Skip TracingFinding people who have moved on
Skip tracing is finding someone who has moved, changed their number or simply stopped answering. Landlords, lenders, small businesses and families use our team to find where a person is now, confirm it, and hand over the details in a short, clear trace report.
- Former tenants
- Debtors
- Lost family
years of tracing people
clues in a typical trace
person handling your trace
What skip tracing is, and who it helps
People skip for all sorts of reasons. A tenant leaves owing three months of rent. A customer who took goods on account moves province. A brother stops answering after a family fight, or an old friend changes number and drops off the map.
Skip tracing in South Africa starts with whatever you already know: an old address, a number that no longer rings, a workplace, a name of a friend. From there our team works out where the person is today, and checks it before we report it to you.
You get a short trace report with the current details we were able to confirm, how sure we are of each one, and what you might do next. T's and C's apply.
Skip tracing in South Africa: who we trace for
Our skip tracing work comes from six kinds of client. If a former tenant left owing rent, the Gauteng Rental Housing Tribunal is a free option once you know where they are; EWN explains when landlords should turn to it.
Landlords and agents
A tenant who left owing rent, or who caused damage and vanished. We find where they live now so you can follow it up.
Lenders and small businesses
Customers on account, debtors who changed numbers, a supplier who took a deposit and disappeared.
Families
A relative you lost touch with after a move, a fight or a funeral. Once located, we can pass your message on first.
Estates and beneficiaries
An executor looking for a beneficiary named in a will, or a family that needs every heir before an estate can close.
Old friends and lost contacts
Someone you would like to see again: a school friend, a former colleague, a godparent. We pass your message on and they choose whether to reply.
Private sales gone wrong
A buyer or seller who took the money for a car, a phone or a deposit and stopped answering.
Who are you looking for?
Select the case that sounds like yours to see how a skip tracing job usually begins.
Find their new address, then decide
Most tenants who skip are still working and still nearby. A current address lets you or your agent take the next step. T's and C's apply.
Locate first, then follow up
With a confirmed address and workplace, collecting a debt becomes a practical question rather than a guessing game.
Find them gently
We find where they are, then pass your message on first and let them choose how to reply. Many families prefer it that way.
Trace every name on the list
Executors and families use us to find heirs who moved away, changed surnames or went abroad.
It can still work
A name with a town or an age range is often enough to start. We will tell you honestly if it is not.
Tracing a person in South Africa, step by step
Most skip tracing cases follow the same shape: an old detail leads to a newer one, until the current address can be checked.
- Day 1
The last known address
A flat in Randburg, vacated in March. The landlord has a forwarding number that no longer rings.
- Day 2
A new number
A former neighbour knows which area they moved to, and the number they use now.
- Day 3
A new job
Now working at a business in Centurion, five days a week.
- Day 4
The current address, confirmed
A townhouse in Centurion, checked before it went in the report.
For illustration: the person, the suburbs and the dates are made up.
- Address: townhouse in Centurion, confirmed
- Number: new number, active
- Work: business in Centurion, weekdays
- Vehicle: white hatchback seen at the address
- Next step: your agent can now follow up
Sample only. Each trace report is built around its own facts.
Tracing agents, or a skip tracing team that checks?
An address that was right two years ago is not much use today. Our skip tracing team checks what it finds before it reaches you, and tells you plainly how sure we are of each detail.
If you searched for a private investigator to find someone, this is usually the service you need. If the person may be in danger or nobody has heard from them at all, the search becomes a missing person case instead.
- Family and friend traces start with your message passed on, so the person can choose to reply
- For debts and tenancies, who is asking stays with us
- Each detail is checked before it reaches your report
- A single contact for the whole trace, start to end
- More than 10 years of tracing people across South Africa
How skip tracing works with us
Every trace runs through the same four stages, with a single contact throughout.
What you know
Tell us everything you have, however old. Small details often matter most.
The approach
How we would run the trace, and its price, laid out before any work.
The trace
Our team follows the trail and checks each new detail before it goes further.
Your trace report
Confirmed details, how sure we are of each, and sensible next steps.
Skip tracing across South Africa
People move between provinces all the time, and our teams in six centres follow the trail wherever it leads.
Across Gauteng
Most traces start in Gauteng, where people move between Johannesburg, the East Rand and Pretoria all the time.
private investigators JohannesburgKwaZulu-Natal
Traces through Durban, Pietermaritzburg and the KZN towns, including people who moved back home.
private investigators DurbanWestern Cape
People who relocated to Cape Town or the Western Cape, a common move for work.
private investigators Cape TownLimpopo towns
Traces into Limpopo, where many people return to family homes in smaller towns.
private investigator PolokwaneThe Lowveld
Traces through Mbombela, Barberton and Komatipoort, including people who crossed into Eswatini or Mozambique.
private investigators NelspruitOther services clients use alongside skip tracing:
Questions about skip tracing
What is skip tracing?
Finding a person who has moved, changed numbers or gone quiet, and confirming where they are now. The term comes from debt collection, where someone who left owing money has skipped, but families use it too.
Is a name on its own enough?
Often, yes, especially with a town, an age range or an old workplace to go with it. The less there is to start with, the longer it can take, and you will know that before you commit.
How long does skip tracing take?
Many traces take a few days. Someone who moved recently and kept working is usually quicker to find than someone who left years ago.
Will the person know I am looking for them?
For debts and tenancies, not from us. For family and friends, we usually pass your message on first and let the person choose how to reply.
How much does skip tracing cost?
That turns on how much you start with and how far the trail runs, and the price is agreed first. Our private investigator cost guide shows the ranges. T's and C's apply.
Are tracing agents and private investigators the same?
People use the two terms for the same job. What matters is whether details are checked before they reach you, which is why our trace reports say how sure we are of each one.
What if they have left the country?
We can sometimes still help. If the person moved to a neighbouring country or still has family here, there is usually a trail to follow. We will tell you what is realistic.
What if the person I am tracing is missing rather than avoiding me?
Then it is a different kind of case, and usually a more urgent one. Speak to our missing person investigator team, who handle searches for people whose families are worried.
Tell us who you are looking for
A quick call or a WhatsApp is enough to start. Give us the last thing you know and you will get a frank view of what skip tracing can do with it.
T's and C's apply.