Re: Just bought, am I getting a fair deal? Apex/Honeywell/Monitronics

["Danny Kewl" <bwana1SPAMMENOTREMOVE@xxxxxxxxx>]

Thanks for all the replies so far from No Wires Showing and Crash Gordon. I
just called Monitronics and they told me to call Apex. Apex said they
"couldn't come down on price for the quality equipment" they installed. I
then re-read No Wires Showing's first reply and I called Monitronics back to
deal directly with them, and if they'll take charge of my account instead of
Apex (hopefully for the $29.99) and they said I have to deal with Apex. Then
I read about the repair tickets just sitting there and that you could use it
for a "footrest". I also scanned the Google groups archive for Monitronics,
and there are some pretty dubious reviews of their service. I was told I had
state of the art equipment, but what good is it if as some post said that
Monitronics is not notifying people about alarms that go off?

Now, I don't know about ADT or other company's track records, maybe or maybe
not they have good or bad track records, but since I have to deal with
Monitronics right now, that's who I looked up. I told both Monitronics and
Apex on the phone just now, that Apex comes to your house, tells you you're
not going to get a better system or deal for this price, and the installers
are already down the street, and will be at your house in an hour, which
they were after I signed up, thinking, they need to make an appointment to
come out and install, and in that time I could do research if that's the
right deal for me. I told the salesperson, I'll sign up, and do my research,
and if I don't like what I find, I call them up to tell them not to come out
and save them from putting equipment in. But, again, after I assume that's
the situation, she calls the installer, and it has to be "installed tonight"
and if you want to put it off, you won't get such a good deal and will have
to pay for equipment, etc. if done later.  I thought "fine", they're not
giving me time to make an INFORMED decision, and if I cancel, and they have
to take their equipment back out, that's due to their haste. Since it's in,
and time limited, vs. making an appointment a week or so away to install and
having time to research, it's hard to find in so little time if this was
really the right thing for me. It's a shame some companies operate like
this.

So, I'm going out to fax the cancellation notice, has to be sent by
midnight. That way if I fax it from Kinko's or something, hopefully I get a
receipt that I sent it.

Another question: Since Apex removed my old ADT control panel and the
electronics box in the basement, etc., are they responsible to re-install
that for me? I would like to see if I could get a deal from someone else
since I'm already (or was so) wired. Again, thanks for all the help.


"Danny Kewl" <bwana1SPAMMENOTREMOVE@xxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:Haadne4K7Yoo5Q7fRVn-jA@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>
> Hi, I just bought a Apex/Honeywell/Monitronics alarm system last Thursday
> evening (5/19/05) from a door to door salesperson. I believe Apex is the
> middleman selling the systems. The alarm system was installed that evening
> also. I just bought my house about a year ago, and it already had a
> control panel for an ADT system, but I never had it connected to a
> monitoring service. I took them up on their offer, as I was meaning to get
> some kind of security system going here, and kept procrastinating, and
> felt if I didn't go for it, I'd procrastinate more and never get a system
> going, and be unprotected in a Cleveland, Ohio neighborhood that's just
> starting to become a little rough.
>
> What they said is they install free equipment, based on a point system,
> and I'm allowed 6 points, each item chosen worth one point. I have a small
> bungalow style house, so I got one wireless glass breakage detector (was
> told it will detect to a 25 foot plus radius), one wireless motion
> detector, one wireless smoke alarm, and there were already two door
> sensors from the last system that they counted as one point each I believe
> (front door and side door), and a key fob for a point. I was told 6 points
> were worth about seven or eight hundred dollars of equipment that they
> installed free, but looking at this now, I already had the two door
> sensors. I was told window sensors were unnecessary as I just had new
> vinyl replacement windows installed a month ago, and was told on the newer
> ones, they are impossible to open from the outside without breaking the
> glass, which the breakage detector would pick up.
>
> I don't have traditional wired landline phone service, I use only my cell
> phone always. They told me I would have to use their cellular back-up
> network in this case, which is $42.99 a month, $3 more than if I used
> their landline service. I tried searching the Net to see if I am getting a
> good, or at least a fair deal. My contract is for three years. I could not
> find anything that lists what companies charge for monitoring, however I
> know I'm probably at a disadvantage with some companies not having a
> landline. All the sites want you to sign up first, I'm sure that's the way
> it would work with calling them also. I did find a site just now (
> http://www.policealarm.com/ ) that says they monitor starting $2.95 a
> month, but my old control box, etc. has been taken out and the Monitronics
> installed, plus a new box in the basement, whatever that is, with all the
> wires, etc.
>
> I signed up Thursday evening about 7 PM EST, and since the weekend was
> coming up, the salesperson told me I had 5 days to change my mind and
> cancel the contract instead of the usual 3 days. This is about up, and I
> don't want to cancel a good deal if I do have one, and have to start from
> scratch looking for a security provider, etc. and maybe, again, never get
> it done. On the other hand, if it does not sound like a good/fair deal
> what I got, what are my options to negotiate? Thanks much in advance.
>
>
>
>