In my job as sales manager for the Puget Sound, I meet with people every day who are frustrated with their current alarm systems but don’t know where to turn. Some of the big names in the industry have taught their customers to expect poor service, over-the-top fees, outdated equipment and frequent false alarms. I feel it is my job to let people know that it does not have to be that way! When I start explaining how Secure Pacific does things differently and gets much better results, I run into a lot of questions. I’ve put some of the most popular ones below. Q: Do burglar alarms catch bad guys? A: No, burglar alarms don’t catch bad guys, police catch bad guys. The thing is, police can’t catch bad guys unless they know a crime is taking place. With traditional motion detector-based alarm systems, all anyone knows is that motion occurred. Secure Pacific’s Verisafe line shows our operators exactly what is happening through the use of security alarm verification. Q: What is the false alarm rate with a “cut-rate” alarm system? A: Nationally, approximately 98 percent of all burglar alarms are false. This becomes a tremendous drain on our police resources and leads to a “boy who cried wolf” situation where officers increasingly ignore burglar alarm calls. Q: Why verified security? A: Verified security alarms assist police in catching bad guys by identifying an actual crime in progress, by allowing police dispatchers to set a priority dispatch. I think a better question is, “Why wouldn’t you want a verified security alarm?” Q: Isn’t cheaper better when it comes to purchasing a burglar alarm? A: You really do get what you pay for when it comes to cheap alarm systems. There are tons of companies out there who want to reel you in with offers like, “free monitoring,” “no contract,” “or only $99 to install.” However, they recoup the money they lose on the front end by charging excessive fees for service, providing low-quality equipment and skimping on staffing, which means minimal customer service. Q: The larger the alarm company, the better the service, right? A: Not necessarily. The larger the company, the larger amount of client to operator ratio, which can lead to reduced service. Our Verification Center is not as large as the national companies’, but our operators know many of our customers by name. They also have a smaller account load, which means a much higher level of detail when it comes to protecting your space from real threats. Q: If my non-verified, monitored alarm system goes off, will police immediately respond? A: Burglar alarms are not monitored directly by the police — there has to be someone in the middle doing the dispatching. Many central stations run by other companies have so many accounts that it can take them up to 15 minutes to even dispatch police to your site! In a lot of municipalities, police departments require some sort of verification prior to responding to an alarm. Verification can be an eye witness, or a verified security alarm using audio, video or a combination of audio/video verification. Think about it… should you rely on a non-verified security system to protect your home or company assets? Police respond to verified security systems. Will they respond to yours? We love answering questions. Feel free to call us any time to discuss how you can get more for your money when it comes to security.