Home Security Systems can be a funny thing. Not funny ha, ha, but peculiar how you can believe crime is everywhere and believe alarm systems prevent crime, but take no action. An American home is broken into every 15 seconds to the tune of over $2000 in lost property and damages. Yet many, like me, don't invest in a home security system. That is until something happens. Hopefully it doesn't happen to you. Sometimes a burglary a few doors down or a friend of a friend's neighbor suffers a home invasion and there's an over sized slice of reality sitting on your plate. And it's starring right at you.
I was a 25 year old with 2 dogs, home security didn't seem urgent or worth the cost. That was until a burglar didn't visit my neighbor or a friend's friend, they came to my home. An unknown person strolled into my home and took what they wanted. I arrived home to find the window next to the front door broken and glass across the floor. The FRONT DOOR, the one that faced the fairly busy street I lived on. My next move, I don't suggest. I opened the door and went in.
I stepped over the glass in confusions. The broken window had decorative bars, so no one came through it. The door was re-locked. My home wasn't destroyed or disheveled. I thought maybe a rock or stray ball from the neighborhood boys had broken the glass. The entire first floor was absolutely normal.
Up the stairs I went, the guest room was just a boring as when I left. In my room, I put my purse down and sat on my bed. The bed that I make every day before heading to work... it wasn't made anymore. The mattress was actually not straight either. I vomited and left my house. Purse still sitting on the bed, I left the house, walked to the gas station and called the police. I returned with police, somehow still thinking there was a logical explanation until I found my ransacked closet and a list of missing items. A $3658 list of missing items.
Here is where one might think I say, "That incident happened 18 years ago, Installing a home security system restored my peace of mind and I am living happily ever after." To some degree, yes, but if you have lived through a burglary or worse, you know, you are permanently altered a bit. At the very minimum, a mental evaluation occurs about how long you are away from home, how often? Are you tempting fate by buying large expensive items and show casing them in plain view to the whole neighborhood?
My reality is that a 8 months later, an acquaintance asked for a wine opener at a dinner party and I sent my neighbor's boyfriend to a kitchen drawer to fetch it. He did. Then he found the next drawer with the spare keys to the house and a key chain remote to our alarm system. He then spent a lovely evening with us eating BBQ'd steak and ribs, returned the next day while we were at work and add about $5000 to our total burglary losses that year. Good thing I didn't have any of those family heirlooms laying around. He was actually caught and prosecuted; our belongings had been long sold.
I did exactly what you will do when you are victim of a burglary, break-in or home invasion...
The police will come and take a report, hopefully you have taken inventory of your belongings for the insurance claim and the police report. Pictures came in very handy. The police will then give you some statistics and tell you to invest in a security system. No matter where you live or how white your picket fence is, the people who chase burglars every day will tell you to protect yourself. The gated community we lived in did not keep us from being a statistic or exclude unsavory sorts from coming to dinner.
A very sleepless night followed our first break-in. The next morning, I grabbed the yellow pages... Yes, the big book that was physically delivered door to door years ago. We sometimes sat on it to learn to drive and then found businesses in it before Google was here to help. I called a few companies, the first company that answered the phone and could install same day was my choice. They did ask if my hubby would be available, but I wanted it now or yesterday so I scheduled before he would be home from work so we could get it all done immediately. Luckily my neighbor was there when the guy that looked a touch shady arrived. Honestly, he appeared to be casing my house for further damage. I will never know how that would have ended because my neighbor sent him away after he could not produce ID or answer simple questions like how long has your company been in business. Questions I would not have asked before handing him a check for whatever he wanted and begging for an alarm. We called ADT because the name came to mind. This was all long before I would worked for an alarm company or even knew what a blog was for that matter. It was a professionally handled experience. That night we had an alarm. And I can tell you, it does provide a sense of security... a well needed sense of security.
18 years ago, Yelp was not around and honestly, most companies just took pride in their work and customer service was king. Probably queen as well. ADT and Brinks Home Security were the only names that I knew off the top of my head back then, but today, you can probably pick a company by matching the pretty yard sign to your home's exterior. There are that many companies out there. When your sense of personal safety has been shattered, you will want to call the company that can come right now and get it done! I would like to speak a little wisdom to your aching soul here. Don't be victimized after you've been victimized.
Take advantage of Yelp! and other third party review sites to see what previous customers say about a company's integrity and willingness to see your needs best met. We all know that customer service is not always king anymore, it might not even rank as prince or princess with some companies. The Better Business Bureau can also shed some light on how content and secure you will feel with your new alarm company.
If you would like information about a monitored home security system, give us a call at 1-800-310-9490 or schedule your FREE In-Home Security Review to assess your family's needs and design the right system for you.
Related Video:
A naked man entered the France family's home and threatened to kill everyone. They activated their ADT alarm causing the suspect to flee. It also sent a signal to ADT's monitoring center in Rochester, New York and the Sheriff's Department was dispatched. Deputies made the arrest and soon discovered that the perpetrator was suspected of murdering his grandmother. The France family believes without ADT and the quick response from law enforcement, they also could have been hurt.
