Verify a Florida PI's
license first
Anyone can call themselves an investigator. In Florida, doing the work legally requires a state license under Statute 493. Here's how to confirm someone is licensed — and active — before you hand over a dollar or a detail.
The license classes, decoded
Florida issues several license classes under Chapter 493. These are the four that matter when you're hiring an investigator:
Private Investigator
An individual licensed to conduct investigations in Florida. This is the license a working PI must hold to take your case directly.
Private Investigator Intern
An investigator-in-training working under the sponsorship of a licensed Class C investigator or agency. Legitimate, but supervised.
Private Investigative Agency
The license a private-investigation company holds. Most working investigators operate under a Class A agency.
Agency Manager
The person responsible for managing a Class A agency. Every agency must have a qualifying manager on file.
The one you most want to see is Class C — an individually licensed investigator. A Class CC intern is legitimate but works under supervision. A reputable solo PI or agency will tell you exactly which they hold.
Four steps to verify
- 1
Get their full name and license number
A legitimate Florida investigator will give you their Class C (or CC) license number without hesitation. If someone dodges this question, stop there.
- 2
Search the official FDACS registry
Florida’s Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services runs the public license search. Enter the name or license number and confirm the record exists.
- 3
Confirm the license is active
A record can exist but be expired, suspended, or revoked. Check the status and expiration date — “licensed once” is not the same as “licensed now.”
- 4
Match the name to the person contacting you
Make sure the licensed name matches who you’re actually talking to. If they say they work “under” someone, ask for the agency’s Class A license too.
Red flags worth walking away from
- Won't give you a license number, or gets defensive when you ask.
- The name on the license doesn't match the person you're dealing with.
- Demands full payment in cash up front, with no written scope or agreement.
- Promises results that would require breaking the law — pulling private bank records, GPS-tracking a car they have no right to, recording calls you're not part of.
- The license shows as expired, suspended, or revoked in the FDACS registry.
Verifying someone in Southwest Florida?
We keep a browsable snapshot of every state-licensed Class C investigator in the five Southwest Florida counties — Sarasota, Manatee, Charlotte, Lee, and Collier (707 of them), last refreshed May 21, 2026. It's a convenience layer; the FDACS registry is always the final word.