In the past decade we have heard every reason why people should have a security alarm, and many reasons why they may not.
Article by Ralph Brickley
Some people feel, and not completely without reason, that having homes or business properties far away from quick-response city districts make having an alarm system without a highly perceived benefit. Often people feel that because authorities take so long to respond, it means that the alarm has no good value. This is somewhat of a short-sighted view.
There is in fact a large list of benefits, even for rural properties that far outweigh the argument of the uselessness of having an alarm system in place. In no way could I exhaust them all, but this article is written to help assure some people or business managers of why they should have a properly monitored fire and burglary alarm system in place.
To get a quote on your alarm system, visit out website at http://www.innovativesc.com.
1. Required
For many commercial applications and businesses, NFPA regulations require that the facility have an actively monitored fire alarm system. In some buildings that already have sprinklers installed, otherwise known as a ‘Suppression System’, they still require a UL listed Fire Alarm Control Panel that monitors the water-flow switch and tamper switch on the main water feeds to the building. These regulations also come with requirements for Daily Testing or Timer Testing where the monitoring company must monitor whether or not they receive a ‘timer test’ signal from the alarm panel every 24 hours to ensure adequate protection.
Beyond that, many insurance companies may require some type of adequate or complete smoke/heat detection to protect their insurance investment. Statistically, properties that have monitored coverage are far less likely to be burglarized and/or suffer complete loss due to fire damage. Recently we bid a home alarm system where the new owners of the rural home were given a home insurance quote that would double without having an actively monitored system that included smoke detection. While this wasn’t a requirement, it quickly became one for the home-owner who was faced with a much larger premium and no protection.
2. Emotional Benefit
Local Crime Map for McMinnville, OR - Showing T for Theft, B for Burglary
Often peace of mind is the first and fore-most thought in the people, especially residential owners when considering an alarm system. With neighborhood crime fluctuation or even being victimized personally, people see the alarm system as a way to ‘feel’ more protected. If this was the only benefit gained by having an alarm system it would be well worth it.
As humans, we do many things to make ourselves feel better. We drink our coffee in the morning, some go shopping, others turn to poorly chosen habits or addictions in a hope to feel better. It is a proven statistic from the United States Department of Justice that 1 in 5 homes in America are burglarized every year. The Federal Bureau of Investigations tells us that homes with monitored alarm systems are 4 times less likely to be burglarized.
These numbers when compared to many local crime rates ring very true, and that does give us peace of mind. It is also comforting to know that while we are away, something and someone is standing by to respond to events at our home or business. Many modern systems even monitor for power failures, low system batteries and you can even add water bugs and other devices to provide even more comprehensive protection.
Innovative Security offers free Text/Email alerts for all of our alarm customers so that even while away on vacation you can be notified of events at home, allowing you to coordinate repairs if necessary, even while away!
3. Financial Benefits
As stated earlier in this article, we recently bid a home alarm project that include minor smoke detection that cut the home owners insurance premium quote by 50%. This is rather abnormal but it can happen. The home was located nearly 5 miles from the city district which placed it at a much higher loss risk due to slow response times. With a monitored security alarm that dispatches fire trucks immediately, the possibility of loss is much smaller and therefore it saves the insurance company claims money.
Nearly every home and business insurance carrier will provide premium discounts depending on what type of coverage you have and what type of alarm systems you have in place. I have seen discounts as low as 5% and as high as 15%. Some companies give deeper discounts if you have smoke detection, some lump the discount into one whether you have a normal burglary/intrusion detection system or include smoke detection in your system.
Furthermore, it is now a requirement for new properties and rental properties to have carbon monoxide detection. Many insurance companies will cease to ensure properties without regulated protection, which in turn is a financial benefit to you for having adequate protection.
In an attempt at simplicity, I’m going to make up some numbers. Let’s say you pay $1500 every year for insurance, and by having a monitored alarm system, your insurance company provides a 15% discount. That is $225.00 that you save annually. The cost of standard alarm monitoring is $19.95/mo, or, $239.40 annually. By obtaining that discount, your annual out-of-pocket cost for better protection ends up being $14.40. That’s a pretty good deal!
Commercially speaking, we have worked with companies who had been burglarized so many times, their insurance carrier dropped them. The huge expense of time and money getting a new insurance carrier plus installing the alarm system created a strain on this customer and was another layer of stress for the owners. If even the insurance companies know that having security is a protection to them, how much more should we know it will protect our own homes or businesses?
4. Advanced Functionality
For many people, alarm systems are no longer simply alarm systems! Many new technologies have advanced the functionality of alarm systems and are morphing into home automation or home controls. Many alarm platforms today allow you to turn lights on or off, open or close blinds, turn devices on or off remotely and even be notified or actively monitor whether or not children are home.
Newer technology allows you to add video cameras and receive notification when children come home, or even keep tabs on cleaning people. Many parts of the alarm industry are turning to convenient features for home owners and businesses alike with products like cellular backup. Cellular backup provides added features such as remotely arming/disarming your alarm system with today’s popular smartphone, or managing your own user codes and automatic arming/disarming schedules via an easy to use online interface.
We handle a large number of Papa Murphy’s pizza franchise stores and several owners can’t imagine not having security and more importantly, not having the added features that come with it. Having managers notified if the store opens late or closes early is a huge management tool, or if the alarm triggers, being notified in seconds what has happened and checking out cameras seconds later on the same smartphone make choosing whether or not to dispatch police easy and a cost-saver, especially in jurisdictions that charge for false alarm dispatches.
x. Conclusion
All that being said, alarm systems are really no longer alarm systems, and Innovative Security takes it one step further than the competition. Most companies offer so called ‘free’ installs but in the fine print ‘free’ means you pay a much larger amount, later. You are locked into a long-term contract, with an inflated monthly price and very large termination fees.
Here at Innovative Security, we merge the latest technology with ‘hand-shake’ customer service ethics. We don’t require long-term contracts for monitoring, not even an annual contract. Our services are on a month-to-month basis for alarm monitoring, and no, we do not raise the rates for that.
So if you want a quote, check out our website. We have a pages dedicated to Residential and Commercial applications and our knowledgeable system designers are always offering advice and estimates for free!
Pick up this Simon XT Wireless Alarm Kit, Installed for only $499.99! Where? 
This is a hard question to answer! After many many years of experience in the Security industry, User Error pops up as the culprit of nearly EVERY false alarm!
We know how tough the times are. We also know you would like to protect your home, family, or business.
Millions of small and large companies have invested thousands, even millions into security protection. It’s a huge concern, protecting private or sensitive customer information, employees, office equipment, etc.
