When looking for process servers for out-of-town cases, hire locally
If your law firm or collection company is like most, you undoubtedly have cases that are not in your immediate area. When you need to have these people found or served with legal documents who do you turn to? Many law firms use their “local guy” or a nationwide company. This may be the easiest route, but is that really the best choice for you or your client?
Below are just a few reasons why using local process servers is your best option.
1. Lower Costs
When you hire a nationwide process server or your “local guy” to have court documents served out of town, they will generally forward these papers to a business within their network. In cases such as this, the company you hire will tack on a margin for managing the serve. This fee can range from $50 to $200 or more for a routine service. This gets much more expensive when multiple attempts, rush service and mileage comes in to play.
By hiring local, you can save your firm and your clients hundreds of dollars on routine service of process.
2. Faster Service
With local process servers, your papers don’t need to be sent to a main office or corporate headquarters then forwarded off to someone else. The quicker you can get the papers in the process servers hands, the quicker the papers will go out for service. This means that your affidavit of service will also take the most direct path back to you after the papers are served.
3. Better Communication
As mentioned earlier, when you hire a nationwide provider or “the local guy” your case is referred out to someone else. You do not have immediate access to these individuals which can be an issue if you need to react to time sensitive information. Breaking down the communication chain and working directly with the company handling your case will result in more timely and accurate information.
4. More Control
With better communication comes more control over your serves. However, not using local process servers may mean having to work with more vendors. Local servers give you a direct line of communication.
Source: https://www.serve-now.com/articles/106/local-process-server-benefits
