ALARM RESEARCH INC

Alarm Research removed contested charges for repair of old equipment to customer satisfaction.

Corroded tamper switches were replaced but we were invoiced for repair of their equipment.

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I had several of my windows replaced in October of 2012 and needed to have new sensors for my alarm system replaced. My Alarm system had been monitored by Alarm Research since November of 2007. During that time the only time I was ever contacted by Alarm Research was when I was sent a statement for the annual monitoring service. As a result of this perceived non interest in me I decided to contact another alarm company, especially since my annual agreement was to expire at the end of November. I contacted a company that is highly rated on Angie's List and had them replace and add window sensors and to monitor my alarm system. This took place on 11/14/2012. On 11/15/2012 I called Alarm Research and told them that I no longer wanted them to monitor my system as my prepaid service was to expire on 11/30/2012. The person from Alarm Research told me that I would have to pay a $175 service call for the technician to come to my house to discontinue the service. I told the Alarm Research rep that the tech from the new company had reprogramed the control board and that the service call was not necessary. The rep told me that the control board should not have been touched, even though I own all of the equipment, and that she needed to speak to a technician. I then spoke to Paul Glenn, the owner of Alarm Research. He told me that "his software" was on the control board and that if I did not return "his software" he was going to charge me $595. On 11/19/2012 I received a statement from Alarm Research in the Amount of $595 + tax for "unreturned proprietary software". I called Alarm Research inquiring about this charge. I was again referred to Mr Glenn who told me that this was in my lease agreement which I was given when I first started receiving monitoring service from Alarm Research. I had asked Mr Glen what I needed to do in order to avoid paying this charge. He said that I needed to bring him the control board with "his software". I have the installation manual for my system. It does not state anything about installing software on the control board. All it talks about is programming the system to call a designated call center and entering an account number to identify the system. This is exactly what the Alarm Research technician did when they took over monitoring my system in 2007. The technician from my present monitoring company did exactly the same thing that the Alarm Research technician did. The invoice from the technician at Alarm Research when they originally took over the monitoring stated that the system was programed. No where did it state software was installed. I contacted the new alarm company to ask them what Mr. Glenn meant by wanting back the control board with"his software". They told me that there is no way for him to install software on the control board and gave me a control board to take to Mr. Glenn since he wanted a board. I took the board to Mr. Glenn who had a technician check it out and told me it was not his board and did not contain his software. Mr Glenn then told me that by not bring back "his software" I was affecting several of his accounts. I then asked him exactly what software he was talking about. He told me that he would not talk about it. He gave me a copy of my lease stating that I owed him $599 and walked away. When I returned home from Alarm Research, I checked my installation manual and checked online with the hardware manufacturer to be sure that there is no software to be installed on my system. I then checked Angie's List and found a review for Alarm Research that described the same problem that I was having regarding unreturned proprietary software. The next day I called Mr. Glenn. He told me that he had a call in a few minutes and that I needed to be brief. I told him that I was troubled by the fact that my not returning "his software" was affecting several of his accounts but if I paid $595 everything was OK. He told me that he never said that and that I would need to take that up with my lawyers. I then told him that there was a review on Angie's List with the same exact problem as me and it had to go through a lawyer to be resolved and that maybe I would have to do the same. He then told me "go knock yourself out" and hung up on me. I

I called for an estimate and the owner called me back within 24 hours and went over everything I needed to know. It was simple and straightforward. I am currently in the process of transferring to ARI services for my home.

I called the firm for an estimate to upgrade my alarm system and was given a ballpark figure over the phone. I should have been more firm about an exact written estimate when they arrived, but I was out of town and was handling everything over the phone. They charged by the hour. The tech worked very slow, but he was very thorough and neat. He did nice work, but took way longer than anyone thought he would, and this includes his main office. They called to tell him to "wrap things up". I called the office to complain about the high cost, and the owner gave me a partial refund, so I'm happy. So overall, I would use them again, I would just make sure to get something in writing for a fixed price on the job.

The monitoring experience was adequate, yet expensive. At the end of the contract I swithched to another provider due to cost. When I notified Alarm Research of the change, I was told that I would have to pay a $400 penalty. I called the proprietor, Paul Glenn, to speak with him as to why there was a penalty charge. He answered, not by talking, but by yelling that he had proprietary information installed in my system, and if I removed the memory card and returned it to him he would not charge me more than $400. He carried on as to how his attorney would sue me, etc. After listening to his verbal abuse for some 5-10 minutes, I reminded him that my name was Mr. Lowen, not Lowen. I, shortly thereafter, contacted the manufacturer of my system and was told that there was no memory card or proprietary information other than the phone number of his monitoring company. In the meantime I received a second bill, one month after the first, now telling me that I owed an additional $100 to the $400, because of late charges. I contacted my attorney, who wrote to Alarm Research, telling them what information we had obtained and that they must cease and desist. I have not heard from Mr.Glenn again., it is now over a year. Needless to say I would not recommend Alarm Research to anyone. I think they are unethical and unprofessional.

I have been quite pleased with the service. We have had no problems with them and if we do they are always able to help us over the phone. They have always been extremely responsive when we call them.

We talk with them on the phone when we have issues. The customer service people will walk through the issues with us. They are a small company. They are very accessible. They have been very helpful with resolving issues with a particular door or keypad. They are responsive when we forget stuff. We have been using them for about 10 years. I will continue to use them in the future.

THEY PERFORMED A VERY GOOD JOB. THEY WERE VERY PROFESSIONAL, KIND, AND VERY POLITE. THEY WORKED WITH ME AROUND MY SCHEDULE SO I COULD BE THERE WHEN THEY WERE INSTALLING THE ALARM SYSTEM.