There have been some concerns raised regarding telephone and doorstep sales of alarm systems, following a recent report from Hinxton village.  The sales rep stated incorrectly that the police no longer attend ‘noisy’ alarms, which is untrue.  If there are reports of suspicious persons in the area, or breaking glass for example then this would elicit a response. This company have previously featured on BBC Watchdog for aggressive sales practices, and they have been spoken to by Cambridgeshire Trading Standards regarding sales techniques that are illegal or misleading, such as offering a system for £1 when the true cost will be much higher when yearly maintenance and monitoring are included, or remaining in a person’s home for several hours in order to wear them down and persuade them to sign up just to get rid of them.

‘If during a visit to your property a trader refuses to leave, contact the police immediately and make a note of the time of the request and the time the trader leaves.’

When buying an alarm system it is always advisable to get at least three quotes; look for companies that are accredited by N.S.I. (National Security inspectorate) http://www.nsi.org.uk or S.S.I.A.B. (Security Systems & Alarm Inspection Board) http://www.ssiab.org

Independent Inspectorates are not-for-profit approval bodies who carry out inspection services for the security industry in order to protect customer interests.  They are governed by UKAS (United Kingdom Accreditation Service) the sole accreditation service recognised by the government.

If you have been contacted by the company and feel concerned please contact the police for assistance.

Police 101 Cambridgeshire Trading Standards 0845 40 40 50 6