Complaints

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:08/17/2022

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  Hello, I was paying for service to monitor my home security system through George Alarm Company. Around the third week of June during the evening hours my home alarm was triggered by someone in my house. Several minutes went by and no call from George Alarm letting me know they received a notice. I called them and they told me my service was no longer working due to a cell link that needed updated. Here is where the issue begins: A few years back George Alarm reached out to me and said I needed to update my cell Link to continue service with them. I was told it was a ONE-TIME fee of $ 100.00 dollars. Then around last fall I was notified by George Alarm that I needed to update my cell Link again. I was confused why I needed to pay for an upgrade again since I done it once and was told it was a one-time fee. I explained I will not pay to upgrade again and when it quits receiving on their end, I will cancel service. Around the third week of June during the evening hours when my alarm went off and no response from George Alarm, I called them, and they explained the cell link quit responding so I then told them I would like to cancel service. They told me someone would call me the next day. The next day came and went. I then called their office three time after before finally getting through to someone who said she can take care of cancelling my service. She asked if I could email her, I want to cancel my service, so I did. I had already made payment of $ 119.64 for service from July through September 2022. They issued a check pro-rated for $ 112.99 and also didn't sign it. They are saying since I was unable to reach anyone until July 5,2022 that I'm being charged. I explained to them I feel that isn't right to charge for service when they knowingly were taking money from me while this cell link was no longer working from at least third week of June. I have emailed them asking again to pay me my full refund for service not provided and they have yet to respond.

  Business Response

  Date: 08/22/2022

  Dear BBB,

  George Alarm Company, Inc. is disputing the complaint presented to the Better Business Bureau from Complaint ID ********, *** *******. Below is the following information to substantiate our dispute.

  That the refund check arrived unsigned was pure accident on the part of George Alarm Co., Inc (GAC). Prior to the placement of this complaint, in an email sent August 15, we apologized to the customer for this oversight, and said that if he was able to return the check, we would sign it for him. We have yet to receive this check, or a request to reprint the check, as the customer insisted we write one for the full amount of the bill for his last recurring service. At that time, the customer was informed in detail, via email, why GAC is only willing to refund his recurring service bill in the prorated amount. The customer did not agree with our response, and reiterated the questions he had asked in the email we responded to.

  This was our response to the customer, provided on August 15:

  I spoke to [GAC owner] regarding the unsigned check. He said if you'd be willing to send that check back to us, or else drop it by our office, he would be glad to sign it. Please accept our apologies for the inconvenience. However, [GAC owner] is still only willing to refund you the amount [GAC billing manager] prorated from the date of your written cancellation notice on 7/5/22, for $112.99. For security reasons, the only acceptable form of cancellation request is a written notice, and we do not backdate cancellation requests from the time a customer calls our central station expressing a desire to cancel service, unless there had been some gross error on our part that caused your system to stop working. However, in your case, cell service to your system dropped because the A*** and ******* shutdown of their 3g/4g networks (about which we have been informing our customers for at least three years, via letters, cold-calls, etc.) finally took effect. Your loss of cell service was beyond the control of GAC, as we cannot control which networks ******* or **** choose to maintain (Paragraph 5, Section IV of your contract absolves GAC of responsibility for systems that lose service due to the subscriber's failure to maintain the communication equipment necessary to transmit and receive data).
  
  Again, I do want to apologize that your refund check arrived unsigned, and for the inconvenience this causes you. I'm sorry, too, that we weren't able to negotiate a better price on the system upgrade so that you could continue service with us (as we had in February 2017, the last time cell device upgrades became necessary). However, the refund amount on that check, calculated from the date of your written cancellation, is our final offer. Should you have any questions for [GAC owner] or [GAC billing manager], I'd be happy to relay them, but this is all the information I have been given to tell you.
  
  [End of response to customer]

  Since this response was sent, the GAC billing department (who sent this email) confirmed that the cellular devices experiencing communication loss were maintained by AT&T, who began the “sunset” of their 3g/4g networks on February 22, 2022. However, the "sunset" occurred in stages, and did not impact devices monitored by GAC until mid-June, at which point several cell devices entered "communication failure" status.

  As the announced shutdown dates for both cellular communication providers approached, GAC made a concentrated effort to notify/remind customers of this event, sending letters to affected customers in July 2021, March 2022, and mid-June 2022. The third round of letters was sent out immediately after 3g or 4g cell communicators operating through AT&T’s network dropped service. Attached are copies of each version of the letter (dates left off, as letters were dated on the day they were sent to each individual customer, not the day they were written)

  According to our central station, the customer did contact GAC on 6/28/22, after he realized his system was not communicating, and requested that a technician come look at his system to figure out why it was not sending signals to us. There is no mention that the customer wanted to cancel service with us, or was even considering cancelling.

  Paragraph 2 of GAC’s service contract stipulates that customers provide 60-day notice of cancellation of service, but GAC rarely, if ever, enforces this stipulation, and cancelled this customer’s account effective on the date of the written cancellation notice, 7/5/22.

  Finally, we never charged this customer for an upgraded cellular device the last time these upgrades became necessary. Though we may have initially bid the device at a one-time cost of $100.00, an invoice for a system install in this amount was never created, and according to a contract addendum dated 2/6/2017, GAC gave the device to the customer for free, on the condition that the customer complete 36 months of paid service with us (this agreement was fulfilled). Regardless, this one-time cost would have been for the direct purchase of that particular device (“one-time” meaning no additional recurring costs associated with the device installation), and did not preclude us from charging for a new, upgraded device, should that device become necessary for the customer’s system to continue sending and receiving signal to/from our central station.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 08/22/2022

   I am rejecting this response because:
  
  George alarm was made aware at time and prior that if and when I would have to pay for any upgrades I would cancel service 

  When I did get through to someone several days later I explained I wanted to cancel service I was told lady that handled it was out of office so I was delayed. As to giving 60 day notice that should only apply when service is being provided. I sent a email

  req George Alarm verify when my service went off line and didn’t get any response to see how long I had been paying for service when technically I was off line. How long would they have collected money if I had not caught there system not working? As to me bringing or mailing the unsigned check back I don’t feel I should absorb the cost to mail it or fuel cost to bring check back to them. It’s sitting on my desk and someone from George Alarm can pick it up. I’m asking  again to be compensated the full amount I requested .