Corporate Investigations Stuttgart | Corporate Investigators

The European Stuttgart metropolitan region has around 5.5 million inhabitants. In this definition the city’s economic catchment area belongs to the region and includes numerous medium-sized towns such as Esslingen am Neckar, Ludwigsburg and Sindelfingen, and, in a broader sense, the larger cities Heilbronn, Reutlingen and Pforzheim. In this Central European metropolitan area economic offences are part of everyday life. Not everything falls within the remit of the investigative authorities, not everything can be solved by the authorities, and not everything should necessarily be reported to the police (keyword: discretion).

Consequently, the IHK-certified specialist detectives of Kurtz Detective Agency Stuttgart have a great deal of varied work. Our experienced specialists are at your disposal: +49 711 7153 0028.

Swabia is one of the strongest economic regions in one of the most attractive countries for foreign investment

According to a 2015 study by the auditing and consulting firm Ernst & Young among more than 800 international top managers, Germany ranks third in the worldwide attractiveness scale for foreign investors; in the European comparison our country is far ahead (even the United Kingdom languishes in eighth place). Only China and the United States appear more attractive to the managers, although these two countries are also the most active foreign investors in Germany. Stuttgart is once again among the strongest national economic regions in our leading country. It is therefore unsurprising that economic criminals operate here. In 2014 the crime statistics for Baden-Württemberg recorded as many offences as in the previous ten years, only for 2015 and 2016 to record even more offences. Only during the coronavirus pandemic was a decline observed, which proved temporary: the level of the 2010s has now been reached again.

The Stuttgart region is a renowned business location despite some adverse factors

Stuttgart is a dream for any employee: the city enjoys near full employment at a very high wage level. The region has a rich history and great prestige as a business location, though it also presents several challenges for companies. In addition to the high labour costs, the transport infrastructure is often overloaded and lacks major bypass routes. Almost every road connection cuts through densely populated areas in and around Stuttgart, leading to daily, time-consuming traffic jams. Freight transport by road is therefore heavily delayed in the region, prompting many large corporations to rely on air freight via Stuttgart Airport or shipping via the inland port on the River Neckar, which is supplied by the port railway line.

So why do so many major corporations remain in the area? The answer is, of course, multifaceted, but one highly significant factor lies in the excellent qualifications of the average Swabian workforce. One fifth of all university places in Baden-Württemberg are located at higher education institutions in the Stuttgart region. 24.5% of all employees subject to social insurance contributions in the city hold a university degree – only four other German cities exceed that rate, and just one of them (Munich) has a comparable or larger population. And once people settle here, they rarely leave, because there are few job markets in Germany offering better prospects. According to a business climate survey conducted in spring 2015 by the Baden-Württemberg Chamber of Industry and Commerce (BWIHK) among nearly 3,600 companies, 94% of respondents rated their current business situation as good or satisfactory.

Large economic losses caused by economic crime

Overall crime rates in Stuttgart are comparatively low. Only 55,577 offences were recorded in 2023 (the dark figure is, of course, considerably higher). This is a relatively low figure. However, in a region with such a strong, innovative economy the potential losses are much greater, particularly in cases of economic or industrial espionage. Criminal activities by employees, business partners and competitors cause German companies annual losses amounting to billions.

Individual employees commit theft and sometimes sabotage. Excessive expense claims are submitted, sick leave is abused while work is performed for competitors, and competitors attempt to acquire technological solutions, patents or other corporate secrets by industrial espionage. Cases of unfair practices or credit endangerment occur. Companies are extorted, threatened or coerced. The need for and potential of corporate investigations therefore grow year on year.

Service offering of Kurtz Corporate Investigations Stuttgart

Kurtz Investigations Stuttgart offers, among other corporate investigations:

• Employee checks in cases of suspected continued-pay fraud (fabricated illness)
• Employee checks in cases of suspected breaches of non-compete obligations
• Employee checks in cases of suspected accounting, working-time and expense fraud
• Employee checks in cases of suspected theft by employees
• Undercover infiltration of workplaces by detectives
• Investigations in cases of suspected industrial espionage
• Investigations into patent and competition infringements
• Investigations into recurring property damage
• Seizure and recovery of vehicles
• Debtor tracing and identification of attachable assets
• Creditworthiness checks and employer tracing
• Surveillance in cases of suspected undeclared work
• Verification of job applicants
• Investigations into suspected competition violations by competitors

• Uncovering the perpetrators of reputational damage or smear campaigns