Officer Peña of the Pearland Police Department has recently commented on the high number of false alarm calls they receive from home security systems. About 98% all house alarm are false. False alarms are a huge waste of law enforcement’s time and taxpayer money.

ADT provides some tips to help you reduce false alarms:

For homeowners, some of the common causes are:

• Using incorrect keypad codes.
• Failing to train authorized users.
• Failure to secure doors and windows once the alarm is turned on.
• Wandering pets.
• Re-entering the home just after leaving without disarming (assuming the exit delay is long enough to compensate).
• Objects hanging by or around motion detectors.
• Weak system batteries.
• Faulty equipment.
• Acts of nature (strong winds, electrical storms, etc.).

False alarms due to faulty equipment or acts of nature are rare. The single largest cause of false alarms is human error.

Once the causes are identified, some basic steps should help reduce false alarms:

• Properly train all users (e.g., babysitters, relatives, children, visitors, etc.).
• Secure doors and windows before turning on alarm.
• Inform the monitoring center of new pass codes and arming codes, and new or removed authorized users.
• Service and maintain the system (including batteries) properly.

If there is a question as to whether or not the system is working properly, immediately contact the security provider to check the status of the system and devices.

More Resources:

• Home Security 101 
• Home Security Tips 
• Home Security Community 
• Understanding Wireless Home Security Systems 
• Home Security Glossary 

Thanks to our friends at Silvercreek Tribune for sharing information