31/07/2015
What have you been up to?Process Serving in Spain
A "little" case file from ABI member : Rick Howatson
Process Serving is many Private Investigators bread and butter and some people think that in Spain it is the Process servers caviar and champagne, but believe you me it’s not.
Often no house numbers no road names even town names can be none existent and the next door neighbour lives 5 miles away and you are standing in front of a road or track that goes on for miles without any direction signs and even your GPS packs up.
Process in Malaga:
I received instructions from a London based solicitor to serve papers on an English gentleman resident in Malaga. Within my instruction I was informed by the solicitor to be very wary of the target to be served as he was a known drunk and trouble maker. On such occasions we take our instructing solicitors warning very seriously and arm ourselves with body cameras and a second agent to photograph the target being served. With every process service today we make a photographic report that has time date and GPS location.
On arriving at the address supplied, I saw that the property had a stairwell leading down to the front door. This proved to be a bit of a problem as once I had walked down the steps my co agent could only see just a half of me, but things were about to get worse.
I rang the door bell to this basement apartment but received no reply although I could definitely hear movement inside the property. After five minutes and still no reply, I banged on the front door so loudly that there could be no excuse for not hearing it. Then it happened, the door slowly opened, but I couldn't see anybody in front of me, I slowly looked down, and to my amazement there stood a dwarf !! The little man couldn't have been taller than four feet tall, if that. I looked at him and asked “are you Mr. Smith?" “Who are you?” he grunted back at me. I introduced myself as a process server with documents for him from the English Courts. "What’s that got to with me” he grunted. At this point in time my body camera couldn't get the little man in view and neither could my co agent capture him as the stairwell was too deep. I therefore had to try to lure the little man to come out of his hidey hole so that we could get a shot of him. “I believe it’s a divorce petition from your wife Sir " I said. At the same time I started walking slowly backwards up the stairwell. The little man was very angry. “It’s from that no good ###xx of a wife” he shouted. I reiterated that the documents were from the Court and were to be delivered personally to him. The target then shouted at me again and said “ I expect you like your ######ixx” job ". I was by now at the top of the stairwell and said “If you will not accept the papers I will have to report it to the Court and a judgement may well be made in your absence, still if that the way you want to play it ”.
As I turned to leave I looked down at him and said “well, what's it to be?” "Give them #########x papers to me" he yelled. I was now holding the papers out to him but from the top of the stairwell. He offered me a few words of advice as to where I could shove the papers, before snatching them from my hand. I politely thank him for his courtesy and I said " Mr Smith, you have been served” . Yes and all fully captured on film.
Job done.
SPAIN PROCESS SERVICES & ENQUIRY AGENTS
PO BOX 101 30710 Los Alcazares Murcia - Spain -
Phone: 00 34 968 170 31 - Email: [email protected]
