Pricing

They are starting points. Every case receives its own scope and a confirmed price after case assessment, based on the complexity of what you are asking for. You always see the final price before anything is charged or any research begins.

More subjects, more countries or languages, weak or contradictory starting information, a need to review archived material, and requests for expedited handling all tend to increase the price. A single, well-documented subject in one country with good starting information tends to sit closer to the starting price.

A defined scope agreed before work starts, research conducted by a human analyst, corroboration of findings against independent sources, an explicit confidence assessment, and a written report. Nothing is subcontracted to an automated lookup tool and presented as investigation.

Expedited handling can be requested during case assessment and, where feasible, will be reflected in the confirmed scope. It affects prioritisation of the work; it does not change the standard applied to corroborating a finding.

Fees pay for the research effort, the corroboration work and the analyst review — not for a guaranteed outcome. No responsible investigator can promise a specific finding in advance, and a properly documented conclusion of 'this cannot be established' is a legitimate, billable outcome of genuine work. This is explained clearly in your scope confirmation before you agree to proceed.

Payment terms are confirmed as part of your scope confirmation, before any research work begins. You will never be asked to pay before you have seen and agreed the defined scope and price.