Police's Alarm Company Rating List
More About Alarm Companies
(4/22/99)
They prey on the fears of senior citizens and leave them with little
more than bills.
Several security alarm companies are under investigation right now, by
state agencies that say they're misleading customers.
News Specialist Nadine Wimmer shows how.
80-year-old Lola Stebbins was confused about how her new alarm system was
supposed to work -- and, she had no idea the company was deducting monthly
payments from her social security check.
Her daughter-in-law, Dixie Stebbins, says "All we knew is we went in there one
day and there was a little box like in the kitchen and my husband asked her
what it was, and she said, what?"
"She said, the police put it in for free."
Alarm owner, Peter Orullian, says, "They told me the police would be here in
three minutes, three minutes after the alarm went off."
Orullian says an alarm company also made lots of promises about being safe at
home. What they didn't tell him is if his alarm went off accidentally, he'd get
charged $100 by police for each false alarm.
The Spanish-speaking owner of a bakery found out the hard way that those
false alarm charges can add up fast.
He says his system is confusing, and he was never clear how it worked. Now
he owes a few thousand dollars for false alarms.
Some unscrupulous companies are taking advantage of people who are afraid for
their personal safety, and they approach them with a slick sales pitch.
They
tell people the alarms give them a direct link to the police department. But
everyone already has that-- just pick up the phone and dial 911.
Shanna Werner, of the Salt Lake City Police Department, says, "They're preying
on those fears. They're selling them this alarm system as the panacea for all
ills."
Senior citizens and non-English-speaking Utahns seem to be the target.
Police departments and many unhappy customers say it's time for a word of
warning.
Peter Orullian says, "I think people out there should look into things and
should start smelling the Postum instead of letting people get out there and
take advantage of them all the time."
"There are some people that an alarm is not the answer. They should look to
other methods-- a dog with large teeth," says Shanna Werner.
Some state agencies have launched an investigation into the industry to
weed out the companies who are protecting people, from those just protecting
their bottom line.
The Salt Lake City Police Deparmtment has a rating system for all of the
home security companies, based on the number of customer false alarms.
Click here
for a list of companies that make the grade.
More About Alarm Companies.
