How to hire a close protection officer — a buyer's guide

Verify licensing first

In the Netherlands, all private security operators must hold a valid licence under the Private Security Sector Act (Wet particuliere beveiligingsorganisaties en recherchebureaus — Wpbr). Any close protection provider operating without this licence is operating illegally, regardless of the quality of their operators. Verify the firm's licence number directly with the Ministry of Justice and Security before proceeding.

Ask about personnel vetting

Every close protection operator who will work with your principal should have undergone background screening — criminal record checks, financial vetting (indicators of potential compromise), identity verification, and reference checks from prior employers. Ask for the firm's vetting standard and methodology. Firms that cannot or will not describe their vetting process should be disqualified.

Assess operational methodology

A professional close protection firm should be able to describe, clearly and specifically, how they conduct threat assessment, how advance work is structured, how the protection team communicates, and what the emergency action drills are for identified threat scenarios. Generic answers ("we keep your principal safe") are a red flag. Specific, structured answers to specific questions indicate an operational methodology that actually exists.

Questions every buyer should ask

• What threat assessment methodology do you use, and will you share the assessment with us before the engagement begins?
• Who specifically will be assigned to this engagement, and what is their background and licence status?
• What is your advance work process for venues and routes we have not used before?
• What emergency action drills do you run — medical emergency, armed attack, vehicle interdiction?
• What is your communication and command structure if the team lead is incapacitated?
• Can you provide references from comparable engagements?
• What is your escalation protocol if the threat assessment changes during the engagement?

Red flags

• Inability to describe a specific threat assessment process
• No advance work offered or budgeted for
• Single operator proposed for a mobile or high-activity principal
• No verifiable past-performance references
• Pricing significantly below market without explained scope reduction
• Operators whose backgrounds cannot be independently verified

International engagements

For close protection outside the Netherlands, verify that the provider holds appropriate operating permissions in the destination jurisdiction. Operating requirements vary significantly across countries, and some jurisdictions require local sub-contractor partnerships or specific host-country approvals. A credible provider will address this proactively; one that does not should raise immediate concern.