Intelius Reviews

If you’re hoping to reconnect with someone, or wish to check on a person’s background (legal, civil or otherwise) then Intelius offers a fairly comprehensive online service. You can search for a person using their name, phone number, address and more, providing a range of documents regarding their history.

Intelius.com is a US-based service so won’t be of much use to anyone outside of the US. Unfortunately, the site doesn’t offer access to immigration records, so if this is a particular feature you were looking for, then you may wish to look elsewhere. However, it does offer extensive criminal record checks, as well as services for checking employee backgrounds.

Information is detailed and accurate. The system gathers information from over a billion sources, bringing them together in an easy-access document which is decipherable for laymen. If you’re a landlord then you can also perform checks on tenants, which is ideal because references can be forged.

The website is organized logically, meaning that you won’t struggle to navigate the various sections to find the documents you need. Performing a search is also simple, requiring just a little basic information. You can then narrow down to the report you need, after being presented with a list of potential matches.

If you’re stuck, then you can check out the site’s user guide, which offers some basic guides on how to make the most of the system. There is also support via phone or email.

Given the fact that Intelius.com offers employee search packages, you might feel that they are more geared towards the commerce end of people-finding. This isn’t necessarily the case, and even regular folk will find that they can locate family members, old friends and old flames with relative ease. It could be particularly useful, for example, if you planned on hiring a nanny to take care of your children. You can still use the employee background checks, or just a regular background check, to find out where the person has been living, if they have any criminal records and more.

As mentioned, this is a US-based service. You might be surprised just how much data is stored on US citizens. As such, the site offers insurance against your identity being stolen. This protects you from identity theft, but it also provides considerable financial insurance in case your details are used to harm you financially. 

Some previous clients haven’t found the data they were looking for. Whilst this is disappointing, it’s always a potential downfall on background check websites. Sadly, Intelius doesn’t offer a money-back guarantee, which you’ll find elsewhere. As such, blank documents will still incur a cost, leaving you a little out of pocket. 

If you plan on doing a lot of research over a short period, then you might think about paying for the 24 hour pass. This lets you perform as many searches as you like for a set time (you guessed it: 24 hours). It’s not a bad offer, as one document can cost almost as much, so the savings could be significant.

Talking of money, this website offers you a few options when it comes to paying for reports. You can pay a one-off fee for a report, or you can become a Premier member. Premier membership gives a discount on all reports, and membership lasts for a month. If you’re not sure whether or not you’d like to become a Premier member for an extended period of time, then you can take out a 7 day trial of the service to test it out.

We have noted that a few dissatisfied customers have cropped up, primarily because they didn’t realise that trials can sometimes convert into paid services once the trial is over. We advise reading the clauses in your contracts carefully before entering your payment details. If you’re unsure what you’re paying for, it's wise to speak to the customer services team.

In our experience, Intelius is a reliable website for finding information on individuals. It felt professional and scam-free. You also get results for your money, not just a series of links to various other sites and documents. Reports are customized, with relevant information included and highlighted - especially when compared with a number of Intelius’ peers. 

There are a few chinks in Interlius’ armor, though. For example, you cannot search for nicknames and aliases. You might also find one or two other areas lack a few of the options that you can find elsewhere, particularly if you wish to check up on a particular corporation. 

You can set up your account for free, performing a search and examining a few of the results before having to pay anything. Prices are a little difficult to come by at times, and you sometimes don’t find out how much a document will cost until the very late stages of your search. This is just a pain really, and could be reorganized to be a bit more user-friendly.

Despite these factors, prices seem fair and in line with industry standard. You can make some big savings by paying for Premier membership so, if you plan on doing quite a bit of research, then we’d recommend upgrading. You may also receive a few free reports for signing up, depending on the offer at the time

Overall, Intelius offers its users a pretty comprehensive service. Reports are easy to acquire, and detailed, although prices can be a mystery at times. You might also discover that not all varieties of documents you want are available. It’s worth exploring the site in some detail to discern whether or not they can offer everything you need. 

Still, Intelius is a solid site for finding people, or information about them. Whilst we haven’t looked at their insurance offers in detail here, it’s nice to have this additional feature available. The 24 hour pass could be really useful for some quick and low cost research, and the trial periods offer a great rate for anyone who is unsure whether a longer contract is for them or not.

Check out our #1 rated site instead! Why not check out USSearch.com, our top rated Background Check Website and winner of our prestigious Gold Award! You can also check out our Top 10 Background Check Websites here!

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