An address trace came back "not found": what it means and what to do next

What "not found" means, and what it does not

A no-find means that, after cross-referencing more than 150 sources, registers and records and having a private investigator check them, there was not enough evidence to report a current registered UK address for the person you named. It does not mean the person does not exist, and it does not prove they have died or left the country, unless the report says so. Where the evidence does show something, such as a move abroad, you are told what we can tell you.

It is also different from a Possible result. A Possible result is the best available lead, stated plainly as a lead, and it is never charged at the full fee. A no-find is not charged at all. Your card was only saved when you instructed, so nothing was taken and there is nothing to refund.

Why some people cannot be traced first time

• The details do not quite match. A misspelt surname, a nickname in place of a legal name, or a date of birth with the day and month swapped can send a trace past the right person.
• A change of name. Marriage, divorce or a change by deed poll ends the trail under the old name.
• A very recent move. Records take weeks to months to catch up, so the new address may not show yet.
• Living under someone else's roof. A lodger, a partner who is not on the tenancy or an adult living with parents may leave almost no record in their own name.
• A move abroad. Coverage is the UK only. If the evidence points abroad, you are told.
• Living in an institution. A care home, a hospital or a prison leaves a different and thinner trail.
• Taking care not to be found. A small number of people deliberately avoid records in their own name. That is rarely a tracing problem alone.

First, check what you sent

Before anything else, go back over the instruction. Most second attempts that succeed do so because a detail was corrected or added.

1. Check the spelling of every name against something the person wrote or signed themselves.
2. Add the full legal name, including middle names, and any former, maiden or married name.
3. Check the date of birth, and the order of day and month.
4. List every previous address you know, with rough dates, not just the most recent.
5. Add a partner, parents or other relatives by name, an employer, a trade or a business name.
6. Add phone numbers and email addresses, even old ones.

If you learn something new, reply to the no-find email or use the message box on the page for your case, and we look again. The usual rule applies: nothing is charged unless we find them.

When waiting is the right answer

If the person moved very recently, the best next step is often time. Records that place someone at a new address appear gradually, and a trace run a few weeks later can succeed where the first could not. If there is no deadline, wait and ask us to look again. If there is one, use the routes below in the meantime. Organisations and professionals instructing for a client have a free re-check within 60 days in any case.

If you are in court proceedings

In England and Wales a failed trace is not a dead end in litigation. It is evidence. Rule 6.9 of the Civil Procedure Rules requires a claimant who has reason to believe a defendant has moved to take reasonable steps to find the current address. If those steps fail, the claimant must consider whether another place or method of service would reach the defendant, and if there is one, apply to the court under rule 6.15 for permission to use it. Courts have allowed service by email, text or social media, at a workplace, or through a relative. Only if there is no alternative may the claimant serve at the last known residence.

The record of a professional trace, dated and showing that it did not place the defendant at a current address, belongs in the witness statement supporting that application, alongside the other steps you took. Serving court documents without an address explains the rules in full, and for family proceedings serving divorce papers without an address covers the court's own routes.

If you are administering an estate

Executors and administrators who cannot find a beneficiary still have to deal with the share. The usual options, once proper enquiries have failed, are missing beneficiary indemnity insurance, a Benjamin order from the court, holding the share in reserve, or paying it into court. Each of them asks what enquiries were made and when, and a dated professional trace is part of that answer. Missing beneficiary insurance and Benjamin orders sets out the options in order.

If you are owed money or recovering a tenancy shortfall

A debtor or former tenant who cannot be traced today may be traceable in six months, once their new address has worked its way into the records. Keep the file, note the date of the no-find, and diary a second attempt. Two points to keep in mind while you wait:

• Limitation keeps running. Most claims for money owed under a contract must be issued within six years. If the date is approaching, take advice on issuing and on the service options above rather than waiting for an address.
• Look for someone else who is liable. A guarantor, a co-tenant or a business partner may be easier to find, and may be liable for the same sum. See tracing a guarantor.

Landlords should also check the deposit scheme's procedure for claiming when the tenant cannot be reached, which does not need an address.

When the matter is bigger than an address

People the records cannot place are usually abroad, living under another name, or taking care not to be found, and often the matter behind the trace needs more than an address anyway: money to recover, papers to serve in person, something to prove. Every no-find from Trace Bureau comes with the offer of our sister service, Investigation Bureau (investigationbureau.uk), run by the same private investigator, which locates people the records cannot and handles process serving, asset tracing, fraud and workplace investigations and due diligence. Tell them the backstory and an investigator replies within one working day with an honest view of what can be done and a fixed quote. The first assessment is free, with no obligation.

What a trace costs, found or not

Standard is £150, delivered within 3 to 5 working days. Priority is £200, delivered within 2 to 3 working days. There is nothing to pay when you instruct. Your card is only saved, and it is charged only when a private investigator has verified a current address. Not found, no fee, and if new information turns up we look again, still charged only if we find them. No find, no fee address tracing explains why that model matters, and how it differs from services that take payment first.

When to instruct again

Ask us to look again when you have corrected or added a detail, or when enough time has passed since a recent move. Instruct a new trace when there is another person connected to the matter, such as a guarantor or a co-tenant, who may be easier to find. The minimum is the full legal name plus a date of birth or a previous address. Instruct a trace online in about five minutes.