How to Skip Trace Someone

Finding a debtor doesn't require a private detective.

If you lend money or extend goods and services to someone, you expect to be paid back. Sometimes, though, a person "skips out," making it very hard for you to collect the debt. If this happens, you will need to skip trace the debtor, which simply means collecting information in order to locate the person. You don't need a private investigator to skip trace someone; with patience and persistence you can skip trace them yourself.

Instructions

1. 

   To begin your search, look in the yellow pages.

   Search the phone book for possible addresses for the debtor. Also, check for the address of a spouse. These addresses may be separate from the debtor's and may be more recent or accurate.

2. 

   The Department of Motor Vehicles may have the debtor's address.

   Request information from the Department of Motor Vehicles. If you provide the complete name of the debtor, the Department of Motor Vehicles will provide the address in their records. Check the names of spouses or children also. They may may have a separate record with more recent information.

3. 

   County birth, death and marriage records may hold usable addresses for your debtor.

   Research county records for birth, death and marriage certificates. Record any addresses for the debtor's name. Check with voter registration, law enforcement and the department of taxation. Check local schools for the names of the debtor's children.

4. 

   Various banks and businesses may have the address for a debtor.

   Check with the city government if you are in a small town. Also, check banks and the credit department of businesses. Any of the organizations may have records for a person with the debtor's name at a usable address.

5. 

   Civil and public organizations may have records regarding the debtor's line of work.

   Find records for the debtor's line of work. The State Department of Transportation, for example, may provide information for truckers with licenses in their state. The Department of Health and Human Services will have records for barbers, cosmetologists and food handlers; the Bureau of Labor and Industries records the owner of any professional license in the state, and the Secretary of State's Corporation Division may provide data on the leaders and location of any incorporated business in their state.

6. 

   The words on a returned envelope may provide a valuable clue to the debtor's whereaabouts.

   Write letters of collection to the debtors at any addresses too distant to reach easily and wait to receive any returns. Prioritize those with "not here" or similar words on the envelope over those with "no forwarding address" or words similar to that. For the first set of words to appear on an envelope, someone at the address in question had to write them, and that person could be the debtor or could know his or her whereabouts. The second set of words, however, could have been a correction at the post office and therefore may be correct.

7. 

   A debtor's neighbors are a good source of information.

   Go to the worthwhile addresses and talk with the debtor's possible neighbors. Begin with those closest to the addresses with the most recent verifications. Each possible neighbor may be aware of the debtor's locale and movements and may be able to share a specific place and time to meet the debtor.

8. 

   Reaching the debtor by phone may help to identify his location.

   Call the numbers for the debtor's possible addresses. Begin with the address with the most recent verification and work backward through the less recent ones. A caller may identify himself.

Tips & Warnings

• When calling to reach a debtor, be courteous and professional and listen well.

• The Department of Motor Vehicles may need the debtor's date of birth to supply you with his or her address.

• Apprehending the debtor may be a legally complex matter and will probably require the participation of law enforcement.

• Government organizations may not have an obligation to help a private citizen in a search for a debtor.

References

• University of Virginia Capstone; Martin Del Vecchio, Shu Jin, Alana Mistretta, Hayden Rolando, and Hope Tuck; Designing a Search Mechanism for Debt Collection
• Oregon Department of Administrative Services; State Controller's Division; Oregon Accounting Manual