In news from around the country, it looks like authorities are getting sick of responding to false alarms.

A well-maintained fire alarm system and proper training on a security system can help prevent faulty equipment and user error from leading to false alarms.

What’s more, it could save you money.

In news from the East Bay Times out of California, the FD will begin charging for false alarms on October 1. The story in the East Bay Times notes

“last year, the department responded to more than 400 false alarms, which it said caused lengthier response times to actual emergencies.”

Norris knows that when you’re dealing with an actual fire, seconds count.

On the intrusion detection side, CTV news’ The Star out of Toronto reports the PD there will no longer respond to burglar alarms without proof of criminal activity. This kind of policy is called verified response. The Security Industry Association (SIAC) has further information and is there to help industry folks and municipalities strike a balance when false alarms start getting out of hand.

“We’re sending a two-officer police car to alarms that are not a real call,” Toronto PD spokesperson Sandra Buckler said in The Star piece. She notes that that means 97% of the time, the police don’t need to be there. That can lead to complacency in responding officers, which can lead to disastrous results in the 3% of real calls.

The article doesn’t get into specifics on how business owners and residents are supposed to provide proof. However, there are solutions out there today to provide some sort of verification, whether it’s video or audio. A Norris expert can help you design a system that provides such verification. Drop Norris a line today!

False alarms cost time, money and sometimes lives.

You can check with your own municipality to see if there is a false alarm ordinance in place and what the relevant fees might be.

 

What is Norris all about?

Norris, Inc.—a South Portland, Maine-based life-safety and security systems integrator with satellite offices in Bangor, Maine; Lee, New Hampshire; and Burlington, Vermont—was founded nearly 40 years ago by two brothers, Brad and Harty Norris. The brothers remain on the board of directors today and continue to help steer the enterprise toward its goal of advancing life-safety, security, and communications while striving to grow in its status as Northern New England’s leading systems integrator. Norris provides fully integrated life-safety and security solutions, comprising disparate systems including fire alarm, intrusion detection, access control, video surveillance, emergency notification, and communications.