You might be wondering, what exactly is cohabitation?
By legal definition, cohabitation is when an unmarried couple live together in the same household. But cohabitation takes on a whole new meaning with respect to child custody rulings and divorce proceedings, which often causes great dispute.
This is where proving cohabitation with a London private investigator can be crucial.
Most people are truthful about their living conditions, but some are motivated by financial or personal gain not to be. For example, in a divorce settlement, one of the parties may lie that they are not living with someone in order to continue receiving maintenance payments from their former spouse.
Here at Global Investigations, our private investigators in London often deal with ex-spouses with matrimonial maintenance agreements in place, with payment of this being conditional on the recipient not living with someone else as a cohabiting couple.
And with evidence of cohabitation being commonly used to prove a breach of contract, it is best to find out the truth as soon as possible.
Why do you Need Cohabitation Surveillance?
In the UK, compiling evidence or proof of cohabitation can be hard without the help of private investigative services, so professional surveillance tends to be required to prove cohabitation in post-divorce maintenance and financial settlement cases.
Hiring a private investigator during divorce for evidence of cohabitation
Have you reached an agreement, only to suspect that your ex is breaching the terms of your maintenance arrangement?
For those with divorce settlements in place, it can be a daunting step to hire a private detective to investigate an ex-wife or husband, but a possible breach of your maintenance arrangement is no small issue.
The majority of divorce settlements have certain caveats attached to them – for maintenance payments, this may include what is known as a Minutes of Consent Order. That means, for instance, that you agree to pay maintenance until your ex-spouse remarries or starts to cohabit with someone else.
And while you might think they are honest with you about their living situation, there is always the chance that they are secretly cohabiting with someone else, meaning you are no longer legally bound to support them.
So, gathering cohabitation proof from professional surveillance may mean that you no longer have to pay maintenance.
How to Prove Cohabitation in the UK
To use the appropriate methods of surveillance for your cohabitation case, we first learn about your situation and goals and then provide several solutions for you to choose from.
In the case of a divorce settlement, this could comprise of a set surveillance period where we survey the property, former spouse and/or their new partner.
This is what we refer to as a static method of surveillance. An agent will be placed outside the property of your ex-partner’s and record their movements at that address.
In most circumstances, our agents are able to report back to our clients with audio and visual demonstrations from that very day, including date and time stamped photographic and video evidence.
From these surveillance techniques, we then aim to produce a detailed report to be used in court as evidence that your ex-partner is cohabiting
(our surveillance reports typically include agent’s notes and photographic evidence at no extra cost).
Covert Cohabitation Surveillance
Global Investigations offer both overt and covert cohabitation surveillance. However, the majority of cases (particularly in our cohabitation cases) require covert measures. For example, having to trace a UK number requires the agent to remain undetected.
Our covert surveillance agents are rigorously trained and are highly conscientious and fast-thinking, so you can rest assured that they remain undiscovered.
How We Work With You
Our investigators will work closely to ensure your needs are met.
We understand that the prospect of hiring a private investigator may seem daunting, so we will do our very best to put you at ease, guiding you through every process of evidence gathering and cohabitation surveillance that we will undertake.
The bottom line is, at Global Investigations, we are dedicated to finding out the truth about the situation you find yourself in.
So, whether it be divorce proceedings, child maintenance, or simply for peace of mind, we help you get the cohabitation proof you need.
For more information about our private investigative services and advice on gathering evidence to prove your case, contact our friendly team today for a confidential chat.