job PLUS
video PLUS pictures PLUS report. This is where Lipstick Investigations is
different – our hourly rate might be slightly higher than some other companies
but we are ALL INCLUSIVE on the above costs. We just charge you a flat rate per
hour with everything else included (some exceptions apply from site to site).
There are no nasty surprises at the end of the job.
A ‘person location’ job is charged differently. This is very
difficult to charge by the hour unless we are out of the office carrying out
field inquiries, so we tend to just charge you a flat fee of $400 to commence a
location job, and an additional $400 becomes payable when we get the result. If
we don’t get the result then you have only spent the minimum. We have heard of
some companies that charge $250 to find someone….. and we find this amazing! How
hard can they be working for just $250??? We know that at that price they can’t
afford to check a number of databases that we belong to, it just isn’t
possible. So whilst you haven’t spent much, you are also a lot less likely to
get the result you need. Please also be
aware that these rates are a guideline and we really do need to hear your
individual circumstances before being able to commit to this, but 80% of our
‘locates’ are done in this fashion.
Background and asset checks can be difficult to quote.
Typically though a background check rate starts at around $1000, and an asset
check rate at around $500 depending on the levels required, but once again we
really do need to assess your needs and expectations before proceeding.
And then there is a big area of investigation that we like
to label ‘Everything Else’. Private investigation in Australia is such a small
industry, but encompasses so many different things. Some people come to us for
one small piece of information, and others need everything. Send us an inquiry
if you have any queries.
What you have to remember is that investigations aren’t
always straightforward, and we don’t always know where we will be able to pick
up the evidence from, or how long it will take to get it. This is by nature the
definition of INVESTIGATION - we don’t have the answers in front of us waiting for
a client to call, we have to go and INVESTIGATE once we have a brief of the
requirements.
Give us a call on 1300LIPSTICK or email us at
enquiries@lipstickinvestigations.com.au for a free discussion of your
circumstances, and then we can confirm the investigator rates.
