Plain answers about how we operate.

For most major capitals — Paris, London, Geneva, Monaco, Dubai, New York — we can position a vetted team within four to twelve hours of confirmation. For complex or remote destinations, our advance teams typically deploy within 24 to 48 hours. Initial coordinator response to any inbound enquiry is under sixty minutes.

There is no minimum length. We have provided four-hour airport-to-meeting escorts and ten-year permanent residential mandates. Most clients begin with a single trip or event before establishing a long-term relationship.

A senior coordinator contacts you within sixty minutes. The first conversation is confidential, carries no obligation and no template — we ask about your specific requirement, your calendar, your principal's profile and any prior security arrangements. You receive a written proposal within 24 hours of that call.

Yes. We sign your NDA before discussing any operational detail. If you do not have one, we provide our own bespoke NDA structured around UHNW family office standards: bilateral, perpetual, with named-individual coverage for any operator who will be exposed to information about you.

Yes — and we routinely do. Many of our mandates involve integration with an existing in-house security director, family office security architect or platform-level security partner. We work to your reporting structure and your protocols, not in competition with them.

Close protection refers to the physical security detail that remains in close proximity to the principal — typically one to four officers depending on the threat level. Executive protection is a broader programme that also includes advance work, route planning, intelligence assessment, residential security, and the integration of the protection team into the principal's lifestyle and professional calendar. FFGR provides both as components of a unified protective programme tailored to each mandate.

Yes — and we frequently do. The majority of our mandates are coordinated entirely through a family office, chief of staff, EA or estate manager. We are comfortable operating with multiple layers between us and the principal and can align our communications protocol to whatever model your principal prefers. The principal never needs to be involved in operational logistics unless they choose to be.

We serve principals across the political and governmental spectrum — including heads of state, government ministers, opposition figures, diplomats, and individuals whose business activities carry political sensitivity. Our discretion is absolute and our operators are specifically selected for political neutrality. We do not discuss any existing or prior political mandates.

Yes. Pre-trip protective intelligence is a standard component of all travel mandates and available as a standalone service. Our intelligence function produces principal-specific threat briefings — not generic country risk summaries — covering the destination environment, the principal's specific threat surface, route and venue assessment, and counterparty due diligence where the principal will be meeting with new parties. The briefing is delivered to the principal's chief of staff before the operation begins.

Our officers are drawn from national protection services, special forces (SAS, SBS, GIGN, Sayeret, Spetsnaz), former military police, and senior private close protection backgrounds. Every officer holds current jurisdictional licensing for the territory in which they operate, and is renewed against our internal vetting standard annually.

Yes. We maintain a roster of senior female officers and consider female deployment essential — not optional — for principals with female family members, principals attending settings where same-gender presence is required (changing rooms, medical settings, certain religious environments) and any mandate where a female operator improves the protective posture.

Our worldwide network covers more than twenty-four working languages. For any given mandate we deploy native or near-native speakers of the principal's primary language and the destination's primary language. Arabic, French, English, Mandarin, Russian, Japanese, Spanish, German and Italian are the most common combinations.

Every operator passes a documented vetting protocol covering: criminal record check across primary jurisdictions, financial integrity review, social media and digital footprint audit, reference verification with prior employers, and an in-person assessment with a senior coordinator. Vetting is renewed annually and re-run before any new principal exposure.

Officer selection is mandate-specific and structured: we match threat profile, operating environment, language requirements, gender considerations, cultural context, and the principal's personal style. A low-profile UHNW family mandate requires a different officer profile than a high-exposure corporate principal in a hostile media environment. This matching process is part of every engagement and is reviewed before each deployment.

Our officers complete a minimum of annual refresher training covering: evasive driving, first aid renewal, updated threat assessment methodology, and relevant jurisdiction-specific legal updates. Officers deployed on specialist mandates — maritime, aviation, hostile environments — hold specific operational certifications for those environments. We do not roster officers whose qualifications have lapsed.

We strongly encourage continuity of personnel for established principals. A consistent officer team builds situational awareness, understands the principal's habits and preferences, and reduces the operational re-briefing overhead for each deployment. We assign a primary team to each principal relationship and maintain that continuity as a priority within scheduling constraints.

Yes. We have provided close protection for members of ruling houses, former heads of state, and senior royal family members across Europe, the Gulf, and Southeast Asia. These mandates require protocol integration at an institutional level — formal liaison with household offices, coordination with host-country protective services, and the management of ceremonial and public-exposure events. Our officers for these mandates are selected specifically for their protocol competence and institutional communication skills.

A standard close protection mandate includes: pre-deployment threat picture and route survey, principal-facing protection officers (typically 1 to 3 officers), one or more security drivers, vehicle selection and provisioning, hotel pre-arrival check, venue advance, 24/7 operations centre tracking, daily intelligence brief and a confidential after-action report.

Yes — sedans, SUVs and people-carriers in armour ratings from B4 to B6+. Our Paris, Monaco, Geneva, London, Dubai and New York fleets are positioned for same-day deployment. For destinations outside this network, armoured vehicles are sourced from accredited regional partners under our written security standard.

Before any deployment, our intelligence cell delivers a written threat picture covering: country and city baseline, principal-specific exposure, route vulnerabilities, venue assessments, recent local incident pattern, expected protest or media activity, and contingency mapping. The brief is updated daily during the mandate and shared with you and the team.

Yes. Residential security is one of our core practices. We deliver: site survey, physical and electronic security architecture, household staff vetting, perimeter and CCTV design, 24/7 control room integration, response time mapping with local authorities, and resident protection officer rotation. Mandates run from short-stay seasonal to permanent multi-year.

Every mandate is structured around a pre-agreed contingency tree: medical, accident, hostile crowd, attempted approach, communication failure, vehicle incident. The team executes the relevant protocol immediately, the operations centre is alerted within sixty seconds, and you receive direct contact from a senior coordinator within five minutes. After-action review is delivered in writing within 48 hours.

An advance team deploys before the principal to survey the route, assess venues, pre-clear hotel accommodation, identify vulnerabilities, and confirm the operational plan. They liaise with hotel security, venue managers, and where applicable with local authorities. Advance work transforms a planned movement into a controlled one — it is the most consequential investment in protective quality you can make.

Yes. Counter-surveillance is embedded in the protective posture for principals at elevated risk. Our officers are trained to detect and confirm surveillance before it becomes a hostile approach, enabling course adjustments that prevent a threat from reaching the principal. For principals in complex or sustained threat environments, we deploy dedicated counter-surveillance capability separate from the close protection team.

Event security mandates include: site survey and perimeter assessment, invite and guest list management, entry control with identity verification, inner perimeter close protection for the principal, discreet crowd management, dedicated communications network, and full medical contingency. We integrate with venue security rather than supplanting it, and our event lead coordinates directly with the event organiser throughout.

Yes. Medical mandates are a distinct operational speciality requiring careful coordination with clinical teams, enhanced confidentiality protocols, and a security posture calibrated for the physical vulnerability of a principal in treatment. We provide coverage for inpatient stays, outpatient visits, post-procedure recovery, and international medical travel. Our medical mandate teams understand how to integrate with clinical environments without disrupting patient care.

We treat household integration as a deliberate design requirement, not an afterthought. At the start of every residential mandate, our team leader facilitates a joint briefing with the estate manager and senior household staff — covering the security function's role, day-to-day interaction protocols, contractor access management, and crisis response roles. Security functions best when it is understood by, and works in genuine partnership with, the household team.

Visibility is a deliberate decision tied to the threat picture and the principal's preference. Our default posture is civilian dress, low-profile, no insignia, no equipment visibility — protection that reads as a discreet personal staff member rather than as security. Where elevated threat or principal preference dictates, we move to a visible posture. We never invent visibility for its own sake.

Client information lives only with the operators directly involved in the mandate, on encrypted communications, segregated by mandate, with no cross-client visibility. Identifiable client material is never used in our marketing — every photograph or testimonial published has explicit written approval. We have never been the source of a leak about a client; this is the discipline on which our practice rests.

No, and we never will. We are willing to provide a small number of senior-level references upon request, after NDA and after we have evaluated whether your enquiry is a fit. We will not name specific principals, families or maisons in any commercial conversation.

This is standard protective tradecraft. Officers are briefed explicitly on social protocol with the principal in any setting — including what to do if they encounter the principal unexpectedly in a public space. The protective relationship is defined precisely to reflect the principal's preference: some principals want their officers to be completely socially invisible; others prefer a warmer working relationship. We adapt to whatever the principal has decided.

We use electronic security systems (CCTV, access control, GPS tracking, encrypted communications) in the delivery of residential and event security mandates where the principal has consented and where local law permits. We do not conduct surveillance of individuals without explicit legal basis and client consent. Our operations do not include unauthorised data collection of any kind.

Medical information is subject to the most restrictive information-handling protocols in our operations. Team members are briefed only on what is operationally necessary; the clinical nature of the mandate is not recorded in our standard documentation systems; and cover-story protocols are agreed with the principal's chief of staff where relevant. A principal's medical circumstances are never referenced in any commercially visible context.

Pricing is mandate-specific and reflects the team composition, duration, vehicles, intelligence support and any specialist capability required. We provide a written transparent quote before any deployment. There are no hidden costs, no incremental "service charges" applied during the mandate, and no minimum daily that does not match the operational reality of your requirement.

Reasonable travel and accommodation costs for the deployed team are typically billed at cost or as a fixed line item agreed before deployment. We never use travel or per-diem charges as a margin-padding mechanism — full transparency on this is part of our standard.

For new clients, we typically require a deposit equivalent to the first phase of the mandate. For established clients on a recurring or long-term mandate, the relationship moves to monthly or quarterly invoicing. Payment terms are agreed in writing before any operator is deployed.

Yes. Many of our principals operate on a retained basis — a fixed monthly arrangement that covers an agreed level of coverage and coordinator availability. Retained mandates typically reduce unit costs, ensure guaranteed resource availability, and allow us to build a deeper operational picture of the principal's environment over time. Retained arrangements are reviewed quarterly.

Pricing reflects the cost structure of each destination. Operating in Geneva or London incurs different personnel and vehicle costs than operating in Lagos or Jakarta. We are transparent about the cost drivers in each market and build quotations that reflect the actual operational requirements rather than a flat global rate.

The cost of a professional close protection engagement must be measured against the realistic consequences of a successful threat: kidnapping, targeted crime, reputational exposure, physical harm, or disruption to significant business or personal obligations. For UHNW principals operating in high-exposure environments, the cost of professional protective coverage is typically a fraction of the value at risk in any one operational window. We provide clear cost-benefit context in initial consultations for clients who are assessing whether to engage a protective function for the first time.

Yes. We hold tarmac credentials at major European and Gulf private aviation terminals — Le Bourget, Farnborough, Teterboro, Geneva, Nice and the major Gulf FBOs. Officers meet the aircraft on arrival, escort the principal through immigration where applicable, and transfer to ground transport without the principal entering a public terminal.

Yes. Our yacht practice covers: pre-charter security audit, captain and crew protocol alignment, tender escort during shore visits, port authority coordination across the Mediterranean and Gulf, and continuous coverage during principal time aboard. We coordinate under the captain's authority, never against it.

Yes. Multi-country mandates are managed by a single coordinator with worldwide visibility, ensuring consistent personnel, consistent protocol and continuous protection across every leg. We maintain operational presence in 40+ destinations and accredited partners in 60+ countries.

For destinations with elevated terrorism, kidnap or political risk, our advisory team provides a written go/no-go assessment before commitment, an enhanced threat picture during deployment and capability uplift (additional officers, armoured vehicles, medical support, communications redundancy) calibrated to the specific exposure. We will recommend against travel when the risk is materially out of line with the principal's objective.

Yes. Airport-only mandates are common — particularly for principals arriving for short stays where in-country security is provided by a host or by local resources. We meet the principal at the aircraft door or at immigration, escort through to onward transport, and disengage at the agreed handoff point.

Many of our officers hold advanced first aid and tactical medical qualifications. For mandates with elevated medical risk — older principals, principals with chronic conditions, large private events — we deploy a dedicated medical officer or position a discreet medical capability on site. Coordination with private hospitals at every major destination is part of our standard.

Yes. Alpine security — Gstaad, St Moritz, Verbier, Courchevel, Zermatt — is a specialist area requiring operators familiar with mountain environments, ski resort access protocols, après-ski social circuit dynamics, and the logistical challenges of protecting principals who are off-piste. Our Alpine teams are drawn from operators with direct high-mountain operational experience.

Yes. We have operated in Sub-Saharan Africa, the Gulf during summer heat, Sub-Arctic Scandinavia, and high-altitude Himalayan environments. Extreme-climate mandates require specific medical contingency planning, equipment adaptation, and officer physical assessment. We will not deploy operators into environments they are not appropriately prepared for.

This is a common and legitimate client preference. We deploy officers in a passive civilian posture that is indistinguishable from personal staff, a driver, or a travel companion. The principal's preference for no visible security changes the presentation of the protective function, not the quality of the protection. We maintain all core close protection protocols at the same operational standard regardless of presentation.