ADT Security Services

We have had ADT for several years. I decided to turn off the monitoring - too expensive. It was fine. One day a lady called and told my husband to disconnect. She gave him the code to disconnect. The WILL NOT give me the code to turn on. Even tho it is not monitored, if we are broken into I want it to work in case we are because the neighbors can hear it and call.

My husband and I installed an ADT wireless system about 1.5years ago. Less than 24hrs after the system was installed a technician had to come back out because a zone was in alarm. We fought zone alarms for MONTHS! I have lost count of how many times I have been on the phone trying to figure out what was going on. They finally installed a booster more than 6months later that took care of the problem for a little while. Now we have zone alarms AGAIN and ADT flat out REFUSES to work on the system other than Mon-Fri 8am to 430pm. I am sorry but I work for a living, it cost me $500 A DAY to miss work I have missed too many days for this system that I have only actually armed three times! I cannot just miss "an hour or so" to wait for a technician I have to miss the entire day so please ADT please explain to me WHY ON EARTH should I pay you ANOTHER $25 and loose $500 to come to my house AGAIN when I am sure this won't work either.

ADT does not delliver on protection or on customer service. In October of last year, our contractor turned off the system. It immediately sounded an alarm and he wasn't sure what to do because he didn't have the secret code to turn it off. He was amazed that no one from ADT ever called to check on us or our house. When we found this out a few weeks later, we called ADT to ask why they had not checked on us or our home to make sure we were okay and why - since they were receiving no signal from our house - had they not come out to check. . They had no answer. We asked them to send someone out to get the system working so that they could deliver on protecting our home. No one showed up. We called and asked for a refund for the time they were not protecting our home. They refused.
We called Comcast to ask for help. They responded immediately and were out the next day. They put their home protection system in and it works flawlessly. We have inadvertently set off the alarm twice. Both times they responded within seconds. We feel secure in our home. Now, we just want our money back from ADT! Beware of this company. They don't even deserve one star, but the rating system requires that as a minimum!

I had a Wells Fargo security system installed in my home in 1985. Tyco purchased Wells Fargo in 1998 and merged the company with ADT. This is to show I have had monitoring service for about 25 years of which 12 years have been with ADT.

My husband has been on disability for the past year and a half and although I have been slightly late with my payments, I have always called ADT's billing department to tell them when my payments would be expected. On 12/18/09, I was invoiced $105 which was my quarterly payment. This is the ONLY amount that was due to them.

Tonight, I received a call from the "home office" stating I owed them $60 and that they had terminated my service. No warning, no letters, no calls prior to the one this evening. I then called their 800# billing department and spoke to a manager (Lisa) who said my service was terminated because "they had made numerous calls and no one could reach me" along with the statement that letters had been sent regarding the termination. ALL LIES! Funny how the "home office" could make one phone call and reach me this evening to tell me my service was cancelled. I still do not understand how in this day and age, a major company like ADT would cancel a VERY long-time customer over a $60 bill that wasn't even 30 days late?

To that I say "GOOD RIDDANCE"! After reading the numerous online complaints about ADT that outnumber other monitoring services by 20 to 1, I can only hope homeowners do their research before signing up with a company who has zero value for their customers. I will also be asking my 3 family members who signed up (on my recommendation) with Wells Fargo back in 1985 to terminate THEIR relationship with ADT due to the unscrupulous way they do business.

Previous ADT S Employee (Authorized Dealer)... ADT still after 3 months has yet to give back my deposit I put down for a badge and books! How many other are they doing this?

With a 80% turn-over rate - ALOT of Employees...

I wish I lost $500 by missing a single day of work--that would come to at least $125K work income a year, 3 times what I make and plenty of money to be able to cover a few unpaid days off each year! ;)
I just wondered if you had a resolution to this issue. Did they ever fully fix it? We're considering getting an ADT system...

I have spent more than 5 months trying to cancel my dead mother's account with ADT/Broadview/Brinks security. My mother had the truly bad judgment to die without tattooing her security code on her 90 year old body -- and despite repeated calls, faxes of death certificates, faxes of estate info, they keep taking money out of her account each month. Crooks. Incompetent crooks. I've notified the state's attorney general. You folks should too. Put them out of business now.

South Carolina Residents can be assured of our commitment to honesty and service. Please visit http://1stpriorityalarm.com where Protecting You and Your Family is Our First Priority

OMG, I was considering using ADT for home security...but after reading all the horrible comments from all over the country,
I WILL NOT EVER consider using ADT. I already had very similar experiences with customer service with AT&T and double billing and not ever receiving my over payment refunds. Thank you to all who made these posts...thank God for the internet.

Gail in Ohio

I'd like to add some more information to ADT Security Service. Please be wary in entering into a contract with this company. There are plenty of providers out there that do not need a contractual obligation. They lock you into a 3 year deal which is not so bad as long as the service works with your configuration. If you break the service they are unwilling to negotiate or discuss any terms to ease the pain and it is 75% of the remaining contract plus a 30 day notice so becareful when you sign a contract with these guys. Customer Service is horrible and they are not interested in helping there customers. There service will not work with VOIP phone system so if your considering using them with this service do not even attempt it. My personal opinion is that you should look at other options that are way more customer friendly and can use technology that was made in the 21st century like VOIP or the internet.

Bottom Line do not use ADT Home or Business Security Service.

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.

Terrible company-Beware! I signed a contract 9 months in advance and paid 50% up front when I renovated my house. They botched my job so badly-wires coming out of the floor and other wires stuck in the walls and not accessible after the drywall went in. I hired another wonderful company to do the work and ADT never returned my deposit money ffter months of sending letters and calling. Finally, I got the deposit back from my credit card company and now ADT can dispute it with them. They had the nerve to charge me $750 for prewire services and I will dispute that even if it costs triple the amount to fight it in small claims. This company is a joke!

My advice, switch companies. I work for a company that distributes alarm equipment for both Honeywell and GE and I recieve many complaints just like yours every day from the St. Paul/ Minneapolis area regarding ADT. Because of my position, if you would like, email me at julie_gedist@yahoo.com and I will give you a number to a very reliable company that has the most up to date equipment and also the best reponse rates. Their monthly monitoring fee is about the same as ADT but they have way better service. Email me anytime.