How to Locate a Missing Relative for Free
There are many ways to look for missing loved ones, many of which are Internet-accessible. You should collect as much information on the missing person as possible and start by reaching out to those who knew the person to ascertain his or her most recent location and circumstances.
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Instructions
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Conducting the Search
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First, search locally. Check with police departments, fire and rescue departments and hospitals in the area where your loved one was last seen or heard from, to see if the person received emergency assistance or was arrested. If you’re not sure of the relative’s last location, check with friends, other family members, employers and any groups he was affiliated with.
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Do searches of online phone and e-mail directories to see if you can come up with any matches. Check websites for cities, states and courts that have name-based databases. The BRB’s public records resource center website provides a variety of links to some of them.
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Look for free sites hosted by generous folks that allow you to post messages asking visitors for help in locating a missing relative. Examples include CyberPages International and the Findlostones websites. Some let you post pictures as well as messages. These include genealogy websites that can help you identify other relatives you may not have met who might be able to help find the missing person.
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If your non-military loved one went missing overseas, contact the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), delegations of which are stationed in many countries to serve those in distress. National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies also have tracing services that may help. The steps these agencies take vary, based on “the situation and needs,” the ICRC says. You should also contact the U.S. embassy in the appropriate country, which provides sanctuary and other assistance to U.S. citizens and arranges for travel home. Both of these organizations try to visit citizens who are incarcerated in foreign jails.
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Contact the military locator service for the appropriate service branch if your relative is or, in some cases, was in the military, the Department of Defense Military Locator's website advises. The type and amount of information provided differs from one branch to another. For example, the Navy and Air Force will forward mail to service members; the Marine Corps will not. Some services provide information only on active duty, domestically based personnel; others provide a city and state for retirees but not a street address. This site provides a list of locator contact information for each branch.
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If you’re not sure whether your loved one is alive, check the Social Security Death Index to verify the person’s status, to which the Rootsweb website provides a link. County records departments also store death certificates.
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Tips & Warnings
If you have access to information the loved one has left behind, look through it for clues about where she might be or who might know. This includes letters and any tax, financial or other information available to fill in gaps, such as Social Security numbers, birth dates, close or periodic contacts, employment history or professional and social affiliations. Also consider checking voting records; political donations are accessible online. Finally, go through any trash the missing person might have left behind for clues.
Some military locators provide free information on loved ones to immediate relatives, but charge a small fee to other loved ones.
Beware of sites that offer to find the person's Social Security number; that information is confidential.
Some relatives may have gone missing intentionally and might object to seeing their names posted openly on websites. Be judicious about how much information about the loved one you post publicly to avoid violating his privacy.
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Comments
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How do people just disappear?
