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Skiptracing (also skip tracing, or debtor and fugitive recovery[1]) is the process of locating a person's whereabouts for any number of purposes. A skiptracer is someone who performs this task, which may be the person's primary occupation. The term "skip" refers to the person being searched for, and is derived from the idiomatic expression "to skip town", meaning to depart (perhaps in a rush), leaving minimal clues behind to "trace" the "skip" to a new location.

Skip tracing tactics may be employed by debt collectors, process servers, bail bond enforcers (bounty hunters), repossession agents, private investigators, attorneys, police detectives, and journalists, or by any person attempting to locate a subject whose contact information is not immediately known. Similar techniques have also been utilized by investigators to locate witnesses in criminal trials.[citation needed]




Even when no specific information is returned, public and private databases exist that cross-reference skiptracing information with others the "skip" may have lived with in the recent past. For instance, if previous records show a "skip" lived in the same house as a third party, the third party may also be "skiptraced" in an effort to locate the "skip".[citation needed]

In popular culture[edit]



  1. ^ Nash, Susan (2012). "Skip Tracing Basics and Beyond". iUniverse. pp. xii. Retrieved 2013-05-28. 
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  3. ^ Identity Thief