In the UK it is estimated that over 90% of domestic alarm calls are false alarms, mainly due to poor setting, human error and occasionally technical malfunctions. This presents a huge drain on police time and resource. So much so that the Police will not attend a domestic alarm call out unless it has been verified by someone either hearing the intruders or seeing them. Even the companies that professionally monitor alarms are having to address this issue. In this case using technology that enables the company to see or hear independently what is going on. Shop alarm systems are notorious for false alarms and hence they are ignored so often. Even professionally monitored ones are subject to the three strikes and you are out policy by the Police. So where is this all leading to in the future?

The obvious trends are; wastage of police time will be reduced, alarm technology will be more reliable (but human being reliability will stay the same !). And so false alarm minimisation will plateau. Monitored systems using independent alarm verification have to use video. Why ? Because audio will only pick up the alarm sound (unless the sounder is delayed). Video is currently expensive (but will reduce) and leaves some major questions. How will they be able to tell whether the intruder is legitimate or not ? And it is easy for a criminal to cover the lens of an internal CCTV system which means an alarm going off cannot then be verified. It seems to leave us in a dilemma.

One UK company has done a bit of lateral thinking and decided the route forward is for the householder does his own alarm monitoring and verification before calling the police. This is a very cost effective solution and may even improve clear up rates - let me explain: Many people have mobile phones and resist the high one-off and annual costs of a NACOSS professionally monitored systems. So they leave their possessions unprotected and consequently there is so much (unsolved) crime. Using this new system, called HouseSitter®, the householder will have an alarm that keeps quiet. It will ring their mobile direct, let them listen in (no alarm sound you see) and they can ring the police with valid audio verification. The police can arrive and catch the criminals red handed (no alarm sound) and the neighbours are not disturbed. And the cost of such a system ? £129.99....Watch out you criminals.