ADT Security Services
reviews and complaints

Good point - transparency is a big advantage to working with some companies, and these rebate plans are a great example of something companies do to lure you in. They know that lots of folks never send in the rebate form, so the company makes out. I compare it to the gift cards also, where they know that lots of people never get around to using the cards, and thee is even a term for the unspent money on the cards - "breakage" is what they call it. Give me company that just does it all upfront, and by the book, without the games. That would be refreshing. There are companies out there like that, even in the realm of alarm systems. By the way, if you decide you want to get a replacement system at any point, make sure you shop for a cellular alarm - they are much safer, no phone line for an intruder to cut.

They are offering a new platform called "Pulse" that you might want to check out, because it can actually notify you by text or email when an alarm event happens - or even when a door opens - and that makes it really easy to see if your system is working, without having to go through the bother with the central station. Our company offers a similar product (more established, actually) with apps for iPhone, Droid, and Blackberry - so I know how much people like these features.

Anyway, it is worth a call to see what they tell you. There is a higher monthly involved, and you may need to upgrade some equipment, but they should be able to tell you all that on the phone. Thee has been some initial confusion about the Pulse product, since it's a really big departure for ADT, but eventually they should get it right.

Not leading for long profane One. ADT Monopoly is being replaced with self installed security systems

too bad they are the leading company in alarm systems. They are not desperate, do your research ###.

I was told when I signed up that I have 6 months money back guarantee. Now they said that only applies to an unresolved service issue. Other wise I have to pay 75% of the 3 year contract for being unhappy with my alarm that goes off all them time due to glich that they can "fix". Scam. If I had a grand I'd give it to them. They are desperate and set people up. Desperate companies eventually fail.

I've been an ADT company since I moved into our home in 1999. A few weeks ago we saw a battery weak indicator on the panel and called ADT to have them service our system. Days later they came to change the batteries. The next day another battery weak message was on the panel as the tech forgot to actually check all the batteries -- despite them charging us for the service call.

Then came last Saturday night. We were out and the kids came home. The disarmed the system and when they press "off" the entire system shut down. As in there was no message on any of the panels. I called ADT Sunday morning and they told me that they could have a tech on Wednesday. So here we pay a monthly fee to have an alarm but we would not have an alarm for 3 days. We agreed - as what else could I do. Sunday afternoon the carbon monoxide alarm goes off on 2 units - although there were still no indicators on the panels as the system was in fact not working. Thankfully the alarm stopped after a grueling 10 minutes - meanwhile we were actually in ADT "test mode" so the fire department wasn't alerted to the alarm event.

After being transferred 3 times and repeating the same story over and over again ADT agreed to send someone Monday morning.

Monday morning came and the tech came and left - no paperwork, no report and no phone call. What he did leave however, was a mess in my bedroom as he replaced the older panel with a new one and there was paint chips all over the floors. I called ADT and after being transferred 4 more times, I was told that the tech was going to call me. It was my mistake as I should have told them that the tech left $50 in my home and I bet he would have called then. I still haven't gotten an apology.

I was told that they have in fact informed the "regional office" and that if I didn't hear from them in 48 hours that I should call back.

Imagine - no one at ADT actually taking responsibility for the trouble they have caused me, the hours I have wasted in dealing with this matter and the mess they left behind (actually mess that the tech didn't clean up).

Time Warner Cable has a great home security program costing around the same per month though they want me to replace all the security components as they provide 100% service and maintenance on their equipment. Believe me if it wasn't for the upfront cost (that Time Warner is now willing to spread over 3 months) I would have left 15 years of a relationship with ADT -- how much of this nonsense could anyone really tolerate. I checked my portfolio with my money managers and mutual funds and thankfully we don't own any ADT as I would never own shares in a company that is unable to provide a decent level of customer support. ADT gets a huge "F" in this area.

Is this really the best is can be?

This is the worst service I have ever seen.

I resorted to begging for help.

Still no help. Just answering machines and sorry I can't help you... You need another department. I have called many times. I ave waited for 3 months. When I tell them I am going to cancel the contract that I have been paying on for three months due to no service they tell me about all the fees I would have to pay.

Please do not do business with adt they are the worst in customer service I have ever seen. One of their own sales men told me it is hard for him to come back and help me once he has made the sale becouse he has a quota to meet and he does not have time for me once the contract has been signed.

ADT installed 3 security cameras for me at the perimeter of my building that do not work in the dark - they're useless at night! The salesman only listed color cameras on my contract and made no claim that they would operate at night or without a great deal of illumination. I have lighting on the outside of my building, but nothing to the degree that these cameras need to capture a clear picture. On top of what I have already paid, ADT is quoting me $175 per camera to upgrade to a model intended to work in no light - low light conditions.

I called ADT since I'm looking into replacing the Security Company I have now. I spoke to Mike on February 18th @ 11:21 am for 22:44 minutes. I explained Mike that the present company does not want to speak to me and my husband is too busy to take care of this matter. Mike promissed me that My husband or I could make a call with no problems. After talking about the system I have, Mike suggested to have an inspection done. We discuss fees, I thought it was expensive and I was not sure if I wanted the services. An appointment was schedule and Mike promissed there were no binding contracts since it was just an inspection of my system. 2 Days later they withdraw money without my authorization.
I called ADT and "they could not speak with me" I being treated just like my present company. My husband gave verbal authorization in a 3 way call which they did not even asked any personal information from him, don't know why they needed to get authorization from him. After I explained Jason the Supervisor, he bragged about ADT securing all the government buildings. If ADT promisses and do the opposite I do not wante their service I don't care that they secure all the goverments of the world. ADT is not the company I can trust.

The most disgusting company doing business. I had an alarm system, my house was burglarized...my insurance company determined the alarm failed due to FAULTY EQUIPMENT. ADT took no responsibility and claims no liability. I lost over $15, 000 due to ADT's negligence. And guess what, when you sign your contract - you are signing to allow for the system to fail. They guarantee you nothing! Read the fine print people - DO NOT USE ADT! Use someone local please! Don't believe me, check this out: http://www.scrippsnews.com/content/family-murdered-woman-sues-adt-over-alarm-system This has to stop! It's not fair for people to be put in danger when they buy a security system to protect them!

I had to have my phone company come to redo my phone system because ADT system interfered with my phones. They stopped working also my internet service would not work from the time the ADT system was installed. The people who sold us on this system would not return or answer calls. Then they had the wrong account number to charge through my bank. They now want me to pay them 75% of the 3 year contract off if I cancel. BEWARE DO NOT DEAL WITH THIS COMPANY!

So being a small business owner I try to do the right thing for my business. After being open 1 year, a store next to me was broken into. Thought maybe I used get a security system. Called ADT had it install and signed the paperwork was I assumed was the "yeah, you installed and everything works fine" normal paperwork you sign after something is installed. After 2 years of a very rough economy I started the project of reducing my expenses. So, the alarm system I never use should go. $40 a month is huge to me these days. Well ADT says I signed a 5 year contact. I thought to myself, well that was dumb since i only had 4 years left on my lease when I got the security system. So I searched my paperwork for a contact. Can't find one. Call ADT, please send me a copy. It took them 2 phone calls and 2 months and 3 months of not paying my bill to receive what they consider my contact, the "yeah, you installed and everything works fine" paper i signed. Ok my eyeglass and a magnifying glass I found the statement about 5 years. If everything is honest and fair, why are they hiding this statement in tiny print and why they are not telling anyone before the install or after they install the equipment. From what I am reading most people only find out when they want to cancel.

Still no help. Just answering machines and sorry i can't help you...you need another department. I have called many times. I have waited for 3 months. When i tell them i am going to cancel the contract that i have been paying on for three months due to no service they tell me about all the fees i would have to pay. Please do not do business with ADT they are the worst in customer service i have ever seen. One of their own sales men told me it is hard for him to come back and help me once he has made the sale becouse he has a quota to meet and he does not have time for me once the contract has been signed I called ADT among many other alarm companies when I was shopping for a service. After about an hour long conversation, I agreed to have someone come out and look around my home to discuss setting up the service and signing their contract. I was told my credit card would not be charged until the contract was signed and I just had to give them the number to hold the appointment. Two days later I had a charge for $107, their activation fee +tax. When I called customer service, I was told that's their policy and I would have to wait 30 days for my refund. When I explained that wasn't good enough and I had been promised that nothing would be charged in the first place, he told me to read my brochure (which I didn't have, I'd spoken to someone on the phone) and I would have to wait 30 days like everyone else. That's when I asked for a supervisor and the call got really bad. I spent 20 minutes on the phone with the CUSTOMER SERVICE rep telling me that a supervisor was not available but they would call me back. When I said I wanted to hold, he told me that this wasn't a supervisor issue and they were going to tell me the same thing he had already explained. By the end of my phone call with him, he was threatening to "disconnect the call" if I couldn't realize that I didn't need to speak to a supervisor. I finally got the supervisor who said she would escalate the refund (that should not have been charged in the first place)! I HATE ADT'S CUSTOMER SERVICE AND SALESMEN AND CANNOT UNDERSTAND HOW THEY ARE STILL IN BUSINESS!

we had a fire accident, ADT didn't even aware of the accident. when I called the customer service about the issue, they are saying that every time we have to inform the ADT company about accidents. How funny is that. we are paying them hell lot of money just to educate them about burglary or fire accident etc.,

My sincere suggestion to my fellow citizens please think twice before having ADT system. you'll get worst system you ever imagine.

We contracted with ADT a little over a year ago to install a new system. We wanted a system that did not need to be dependent on a land line and we wanted 4 cameras initially with the option to expand to 8 later. The sales person suggested which equipment we should purchase and the placement of items so we agreed. From the beginning our concerns were ignored. First of all we requested that the installation happen in one day, so that we would not have to take multiple days off. This was ignored, they would come install a piece or two then tell us someone else would come in a couple of days. Then another person would show up and so on. We had 3 different techs on 3 different days and they all complained about the previous installers work. From the MOMENT our system was up and running we knew there were issues. The cellular phone system they installed was not working correctly and the alarm would go off randomly. I would call and complain and they would tell me its our land line. ATT would come out and tell us there was nothing wrong with our landline. The other issue from the beginning was that smoke alarms would go off at random times with no provocation. ADT refused to come out and take care of these issues unless I agreed to a technician charging me a minimum of $143 for half hour and on from there. I argued that this was ridiculous since it was a brand new installation that had not worked correctly from the start. This argument went on for an entire year and kept getting escalated, the entire time we were without protection. Finally customer service decided to incur the cost of repair and sent someone out. It turned out that they had installed one system but were showing a different system all together, so the software wasn't working and that is why we had the alarms going off. They fixed that problem but when they looked at the DVR that they had given us, they told us it could only take 4 cameras and since we had owned it for a year there was nothing they could do for us. This went against what their salesperson had promised us. They also repaired the smoke alarm but it only started going off AGAIN. Now they want to charge me for the repair. They did credit us half of what we paid in services for the first year.

This company is rude, irresponsible and uncaring. They would not even give me a physical address for the company when I requested it so that I could make this complaint. They said they didn't give out that information. I have on several occasions requested a copy of our contract which they have refused to send to us. I would like to end our business arrangement with ADT with no further monetary obligations. I would like to contract with a reputable company that actually likes its customers and understands their importance.

I would never use this company again.

We started using ADT burglar alarm service at October 2009. After a year we decided to move out from the premises and called ADT to cancel the service. They told us the contract was for 5 years. After checking the contract we saw the 'five' years term in the small print part of the contract. (Not in numerical form but the word 'five' instead). Our sales representative Gregori Krakobski assured us that the deal did not include any commitments etc... As you may guess, he simply lied and misled us. I think ADT allows (or maybe promotes) this kind of scam done by their sales reps because they are not helpful on the phone and even if you try to contact to Corporate Customer Relations Consultants in Florida. As a result, we were not aware of a 5 year contract and the signing was like a bait-and-switch deal. After experiencing this with ADT, I personally persuaded the company I work to switch their alarm systems in 3 different locations to other security company (which offered significant discounts though, and free setup). Everything fine for now but ADT problem still not solved. Interestingly the early termination fee they want us to pay is the sum of remaining 4 years.

i have been with ADT going on three years, i refered my mom and she also signed up they were suppose to credit me for three months of service for a referal this was two years ago and still no credit my contact is up next month and i am going to done with these people once in for all.

We got our Time Warner phone and over the next week we received 47 messages from ADT and that's not including the calls I answered to tell them I don't want their service or to stop calling me. I will never use them and these calls are driving me nuts so we had to change our number to an unlisted one. hopefully this will take care of the problem. ADT and/or their marketing affiliates are the absolute worst.

I'm a very unhappy customer and wish I was never mislead by joining them, now there are no turning back bind by a contract they didn't explain to me.

did you read the fine print?

Yes Adt are crooks just want to get you with crooked contracts !

ADT= PROVIDES NO SERVICE, CONTINUES TO BILL- EDISON HAD A POWER OUTAGE IN MY AREA, MONTH + AGO- ADT NEVER CALLED, SO I UNPLUGGED THE UNIT- NEVER CALLED. COULD BE DEAD, ROBBED, BOTH- HAVE RECEIVED 2 BILLS WHEN UNIT IS UNPLUGGED- FRAUD

ADT Security is a joke! And a ripoff too!
I know because I worked for them for almost 2 years as a commercial and residential service engineer in Arizona.
I designed, installed and tested technical security systems at US embassies and consulates before I retired from the USG and went to work for ADT. I am an electronic engineer and had specialized USG training in all aspects of technical security. I did military communications systems engineering for 23 years prior to working in security.
When ADT hired me, they promised 30 days of training and I got nothing! They also said I would earn $75k but it was less than half that amount. And ADT managers, who knew nothing about security, expected and demanded that service personnel do at least 7 service calls per day, regardless of the complexity of the problem. Service crews were sent out with no parts and often had to call other service personnel to see if they were nearby and had the part needed.

ADT installs alarm systems that do not work and when a burglary does happen, they tell the customer ADT is not liable since the customer did not test his alarm system monthly as they are supposed to do.
Most homeowners would not even know if their system was communicating or not with ADTs monitors (they either have a communication link over a telephone circuit or a wireless connection via a cell radio transmitter). I personally saw situations where the system was installed and not working properly and the customer had been paying for months or up to a year without knowing it.
Yet despite all the shortcomings, ADT sees fit to charge $30-40 a month for a false sense of security - it's all about profit and little to do with customer service and satisfaction.
And ADT has no installation standards, installer training, or spare parts on service trucks. I was sent to one customer’s home which was about a 1 hour ride away; when I arrived he needed a few standard 1.5 volt batteries and I had none on my truck. I had to drive to the nearest Ace hardware and buy them using my own money. At other residences, I found the heavy alarm panel mounted with only drywall screws (it was falling off the wall), exposed conductors on wires, panels installed upside down, and sensors that had been installed days ago falling off.
ADT sales reps know little about security principles and how to design a proper alarm system. They advertize the $99 special, which is OK for a studio apartment at best, and then use the bait and switch scam to get the customer to shell out $1000 or more for an “expanded” home alarm system. Sales reps are out to maximize the total sale dollar amount since they get paid on commission.
And ADT will take over any system ever installed by anyone else, as long as the customer pays the $30-40 monthly fee. Then ADT will not have trained personnel or parts to support these odd ball systems when they do fail.
Buyer beware! It is a known fact that a big guard dog is a better deterrent for burglary! And keep in mind that a critical factor for any alarm system is the time it takes for police to respond to the alarm– if you are in a remote location and it takes 30 minutes for police to get there, burglars have this much time to crash and grab.