Page 27 - NCISS Your Advocate April 2021

Private Investigators Targeted – Access to Records A Thing of the Past?

State DMV Issues Continue to Grow… and Grow!

It seems this is a perpetual update – more states are joining this misinformed effort, and Colorado just saw two bills
nd
killed in committee and more being added this session. As NCISS 2 VP Lisa Turley points out, the thoughts of losing
access to DMV data and other relevant data that is used by most of us daily to perform our duties is concerning. It is
important to work together, especially in states where we have contacts. If any states where DMV bills are being
introduced are known by members, please communicate these with the NCISS Legislative Committee. This issue is one
of the lead issues of recent, and future, Legislative Advisory Board meetings representing all member state associations.
Together we are not silent in this delicate issue of time and patience.

For this issue of Your Advocate, Region 6 Director Kelly Cory shared a working document of how DMV and related
records are used by Professional Investigators daily. She also suggests have attorney clients provide a letter, or one they
can review and put on their letterhead. What are your stories and actions? Send them to Kelly Cory –
kelly@keystoneis.com to add your experiences.

Critical Importance of Private Investigator Access to Department of Motor Vehicles Records
(compiled and contributed by Kelly Cory – Region 6 Director)
Kelly has been compiling stories from other investigators to demonstrate the importance of access to driver and motor
vehicle records. California has one of the first, and strictest, state DPPA laws – which have recently had proposed
changes. If you have any additional stories to share, please contact Kelly via email at Kelly@keystoneis.com.

Driving records, vehicle registrations, ownership histories and other DMV information are critically important pieces of
non-public information that are essential to conducting proper investigations for a variety of valuable and necessary
purposes. DMV data is used in all sorts of legal cases, background investigations, employment screening and for
identification purposes when necessary for other important investigations.

Private investigators provide a valuable resource to the public and court system. Their work is not duplicated by law
enforcement or handled by any other party in many instances. It is essential that private investigators have access to
DMV information in order to properly conduct their work and protect society. Their formal training and credentials
ensure that they use the data only for permissible purposes under the DPPA.

The following are a list of examples in which private investigators use DMV information for legal purposes, as well as
success stories in which that data has helped save the day on a variety of situations.
• Hit and run accidents: if a license plate is identified by a witness, or camera, the investigator can run the information
through DMV research to identify the registered owner of that vehicle. This gives them someone to interview or
report as a suspect in the traffic collision.

• A driving record can provide much more than a list of moving violations. Driving records can also detail former
accidents which could have caused potential injuries. This information is important to research on insurance fraud
cases for a variety of reasons.

• Driving records can also provide information about misdemeanor and felony vehicle code violations, which are
important to impugn or buttress court testimony. For example, a driving record can also show whether a person has
driven on an expired/suspended/revoked Driver’s License, charges which can detract from a person's credibility in
court.

• When conducting pre-employment background checks, it is important to be able to review a person’s driving record
when it is relevant to the position in which they are applying. You wouldn’t for instance want to hire a school bus
driver who has had DUIs on their driving record.

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