Served & Found
Tempe injury claims: where watching a claimant becomes illegal
Tempe is a hard city to keep a low profile in. Tempe Town Lake has a busy path along its banks, and the city's parks are full on weekends. The light rail and streetcar move people through downtown and past ASU. If you are on a back-injury claim and paddleboard on the lake every Saturday, there is a fair chance somebody will notice.
That is why insurers and employers sometimes hire private investigators to document what people on workers' compensation, disability and personal injury claims do day to day. It is ordinary, legal work, within limits. This piece is mainly for the person on the claim who wants to know what is allowed, and also for anyone in Tempe thinking about hiring a private investigator themselves. It is general information. If your claim is contested, talk to a lawyer who handles them.
Is it legal for someone to watch me?
Yes, in public. Surveillance on a claim means watching and recording what you do in places where anyone could see you. Walking along Mill Avenue, loading groceries outside a store, playing pickleball at a public park, carrying a kayak to the water: all of that can be observed and filmed from a public spot.
Being watched is not an accusation. Insurers order surveillance on claims that turn out to be completely genuine. The footage often shows someone who really is hurt: moving carefully, sitting out, leaving the gym after ten minutes. A competent private investigator reports that with the same care as anything else, because a report that only ever finds fraud stops being believed.
Where the line is crossed
Private spaces are off limits. A private investigator cannot go into your fenced back yard, look over a wall into your patio, or film through a window into your home. They cannot trespass on private property to get a better angle, and that includes the inside of a gated apartment complex they have no right to enter.
Conversations are protected. Arizona's interception statute, A.R.S. 13-3005, makes it a felony to intercept a phone or electronic communication you are not a party to without a participant's consent, or to record a conversation you are not present for without a party's consent. That is why claim surveillance video usually has no audio of other people talking.
Tricks are a problem. Posing as a delivery driver to get you to lift a box, or setting up a fake job offer, invites the argument that the evidence was staged. Many lawyers will not touch footage gathered that way.
Social media is a gray area. Viewing what you post publicly is one thing. Creating a fake profile or sending a friend request to see private posts is another. Assume anything public can be looked at, and keep your privacy settings where you want them.
What you should and should not do
The best response to possible surveillance is the dull one. Tell your doctor and your adjuster the truth about what you can and cannot do, follow your restrictions, and live your normal life inside them. Do not stage a limp and do not stop doing things your doctor has said are fine. Inconsistency is what makes footage matter, not activity on its own.
Do not confront someone parked near your building. If you feel unsafe, call the police. If you believe someone has trespassed, recorded you inside your home or harassed you, write down the date, time, place and any vehicle details, and give them to your lawyer. Conduct like that can make the evidence useless and can be a crime in its own right.
What it means to live in a busy city
In a place as public as Tempe, assume that anything you do on the lake path, at a park or in a store parking lot could be seen and recorded. That is not a reason to stay indoors. It is a reason to keep your activity in line with what your doctor has said, so that any footage simply confirms your claim.
It also helps to know that being filmed on a crowded street is legal, while being followed into your apartment complex's private courtyard or garage is not something a private investigator can do without permission. If you think that line was crossed, note it and tell your lawyer.
If you are the one hiring
Sometimes the person paying is not an insurer. It might be a small business owner defending a claim, or someone being sued after a crash. Talk to your lawyer and your insurer before you hire anyone, since they may already be handling it.
If you do hire, keep the brief tight. Tell the private investigator what the claimed restrictions are, what activity you have heard about, and where it supposedly happens. Agree on hours, a budget cap and how often you will get updates. Ask how the footage is time-stamped and kept, and whether they have testified before. Check the license yourself: Arizona private investigators are licensed by the Department of Public Safety, and our guide on verifying an Arizona private investigator license shows how.
The Tempe private investigators page lists private investigators who are members of the Arizona Association of Licensed Private Investigators (AALPI). R3 Investigations is one of the firms listed in Tempe, and the East Valley page covers neighboring cities. You will find more local listings on the Tempe page.
If you are the claimant, keep a copy of your written work restrictions where you can find it. They are the yardstick every piece of footage gets measured against.
See the board: everyone in Tempe · private investigators only.