Opinion - KnightWatch Security - Toronto, Ontario, Canada

RHC: According to their website, they are a Brinks dealer which would personally put me instantly on guard.

Check their rating at the BBB (which might not tell you anything really unless they have a lot of unanswered complaints). Other than that, watch out for the usual "hooks"....ie: phoney free systems, overpriced long term contracts, auto renewal contracts for long periods etc. Check out EXACTLY what they include in their service, and EXACTLY what their warranty covers and doesn't cover (these are often forgotten things that can jump up later to bite you in the butt)

Other dealers I've talked to tell me Toronto is a hotbed of cutthroat competition with a significant number of unscrupulous companies around. So as always, buyer beware

If you have some time to read, go here....www.homemetal.com

Well, I could not find Knightwatch on the Better Business Bureau site.

I am not very familiar with this industry so I have to ask what is 'wrong' with being associated with Brinks?

Also, you do not install/service Toronto do you.

Thank you.

------------------------------------- Regards,

Allan C

RHC: Allan, no I do not service or install outside the immediate Ottawa area since my "total service concept" would be impossible to administer.

I do not know anything about this specific company so I can only offer generalities. Brinks is one of a number of large mass marketers, all of whom usually offer only the minimal system to capture an overpriced long term contract. Or if they offer you a full service installation, it comes at a huge price differential over that of an independant company. Any time you deal with companies like this, you must be careful since it's pretty much a given that you will not get the all that you might get when dealing with a GOOD small to medium sized independant. It definately pays to shop around in this industry since it is VERY much "buyer beware". In my obviously biased opinion, ALL of the larger firms can't possibly offer you the best deals since they have huge overheads to cover and can't offer you a more personalized level of service due simply to their size. On the other hand, small companies come and go in this business, so you have to be just as careful dealing in this arena too, although it's no where near as bad as the ADT's of the world would have you believe.

If you care to poke around my site, there are all sorts of pages covering these cautionary points and others. As well, when you get your three quotes, feel free to call me (numbers on my website) to discuss them in comparison.

Best of luck in your shopping

------------------------------------- Regards,

Allan C

Hello again. Yes, I have read some of your pages and found your site to be very informative. To be honest, I have 4 personal referrals ... 3 for AlarmForce (I am fairly certain that I am not going in that direction and 1 for Knighwatch. A quick search at canada411 for 'alarm systems residential' displays at least 5 pages of companies. There has to be a way to narrow this down to some sort of 'short list'. Do you know of a WEB site that I could visit that help me in determining who to call for quotations? Feel free to Email me if that type of information should not be posted here.

Thank you in advance.

RHC: Allan, this is correctly the most difficult part of the decision making process. All I can tell you for sure is the following....stay away from Alarmforce, they are as close to a scam as it is possible to be without actually being one......poor equipment and minimalistic coverage. You get recommendations from people because Alarmforce does a great job of marketing themselves and they seem to be unique in the business that their clients are totally sold on them. This is probably because the types of shoppers that buy into this nonsense are the people who don't know squat about what they are really getting. A little smarter approach to shopping and looking into what a system should be comprised of would have told them pretty quickly that this junk is not even remotely close to being a professional alarm system. The other big guy ADT is way overpriced and by the time you buy a proper system, the original "free system" ends up being about double what a smaller dealer can deliver, AND you're still stuck with a horrible long term contract with some of the most restrictive terms in the business. But they like most others use quality equipment from the three big manufacturers common in Eastern Canada....DSC, Paradox and Ademco (labelled often as Honeywell).

Pick a couple of small to medium guys and give them a call. See who comes out on time, see who treats you with due respect and see who is the most flexible about the things you need covered. Then go with the company you feel most comfortable with.

Here's how to compare the three quotes you should get:

Add up the total costs for each for....upfront price, monthly rate times 60 for comparison over the longer term, cost of a service call to cover a battery and one to cover changing out a door etc, cost of warranty, and what the warranty covers (batteries ??)

You'll pretty quickly see your TRUE costs over the longer term. Also, if you must agree to a long term contract (no more than three years and preferably just an annual one) and your home situation changes ie: have to move for any reason, find out EXACTLY what the cost will be to buy out of the contract. Needless to say, a month to month contract is always far better for you, and you might want to use it as a negotiating point (which is why it is not that common )

It happens ! I just installed a top coverage system here for a woman who moved from Toronto to Ottawa for far less in total price than it cost her to buy out of her ADT contract !!!!!!!

Sincere Thanks!

------------------------------------- Regards,

Allan C