For More Information:Contact:
Margulies Communications (214-368-0909)
David Margulies (davidm@prexperts.net)

June 2005

Alarm Management Frequently Asked Questions

1. Why are so many individuals and businesses choosing to install alarms?

Alarms are 98 percent deterrence and 2 percent detection. Police want to catch criminals; families want the burglar to go somewhere else. Alarm responses strengthen the relationship between law enforcement professionals and their communities. Alarms were not designed to capture criminals, they were designed to deter, detect and document. Research has shown that burglars will avoid alarmed homes and businesses, choosing targets where they don’t face the threat of detection.

2. How often do false activations of security alarms occur?

The national average is less than one invalid alarm per location per year. Thanks to proactive changes in the alarm industry, the average number of invalid alarms has plummeted across the nation in recent years.

3. Do alarm systems malfunction frequently or is this a relatively rare occurrence?

Alarms operate properly and effectively more than 99 percent of the time. Digital technology and state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities have reduced equipment malfunction to an absolute minimum. Alarms rarely fail to detect a criminal event. Invalid alarms are almost always attributed to user error, and most alarm users report no false alarms in a given year. Most false alarms come from commercial complexes, schools, churches and government buildings.

4. Does alarm response put too heavy a burden on law enforcement budgets?

Alarm response is not a budget buster. Citizen review committees (such as in Los Angeles) have found that police response is provided by officers who are already on patrol. Calls for service are prioritized, and alarms are placed at the low end of the scale. There is no incremental cost for alarm response. Many communities have identified a revenue opportunity for managing alarms through a fine and fee structure.

5. Isn’t the industry concerned about claims that 98 percent of alarm activations are false?

The industry prefers to work with law enforcement and alarm industry professionals to gain its own perspective on alarm issues. SIAC estimates that the average national alarm dispatch rate is approximately 0.9, less than one dispatch per system per year. This information is based on a compilation of statistics from national and regional alarm companies and major law enforcement agencies throughout the U.S. that closely measure alarm dispatch rates. Seven years ago, this rate was estimated at 2.5 dispatches per system per year, and since then the estimated number of installed systems has nearly doubled, from 18 million to 34 million. The industry has significantly reduced dispatches by 64 percent during a period of unprecedented growth that adds two million systems per year.

--SIAC--