Can Private Investigators Use Drones?

The answer to the question can private investigators use drones is yes and M.R.Investigations have been using the technology for some time now. We have used them to assist us on many occasions over the last six months and their use has been invaluable. We have used them to assist us with surveillance in Coventry and Warwickshire in a number of ways that will be explained later and are definitely a welcome tool to our arsenal.

Is it legal?

Again the answer is yes as long as we adhere to privacy laws, just as we would when filming with conventional camera technologies and fly within the CAA guidelines, then it is perfectly okay to use them as a surveillance tool. All of our operatives have operator and flyer ID’s which are required by law and you can rest assured we will always use such devices in the full constraints of the law.

When would a private detective use a drone and how would it help me?

We often use them for reconnaissance exercises, prior to a physical surveillance to plan and identify potential exit points for our subjects of enquiry as well as potential positions our operatives could take to get a view onto a property.

We have used them to obtain footage on the actual surveillance exercise when our subjects have gone somewhere that we would not be able to follow physically due to risk of being compromised. Our drones are very small and quiet and can be flown without detection, with all footage recorded in high definition which can be used for evidential purposes.

This increases our chance of obtaining crucial evidence that would have otherwise been impossible to gain. On a recent surveillance  exercise we were working for a corporate client that suspected theft from one of their employees. Drone footage showed the suspect burying stock in undergrowth outside the warehouse perimeter, ready for later collection. You can imagine his surprise when he arrived after dark to find us waiting for him!

© M.R.Investigations 5th May 2021.