Another area where a private investigator would be of great assistance is when you need to locate someone such as a missing family member or someone who may owe you money. Most private investigators have access to a database of information which will aid them in finding someone. Also, a good investigator will have contacts in other parts of the country which is also invaluable when you are trying to find someone. While every missing person is not found, you have a much better chance if you hire a professional private investigator. Another instance when hiring a private investigator would be a wise decision is that of suspected insurance fraud. It is estimated that workers compensation fraud costs the nation billions of dollars each year. Workers compensation fraud means that a worker claims an injury that they do not have or exaggerates the extent of their injury so that they can file a workers compensation claim. This allows the worker to claim workers compensation insurance that they are not entitled to. A worker's compensation investigator may check medical records, and other records to determine whether a worker is truly injured. They may also run background checks to see whether a worker has filed numerous compensation claims in the past or has been convicted of workers compensation fraud in the past. Investigators may also use audio, video, and other types of surveillance to determine whether an individual worker is really as injured as they seem. And finally workers compensation investigators may interview coworkers, friends and family in trying to find out how extensive the worker's injuries are. If you are a business owner, are an insurance agent, or if you are responsible for employees or workers, a workers comp investigation can help ensure that each of the workers filing a worker's comp claim are entitled to the compensation they receive. This helps limit the loss of manpower and loss of the insurance companies money. These are just some of the more common situations when hiring a private investigator would be a very good idea. If you do decide to hire a private investigator you want to make sure of there licensing and qualifications.