Vivint Smart Home

I didn't submit, but by my putting in my TP number they somehow processed it anyway. I caught the dickens trying to get that off of my telephone bill and when I called the company to ask what service they were providing for me, the owner, a very nasty man, told me that he was protecting my name and address. What? I let him have it and told him he better take that off my bill. He talked to me very rough and was very angry, but he did it eventually. Then APX called and it was on from that point on. I hope a class action lawsuit will be filed against these guys because this is fraud and we don't need to be taken by these fast talking, lying young men. Now, take into account that, while we are seeking a class action lawsuit, how rich they have become as our expense. How cruel!

We were getting our living room painted and our friend took the system down to paint behind it and well, we still have not received a call from APX concerning that our monitor was not connected. We also had to close our checking account out due to some issues with the bank and you know, when APX finally decided to call us, when they realized they weren't getting paid anymore and haven't mentioned that our house is not being monitored anymore. Sounds like to me that it's a total ripoff! I do not recommend anyone putting an APX Alarm System in their home unless they just want to piss money away!

About four days later "Chris" from APX called, told her he was sorry she had decided to cancel. He asked Linda if she'd allow APX the chance to come back and make things right. She was in the middle of household stuff, unprepared for a phone call from them. And unfortunately, she was trying to be nice. She finally agreed to allow them to come back, bring some additional stuff, and try again. She barely remembers details of this conversation, but is certain she was never told her telephone consent would unconditionally nullify her rights of cancellation and establish, regardless of her satisfaction with their equipment/service - of an irrevocable five year contract. If anything like that had been said, she certainly would have refused.

Three additional visits from APX and system still could not be made to work for our house. I can explain why, but won't bother with that here. So, we were never able to use the system and contacted APX that we decided to let our cancellation stand. They insist (with no willingness to settle for one cent less) that a full five year contract is in place and demand full payment: more than $2k. We have returned all equipment to APX via (signature required) UPS. I want to emphasize that we were never presented with or signed any written agreement with APX after her written cancellation was faxed to them and received.

Central to our complaint: A written contract was signed and then legally canceled (in writing with the time period allowed by FTC and MO law). Their own "fine print" in the original contract document states that no oral changes or amendments can be made by any party: "The entire and only agreement between us is written in this agreement. It replaces any earlier oral or written understanding or agreements. It may only be changed by a written agreement signed by both you (and if married, your spouse) and us." (By the way, although named at the top of the original contract document, I was not home and did not sign it.)

At no point in the telephone conversation was my wife informed that consenting to an attempt to "make things right" obligated us (even if we remained unsatisfied with the service) to an unbreakable contract. She did understand if she was satisfied with the new setup, she would use and pay for their service. So, we have a written contract between APX and the both of us only signed by Linda. Then a written cancellation of the contract is sent by Linda, received, and (by Chris's phone call) acknowledged. And then APX initiated an unsolicited telephone call during which my wife believed she was giving them another chance. She was just trying to be polite and nice; and now she's emotionally deeply hurt by this company's calloused and unrelenting demands for more than $2,000.

We were not given anything in writing to consider and sign (or decide not to sign) after that phone call. If a door to door sales company is allowed to telephone consumers after receiving a written cancellation and pressure (they would say "persuade") an oral consent to "try again", and such consent alone is allowed the full weight of a written contract); the right to cancellation becomes nothing more than an invitation for any company to pursue the poor consumer (who is not an attorney) over the telephone and then insist an oral statement made at that moment has the weight of an irrevocable written contract.

The legal issues raises, in my opinion, are numerous: Where is consumer informed consent in this? Where are consumer rights standards protected in this practice? At what point would this "consent" become an unbreakable contract? (The instant uttered in the conversation? When new equipment is first installed? Three days after one or the other? What if the setup still did not work and a third visit brings some additional equipment? What if it still would not work satisfactorily?) Doesn't this effectively circumvent laws limiting or nullifying the validity of oral statements and agreements in door to door sales?

What information did the company representative share over the telephone prior to this oral consent? Were the contractual obligations the company asserts a consent would create fully explained (in this case, we promise you they were not)? Since the whole scenario involves an unexpected phone call in the midst of other household distractions, and is inherently impacted by the telephone persuasiveness of the APX salesperson, how can FTC and state consumer protection standards be maintained if such practices are allowed?

Nothing would have prevented APX Alarm from bringing subsequent written documents that would have provided us opportunity to assess what they now assert Linda’s consent to "let them try again" would obligate. Since the initial written contract was wholly canceled by the communication of cancellation, in my (non-lawyer) opinion, no contract existed as of that time. What else can “I hereby cancel this transaction” mean? As such, a new contract should have been presented from APX to us that could be read, assessed, and either signed or not signed.

This company has been the subject of numerous state investigations. I cannot begin to count how many (negative) news articles from all over a quick search of Google over just the past 12 months revealed. APX Alarm currently has an "F" rating with the BBB. Even in an industry I’ve now learned is prone to abuses, APX is among the worst, if not the worst.

We've been married more than 30 years and have never had a financial dispute with a company before. We feel powerless in the face of their tactics, threats, and resources. We want our issues with them settled. It is tremendously stressful. The financial impact of “paying them off” would be significant for us. But in light of their relentless pursuit of our money and my wife’s anguish, it is tempting. But I know they have done this to others and will keep on doing it.

I believe these practices are predatory. I believe they violate at least the intention of consumer protection laws, particularly those related to home solicitation sales contracts and practices. I think a survey of recent legal issues and news reports (not always exactly like ours) about APX Alarm nationwide demonstrates a pattern of abuse and disregard of consumer rights. I hope some broader action against this company (the only thing big enough to make them stop) is warranted.

They have repeatedly called us and all efforts at reasonable settlement (we already gave them $300 and told them they could keep it to cover the modest equipment costs) have been a complete failure; whether we want or use the service or not, they demand the entire contract amount. They even called us on our cell phones while we were in Zimbabwe serving in a mission work over the summer months (of course, these calls cost us). They have now turned us over to an aggressive collection agency in Dallas (Anderson, Crenshaw, and Associates) who have called on our cell phones (I don't know how they got the numbers), threatening to ruin our credit and in one conversation, to go after our home.

They say that they will post "numerous" citations of unpaid debt weekly to our credit reports. And I know it may not be against the law, but they also yelled and shouted at my poor wife until she cried. Shame on them for such bullying. I know this is not earth-shattering stuff. We're not physically injured, thank God. We spent this summer working with AIDS orphans in disease-ridden Zimbabwe. We are still blessed and thankful. This is about a very nice woman in her mid-fifties a little too naive to realize "nice" can be a bad idea with a company like this. $2,000-$2,500 is peanuts for some, but it is not for us. Neither is our credit. By the way, my wife tends to keep detailed and dated notations of telephone conversations. And of course, we have copies of all letters and the original contract and the fax of cancellation, etc.

I called APX alarm systems about the situation and they bounced me to Security Networks because they sold my contract to them. I called Security Networks and according to Mr. **, "I was not there when you signed your contract. You bought the service from APX and not from us. We just bought your contract and if you want to cancel, you will have to pay $439.89." That is more than 10 months of service! And the exact cancellation amount was not even in the contract. People like this is the one who makes you value customer service, especially in tough economic times.

I will continue my campaign in Twitter, Facebook, etc. until my situation gets resolved. I already called Clark Howard and the Hispanic newspaper in Atlanta about this.

They also added 2 more years to my contract with them when my contract was due to end at the end of this year. I told them that I did not sign anything that authorized them to do that. They said they could because I signed one with APX and they also upped the monthly fees from $44 a month to $80 a month. Plus the security deposit payment was to be taken out on the 28th of the month, but ADT was now going to take it out on the 18th. If I wanted to change it, I had to pay another fee for that to be done.

When I called APX, they were no help. They acted like they did nothing wrong, and they said it is in the contract that they can sell to any company they want. They don't have to notify us they are doing it. Also, they get to keep the security deposit. They said that it is in the contract. I found nothing that said that either.

Now, this is how the tech got me. He said, "Can I go ahead and install some of the equipment now and we will just monitor the property for now until you guys are finished." Well, I told him we really didn't have room for any of the equipment because we were knocking down walls, floors, windows, and everything. He said, "We will just do this for now and when you finish with the house, we will come back and complete everything at that time." Did you know as soon as the tech left and I went through the survey, they then had started taking the money out of my account on the 19th. I will never get an alarm from another company again.

We don't need the system and can no longer afford it as my husband was laid off. And now, we are forced to pay for something we were lied to about in the first place. Now, we have moved and they want to charge me for the transfer of a service we do not want or need anymore.

He stood there looking at me daring me and I said, "I will have to call the cops." He said that I cannot do anything about that because they are licensed to sell in our area. I closed the door and locked it and left him outside. I looked up the company's website and found a number and made a complaint about the incident. I spoke to the customer relation person and told him the details and they said they will investigate. I also said that these sales reps need to be more trained to have courtesy and not walk door to door at 8:45 pm in neighborhoods and make people mad. If anyone needs info about this company, there are some complaints and legal actions against this company at the Better Business Bureau website if you look up the company information.

I did not notice the 60-month term as written on the contract at the time, as this gentleman was very talkative and time was of essence to have our new system installed. The young man looked and acted like a clean, honest, Christian, hardworking individual. Usually a good judge of character, I entered into the contract. I did not feel the need to go through the contract, as I truly trusted him. As soon as the contract was signed I noted that the installation guy must have been waiting around the corner, because he showed up very quickly after the contract was signed. The salesman made a call to his home office, and a pre-survey took place to confirm that we were happy with the salesman and the terms of service at 8:58PM.

I wondered why John was adamant that the survey be completed by my husband, rather than myself. I had been the person with whom he was negotiating. He said that because the contract was being placed under my husband's name and credit, that he be the one to answer the questions. The installation took a horribly long time, from early evening until well after midnight. A post-satisfaction survey took place at 12:35AM (6/22). We were obviously pretty sleepy at the time of the survey! The installation kept my children from falling asleep on time, as the unit was being worked on in their bedroom. I contribute the long time it took to install the unit to the installer's lack of knowledge and skill. The installation began at 8:38PM and ended at 12:35AM the next morning!

Even though the tech thought everything was installed right, after I double checked the system a week later, I found that the unit was not sending a signal to the company, and my telephone service was not working intermittently. On 6/26/08, I was forced to schedule a service call. The installer came over and finally fixed the problem. I was apparently without security monitoring for a whole week prior to that, for which they were paid. All of this happened so quickly, due to all the problems faced with the installation, didn't have a chance to reflect on the paperwork and what the contract revealed. I was still having monitoring problems within the three day period for cancellation.

What is especially disheartening, is that I even let this deceitful person use my restroom on several occasions throughout the week, while he was working on selling to the rest of my neighborhood. Thanks to this experience, I will never trust another salesman again, from any company. Now, as my husband and I reflect, without jobs through no fault of our own, we wonder why we should be held liable to pay for services we really never intended on lasting for five years The tactic used at which to get the sale was dishonest and was a bait and switch. The installation and service was poor.

This man, to me was the devil in disguise. He even felt so comfortable, that days after the sale he brought back his co-worker, who was also selling in the area to use my restroom. All the while, I had no idea that he was scamming my family and I. After noticing the discrepancy, it was already too late according to their company customer service representative, Janet, to cancel. The three days that were allotted to me at which to cancel had since passed. I would like to end my contract, and am looking for any assistance you can give me; $1,919.52 - this amount reflects the four extra years that I never intended on agreeing to.

I have since contacted the real APEX Alarm and have spoken with the owner. This fraudulent company is not associated with the real APEX Alarm, the real company can be reached at 510-548-0515, the owner's name is Nick, and I can't read what I wrote as his last name. He was very informative about this fraudulent company APX Alarm, they are owned by Todd Peterson, Keith Melifuson, and Sean Breenchley. They are located out of Utah and their investors are Goldman Sachs.

Unfortunately, I have found that you can only submit a complaint here or if they have called you to the Do Not Call Registry Complaint, local government will not intervene due to the fact that they have a license to sell in your area and they have no way of knowing that this company is fraudulent. My best advice is to not give any information to any door to door salesmen, if you want their product, seek them out yourself.

The calls do not stop, they call at all hours of the day and evening and trying to have your number removed from their calling list is fruitless. There must be a way that we, as consumers can stop this fraud. Research them, they have terrible business practices and have no problem using trickery or fraud to get your business. They prey on the elderly and anyone else they possibly can.

The salesman agreed to return to the house in 1 hour. He did not return for almost 2-1/2 hours later. The first time we were left waiting. After he gave his speech about the system, and con my husband into the system by talking about how I would be so much safer when he was not home, the decision was made to purchase the system because it seemed to be good. We began the agreement to install the system. We had asked if we could wait a couple of days to install it because we had a lot of plans that evening and the following weekend. The salesman told us that a person was in the area and that he would be there in 10-15 minutes. An installation man arrived almost 1 to 1.5 hours later. My husband and I had plans that we had to get to. My husband spoke to the technician and told him that we needed to get to our prior engagement and it was then rescheduled with the installation person to return the next day. The installation technician again did not show on time. At this point, we were very frustrated. We had contacted the salesman and told him of our issues with the installation. He just said that he was sorry.

Due to all of this and the negative image that has been reported on TV recently about this company, I am requesting that my service and contract be terminated. When I asked about the certification/licensure of the company during the sales speech, the salesman stated that they were a very reputable company and we need not to worry. I felt a little suspicious about the company from the beginning because of the technicians. If APX is such a large company, you would think that the service technicians and sales people would have company cars. I was a little taken back by the unprofessional way of showing up in personally owned cars and retrieving 5 gallon buckets with equipment in them. As I said before, I will be sending this email to the local news channel as well. I hope this email will be returned promptly unlike the previous service I have received. I also asked the sales person about possibly stopping the service/contract in the future. He told me that the contract could be ended. When I called and spoke to the customer support person, they told me that there was a 3-day cancellation agreement and that the contract cannot be canceled.

When the ADT man stopped by, he had ID and was in a vehicle. I mentioned that to him, and he replied that everyone does it differently. He kept pushing the issue of it only being a few dollars more a month. The more I said "That's OK; I'm not interested," the more aggressive he got. Finally, I started cussing and threatened to open fire if he didn't leave my property. He caught a attitude and said, "Fine, then." and turned around and left walking. I decided to do some research on this company, and I have not seen anything good on them yet. Glad I didn't decide to sign up.

I had no intention of getting APA services. The whole thing seemed pretty bogus and hokey to me. And there is no way someone's going to walk up to my door with no proper ID and sell me something to "protect" my home; but obviously, the town police could care less! Buyer beware I guess!

About 1 month later, APX called and a technician came and installed the smoke detector. Again, fast, courteous and clean. All systems have worked perfectly for a year now. Terrific service and customer support. I do not know what happened to all that have had problems but may I suggest that they call and speak with a customer service rep and explain (not yell) their specific problem and ask for assistance from APX.

He talked all this trash about Brinks Home Security System and other ones too. He didn't make that much eye contact and also talked about one of the people across the street having a stroke not too long ago. It made me realize, is he the real deal or a scam artist? So my father let him in, but I didn't want the guy in my house. We all sat down and he was very jumpy. He even showed houses that were signed up for the company and the tech people would be coming to all of the houses that night. So as he was talking to us, I got a fresh plastic cup and filled it with water and handed it to him for fingerprints just in case my house gets robbed in the near future. He took a sip and left it.

We all finished talking and to me it just seemed too good to be true. Plus I watch all these shows about people robbing houses. I learned about systems from it and I would correct this guy and ask him other questions, making him more jumpy. He asked for both of our information, but no social security. Then he called someone with some of my father's info. The guy then left about 3 minutes later, telling us later that night tech people will be at our house putting in a system. We didn't sign any paperwork for a system to be put in. The guy was so jumpy he left his phone and some paperwork in my house. I ran outside to tell him his stuff was in my house.

Well my father was not going to sign something without reading the paperwork, so he read it once the guy left. It had that we paid nothing for all of the equipment, which seemed good. But down further it said we have to pay $1,949.61 to start the service which will be for 39 months. I came online the next day and read up about the company and saw bad things about them. So I decided to call the police and they told me that they have a permit to go around so they can't do anything about it. If you see them in your town, tell everyone to turn them away. I knew it was a scam, but we wanted to see and hear more about it just in case someone got robbed in our area.

I even argued with my phone company, until they told me it was the alarm system that was messing the service. We set up the alarm and door sensors failed to work. We had a toast slice trapped on the toaster, the whole house on smoke. The smoke detector from APX never got activated. We had to unplug the toaster. A nice technician from APX came to fix the problem, only to work for 5 days, and APX Alarm didn't care. The only thing they said (All representatives) is that you cannot cancel, the only thing you can do is to pay the term of the contract or transfer the service to someone else (WHAT???).

I will never recommend this company, not even to my worst enemy. One of the representatives made fun of me... terrible customer care (if any). Now they sent this account to a collection agency, telling me they are going to sue me, and damage my good credit record. APX checks your credit records before they knock on your doors. APX Alarm definitely uses shady business practices. How can I pay for a useless service and a toy like equipment? The APX technician told me that the doors sensors failed to work because the rainy weather, they got wet (????). What kind of security Company is APX Alarm System? Dana ** told me that the papers I signed were only my AUTHORIZATION TO INSTALL the equipment, distracting me by making me personal questions and my stupidity for not getting my reading glasses and TRUSTING A LACK OF INTEGRITY PERSON.

So on 10-19-08, I called APX and talked to Marcello. I told him that I wanted to cancel the service. He said, the only way I could do that is if I sold the alarm system to someone else or pay APX $2,000 and some dollars for it. I could not believe it! If I had known this fact, I would have never accepted the alarm system from APX. Marcello actually chuckled a little when I explained to him of how convincing the salesperson was that day. Although he did offer me a somewhat alternative as to relieving me of payments for 3 months, however the contract would be extended another 3 months. He mailed me an addendum to sign, which I have not yet got around to signing, as I wanted to contact Consumer Affairs before doing so.

I am a single parent of three and this is a revolving charge on my credit card. I can't afford this at this time let alone $2,000 dollars to pay it off. Is there anything that I can do to send this back somehow? It is in perfect condition, as it has never been used. Is it too late because this was done over 6 months ago? I have been so busy and have not had time to address this issue. I feel like I've been scammed. I would appreciate any advice that you have to offer regarding this.

I went ahead with choosing the most basic, cheap alarm system. Then, after two young men (who arrived out of nowhere and were waiting outside) started drilling the window molding and carving holes in the kitchen, the salesman told me that they need a checking account for payment and they don't accept anything else. I told the man that I have no checking account. I have absolutely nothing but a US Federal Savings account. He said, "I think that will be fine", without looking into it or verifying. I told him again that I was uncomfortable making direct payments that way anyway, but he insisted that everything would be fine. I decided I would go for it.

However, I get all my statements online, and had no idea what my routing # was. He told me "just to try and think of it". He basically suggested that I enter my account # and then call them and change it when I know the routing #. He would not accept my word that I would call with the right number, insisted that I just enter a baloney, impartial number. I signed the contract with my name, the date, etc. and he left. Then next business day I called APX and told them I needed to update my account #, and I explained that the salesman told me it was okay to give them the wrong # and call it in later.

The man on the phone was confused about that story and then told me that the payment appeared to have already gone through. I told him that there was no way that was possible, as I never gave them my routing number. He just told me, "Well, it worked, so don't worry! " Again, I was baffled, and he refused to change anything about the account info. The next billing period, I still hadn't seen any payments posted from my account, so I called them again, worried. They said that there was an error processing my account. I gave them the routing # and verified the account #. I also explained that I already called and tried to take care of this and was assured everything was okay. The man assured me that "these things happen" and he saw that I had called before. He entered the routing # I supplied from US Federal and said I had to pay a late fee for the missed payment. That seemed unfair, especially because the error was not on my end!

Anyway, the next billing cycle came and again, no payment posted. This time, however, a letter from APX Alarm came to my home - not in my name, though, in my DAD'S name!! I called them immediately and told them my dad was my first emergency contact, but NOT on the contract. He put me on hold and looked into it. When he came back, he told me that I didn't qualify for the alarm contract because of my credit. I told him that he cannot simply make my dad, the emergency contact, responsible for the alarm contract because I didn't qualify. No one ever even told me this was subject to a credit pull. The man went on to say it was no big deal, that my dad's name "HAD" to be on there as the primary contract holder because he owned the home.

I told them that this was exactly what my concern was at the get-go, and that I was told that the contract followed the tenant, not the owner. The man on the phone told me not to worry - but I am worried! Then he said, "Since you and your father both signed the contract..." I stopped DEAD in my tracks. I corrected him. My dad has 100% nothing to do with the contract at all. He said that was not the case, that the contract was signed by both parties. We went back and forth, and I asked him how that was possible if my dad wasn't there at all!

My dad actually chided me afterwards for being such a sucker, and said he wished he could have been there to kick them off my lawn! The man had no answer for why my dad's name - "AND SIGNATURE" - were on the contract. The only way they got my dad's name was from the emergency contacts I gave them - my dad (Gerald **), my best friend Rose, and my boyfriend's name were all given. I was so angry and I felt ripped off, taken advantage of, and I was scared, too, because this all seemed scary to me.

I looked at the pink slip that was given to me in my folder of documents the day they left. I was horrified to see that below my name and my signature, the name "Gerald **" was written by the salesman, and below that was a squiggle that was supposed to be my dad's signature. My dad never signed that, and I am 100% certain that the salesman forged my dad's name behind my back after I handed him the form, knowing that his name had to be on there. I don't know what to do - HELP! I don't know if this is a small-court issue, or if I should take this up with the BBB. I am very angry and I feel manipulated and taken advantage of - my dad too!

My dad had nothing to do with this but they pulled a slippery move on me, pulling my name right off the service contract and replacing it was my dad's name, a person who did not sign any contract with them. HELP! I am missing sleep over this and am helpless! My coworkers think I should taken them to court and my law student friends think I should sue! I just want out of this fraudulent contract with this unethical company! Now I realize the reason my payments won't work is because the contract and the bank info need to be in the same name - my dad's! My dad is being hounded for payment, they absolutely refuse to accept MY payment, and they forged my dad's name on the contract, right below where I signed! I want out! I feel helpless and frankly, screwed!!

We called one week later after having a false alarm in our home, they were unresponsive to help us. After 3 false alarms and the Police coming to our house we asked for the alarm to be taken out. They informed us that they would not unless we paid the entire 5 year contract out. I then called a supervisor and they said the same thing that they would not cancel the contract. I demanded to speak to the salesman who lied to us, they said they would have him call us. We have not heard form him. I want to know what legal action I can take against this company.