Brinks Home Security™ Reviews

Was told that my two year contract was expired and was given a courtesy discount in order to keep my business and when I called back a week later, they said my contract was a five year term. My husband and I both know that it was never presented as a five year term. I am awaiting the contract. I will be reporting this company to every agency in my state and for fun, may sue them to remove contract. I have lost complete confidence in them, in every way. I will chose my future security needs very carefully and was happy to see AT&T and Cox Communications offering for 1/2 of the price with a ton more technology offered. I look forward to watching this crooked company sink.

However, I was not into technology and hadn't took the time to have someone download it on my phone because this service guy did not do any of that. You know how they gladly explain the service when they are trying to get your business. Well, 2 years had went by and I had a fire alarm go off at my home which I said I have to download it so this wouldn't happen again. Well to find out I didn't only not have window sensors but now I don't even have the sensor that views your home.

So meanwhile, my income has decreased and I know this is really has to be addressed so I started to make my calls. First time, they wanted to charge me for the installation and they finally waived, and set up appointment which I sit at home for over 5 hours and realized now it after the deadline time, so maybe the technician is late and I called to find out that my order had been cancelled. Thanks so much for letting me know, and when I received a reminder phone call to make sure I was going to be home.

Second phone call, they still don't want to let me out of my contract, but now they want to waive a month and set up another appointment which I said that I would be out of town for a couple of weeks and cannot be reached by my phone. Meanwhile when I returned home and called the technician, he stated that they were backlogged and that I don't need to do anything at this time, someone would call me back. Weeks has gone by and I call Monitronics back again just trying to get out of contract, I can't afford it. I am not getting the service that I signed up for and I can't afford to keep going back and forth. Well after being transferred from rep to manager, then another manager, they stated that it was my fault that I didn't answer and that claim was cancelled out.

They are not obligated to let me out of my contract because I have to give them opportunity to fix the problem and my question was, "how many times do I suppose to do that?" Well, all I could hear was it is not their problem and it would cost me over $900 to get out and they could waive it to about $700. I told him that I am a single parent with a child in college and no way could I afford that. Well here we go again, they will contact someone to come out. The contractor should be calling me within 24 to 48 hours and this would be the last time they will waive my service fees to make a contract hole.

Well, it's been 48 hours and I received no phone call and I called Monitronics back. They don't know why the contractor haven't called and they left an emergency message, and they shall call me back on Monday because they don't know if they are open over the weekend. My question was "how many times do I suppose to give you guys to fix my problem?" All she could do was apologize...

After putting me on hold numerous times and 20+ minutes on the call I said "please just cancel my service. There is nothing that you can tell me that will make me stay with your company that I am changing to At&t and they are going to install my service this week." She was very rude and said that she was unable to assist me that I had to send a letter in with the following information. I then asked her if I could fax in the letter or e-mail it. She said flat out no and then disconnected the call. It is shocking to me that you can treat a customer that has had your service since 2008. But after reading the very poor reviews and multiple customer complaints online about the same service I am no longer shocked.

I am going to suggest a couple modifications to your contracts because life isn't black and white. Having worked in the corporate world for the last nearly 30 years, I know people and companies break contracts all the time. It's not the end of the world for any company unless that company made the mistake of putting all their eggs in one basket. I think that would be hard to do for an alarm monitoring company, but I could be wrong.

In most contracts, there is a "Break" fee, which is usually 2 months worth of the monthly cost or a set fee. Rarely for a Service is it "Pay us everything we would have made off of you and you can break the contract". That is counterintuitive. You are basically stating outright that the only purpose that client served was their money, and it shows no humanity whatsoever. If this person is so inclined as to share that with the rest of the world it could trigger a snowball effect that could hurt business for this tech-savvy generation, and tech is going nowhere. The young, tech generation is growing into the job market quickly, and soon you will not have any clients who don't research a company before making a decision.

So, with that said, I would suggest you add some addendums to your contracts, like Real Life addendums, Unexpected Diversity addendums, SOME sort of addendum that allows someone who is largely financially impacted to break away. Not only does it show humanity, but it gives your company credibility, and, therefore, a positive reputation. Based on my reading of reviews of Monitronics since I called to let you know of my hardship and had the experience I did I would think you need an image overhaul badly, and if I'd have been smart and done my research first, I guarantee we would not find ourselves at odds because I would never have signed a contract or allowed the service in the first place.

I would suggest adding the 2-month break fee. If that is just too much risk for the shareholders who want their vacation homes but want to improve the companies reputability to handle, then I might suggest a Hardship break - that if someone's income is impacted to the nth degree, by job loss, divorce, or disability, that you allow them to break contract without threat of fees, but with the right paperwork. For instance, Divorce would need to submit a pay stub by the responsible party and a notarized copy of the finalized divorce documents; Job loss could submit paperwork also signed by the unemployment benefits department and their contract put on hold until they become financially viable again with new employment; and Disability could have forms and notarized documentation submitted. These methods allow proof so not just any client could call up and say they have a hardship and expect to terminate or modify a contract while still allowing your company to remain reputable as well as relevant.

When the appearance of greed outweighs the options of Service, that company will begin a slow and steady descent into irrelevance. This is the generation of knowledge, and there are no seedy corners of business that can be hidden any longer. Once the old and technophobic generation dies off, Monitronics is going to find itself in a whole new and changed business market, so they may want to change as well to remain viable. Like I said, I worked in the corporate world for a long time until this disability, and this is what I did - made companies relevant. Monitronics might want to step up their game in that respect.

Original Review: Oct. 26, 2015

Had the Monitronix alarm service over a year. Worked great, no problems. But then I became disabled and took a 40% income loss and had to find a way to cut costs to survive. Since I am now home 24/7 an alarm system became redundant, so I contacted the Monitronix Customer Loyalty department and explained the situation. The lady was happy to give me a 20% discount for 2 months, but I explained once again my 40% income loss was permanent, my being home 24/7 was permanent. She offered 30% discount for 2 months, and again I explained my situation and my loss in income and having to re-budget and being home all the time, so she said "Sure, you can cancel. Here's all you have to do" and gave me the details of how to cancel, followed by "and your final bill will be everything you owe us through the end of your contract", almost $3,000.00.

I explained one more time the whole 40% loss in income, the need to restructure my finances because of that, the fact I was now permanently disabled and home all the time and there was no way my income was ever going to increase again. She said she understood. My bill would still be almost $3,000.00. I asked if she actually cared that I was now disabled and couldn't afford this. She said she did, and that my final bill would be everything I would have paid through the end of my contract, almost $3,000.00.

If I hadn't become disabled, hadn't taken such a huge, permanent hit in my income, I would be happy to continue and finish out my contract. But that isn't the case, and I contacted them because I couldn't afford it and was eliminating everything from my finances that wasn't necessary so I could scrape by on what was left of my income. They don't care, in the slightest.

So, do NOT sign a contract with this company. They do not care about you or your circumstances, only about your money. It's greed as usual. Do yourself a favor and go out and buy your own home monitoring system without a contract, like a Blink system, or an Arlo system, or talk with someone at your local hardware store about a no-contract monitoring system. Because when the chips are down, they have zero humanity, and only care about your money. This is not a company anyone should want to do business with if they can't be counted on to be decent to their fellow man.

Original Review: Oct. 23, 2015

I called yesterday to find out when my 3 year contract was up. I knew I was coming up on the end and I was looking for another company that would fit our budget. I was transferred to the loyalty department and when I informed them I what I needed, the power went out. I called back the following day and had them transfer me to the Loyalty department again. When I asked when my contract was up, all of the sudden the rep could no longer hear me and hung up. Called back a third time and the rep didn't want to up the information until the 3rd time I asked. Of course my contract was up and she quoted me on a good deal. I told her I wanted to run it by my husband and check on a couple of other security companies. She told me that she could not promise that if I called back that I would get the same offer.... I understood that.

When I called back later that evening I spoke to someone else in the same department and she was gonna give me the same quote but now I had to pay my balance in full which was $111. That was not told to me the first time. I had already spoken with billing and told them I would pay the past due amount the following week which was $61. The remainder was not even due yet. She was insisting that I needed to pay the whole balance before she could offer me the deal. I Had never been late on a payment until March of this year, which they were automatically taking the payment out of my bank account... that was more than 2 years paying on time. I offered to get back on the automatic withdrawals but was told I still need to balance in full before they offer me a new deal.

Original Review: Oct. 22, 2015

In January 2015 - I sold my home in Colorado, notified Monitronics, was told to fax over cancellation letter. I assumed that was done. I had moved out of state. Then, in April 2015, I received a call... Very rude customer service rep gave me an address to send cancellation letter to. Was informed that they don't do things by fax, that no one would have ever said that - nothing on file stating that I ever even called. I had been a customer for many years, why create issues now? So, cancellation letter was sent, now I am receiving phone calls for past due payments, due to the fact they once again never received a cancellation letter. Now, I have to go somewhere to find where I can scan in a cancellation letter to send to them via email. I have never been treated so rudely. Customer Service is horrible.

Original Review: Oct. 22, 2015

We have been Monitronics customers since mid-2005. After a break in at our house, we made the decision to install an alarm system. A crew came out and completed the system, and we settled in. They were even so helpful that they installed a cellular back up system in the event that the bad guys cut the phone lines. That way the alarm would still function. What a nice bunch to do this for us. And I was told that the alarm system was tied into the smoke detectors circuit so that if any of the smoke detectors went off the system would contact the Fire Department. We had the occasional alarm go off, batteries that needed change, routine maintenance, but nothing out of the ordinary.

Time moves on, and we decided to relocate into a new house a few miles away. We called and were provided the address to send a cancellation letter, which we did on August 27, 2015. Now we are continuing to receive letters for service since they claim they didn't receive the cancellation letter. They are billing us each month for a service we cancelled in accordance with their instructions. I have made repeated calls, and have sent a copy of the cancellation letter, but no one can do anything to get to the bottom of this but they all try to sell me service at the new house.

At the time our house sold, as a part of the due diligence and inspections, we contacted Monitronics only to discover that the phone line for the security system that we had been paying for each month for the past ten years was not necessary. There was no need to have it, as the cellular back up system was the only system ever in service. So they misled us (lied). The $1500 or so dollars this misinformation cost us is just a lesson to not trust even the company that says they are protecting you. Not only that, but the alarm system was NOT tied to the smoke detector circuit. I guess I must have misunderstood that item as well except they made a big deal of explaining how important and unique that was we were getting the Monitronics extras!!! What a bunch of crap.

About 10 days after the house sold, I got a panicked call from the new owners. The alarm was going off in the background, and the police and fire department were both there. The alarm was going off, no one knew how to turn it off. This was after we had sent a letter canceling the service and the system was still on!!! Now the new owners are trying to figure what to do with the charges that the police and fire department are assessing them for the false alarm. We are still getting letters every month from Monitronics even though I have provided them with a copy of the cancellation letter. They claim they never got it. My suspicion is that the P.O. Box they have at the Dallas Texas address is just a big shredder. Adding insult to injury, the CSR Agents I have spoken with are not only unresponsive to addressing the current issue, but they are overly aggressive in trying to get me to sign up for their security service at out new home.

I am so frustrated with trying to get this resolved, that I not only will not use their service, I will actively advise anyone who has any questions to avoid this group of leeches at any cost. Since I am about to retire, I have plenty of free time. I am considering having my grandkids help me with a social media campaign and web site letting folks know what to expect in their dealing with Monitronics. This is gonna be fun!!! Could be easily avoided. Cancel the service. Stop the fraudulent billings.

Updated on 01/26/2016: I moved on August 31, 2015, removed and destroyed my equipment and cancelled my account by phone and letter but they continue to harass me by letter and phone requesting money. Requests a valid written contract to no avail although Texas Occupation Code, Title 10, Chapter 1702 requires that they MUST provide one within 7 days of the request. Also, they call me all the time to report that an alarm is going on, from the city dump?

Original Review: Oct. 15, 2015

We (Wife and I) set up an alarm system with Security Networks which was later bought out by Monitronics. When we initially setup the system with Security Networks, we made sure they would break the contract if we received Permanent Change of Station (PCS) orders to another location and were not able to bring the alarm system along. Fast forward a few years and we have PCS'd to another state. We have been renting out the old house and have kept the alarm system active. The time has come to sell the house and Monitronics is refusing to honor the PCS orders and terminate contract. After dealing with their Customer Service folks, not only would I NOT recommend them to the person buying our house, but I would HIGHLY encourage fellow service members to avoid doing business with this company.

With Monitronics agent permission, we've recorded our phone calls with them where they tell us the contract owner is now the new owner, but they continue to bill both of us. They even refunded 2 months worth of charges... Only to reverse those credits a month later. They tell us that they have their own recordings of their agents telling us that the account is no longer ours and that we are no longer the account holder... I will be posting a link to these recordings and our latest bills so others know what they'll be dealing with should they sell their home and transfer the account to the new owner.

My husband called and asked for a Manager. The Manager, Eric in Dallas, gets on the phone and said the most appalling things I have ever heard. He told my husband he was being overdramatic and no one would be able to break into our house from upstairs. He told him it was unreasonable for him to be so upset when he told him that his family was going to be unprotected in the house for that long - that it was likely nothing would happen in the time period we had to bypass these sensors. There were many, many more as equally, if not worse things this Manager said to him. But in all fairness, I was only listening second hand. Moreover, he argued with my husband for over an hour - I am not even kidding.

We called to cancel and of course they have us up against a wall because we have 21 months left on our contract. I work in the legal field and know that the process to get out of the contract will be tedious and time-consuming. If we just cancel and do nothing it's going to ding our credit. So we have no choice but to wait for the techs to come and repair it - which we have to pay for - after our house has not been fully secured for over a week now, and finish out our contract. Well, so be it. But I will go on every review and website I can find and let people know about this. Eric in Dallas needs to be fired and never work in Management for Customer Service again because he has ABSOLUTELY NONE!!!

When my husband called back to cancel, the woman apologized and said "oh that should have never happened", ya da, but still no one is coming out for a couple of days and she reminded us we would be breaching our contract. So still... not much resolution once again. The only difference is this lady did not tell my husband he was over dramatic and unreasonable and argue with him for an hour. Did I mention we live in North Las Vegas - one of the highest crime communities in the Country.

While this does make me content knowing that the issue will hopefully be over soon. I still am not happy that I had to deal with it in this manner and that I see so many others have had a frustrating experience with this company with this issue. I recommend they update their website and how they handle customers initially, so then people like Ashleigh and Christina dealing with upset soon to be former customers.

Overall I would update this my rating to two stars since I was able to get to a resolution but still think this entire thing could have been avoided.

Original Review: Oct. 13, 2015

Am currently overseas for the military and called to cancel my account that was a 4 year contract completed earlier this year as I'm saving up to sell my house and just don't use the alarm anymore so I figured since the contract was done it'd be a great way to save an extra $50 a month. Spoke with a nice lady who transferred me to the "cancellation" department, which was obviously retention. She went through for about 15 minutes, the first 5 for all of my options and reasons why I should stay. I didn't bite on the pathetic $5 a month I could save or the upgrades that she threw at me, and then she just reiterated how important having an alarm was and how I needed it and on and on, in circles really. I let her go because I figured at the end I could officially cancel. But then they wanted a letter in writing as stipulated in the contract. That ticked me off so I pulled out my contract, and sure enough there was something about a written cancellation.

So I wrote up a letter and put it in the mail. So, I've been trying to contact them via email to verify that the letter has been received and they have cancelled the account. Instead of receiving an email, they have attempted calling my phone and my emergency contact about an important message about my account. I'm not going to go through the rigamarole again. I have completed my end of the bargain, they need to complete theirs. And after reading these other reviews about cancelling the account I'm slightly terrified. I have never been so stressed about something so stupid. Fingers crossed they respond to my last email about only contacting me via email and just cancel the dang account. Hope this helps others from getting involved with a company like this.

I talked to a different person in tech support. I was told that my keypad having a low battery would not cause the alarm to go off randomly and that he had no idea why it would go off; that I should give it a few days. He told me the keypad doesn't take a 6 volt battery and that they had to order the special battery for me. If that is the case, how come I was not only able to find a video tutorial produced by Monitronics on how to change the battery but I was easily able to find a replacement battery on Amazon. I am going to lose it if my alarm goes off randomly by itself again!

Original Review: Oct. 7, 2015

I called Monitronics to cancel for cheaper monitoring service. I spoke to Laquita ext **. That was the worst retentions representative I have ever spoke to and was the nail in the coffin to cancel. She offered me discounts to stay but spent 10 min on the phone belittling me for wanting to switch for cheaper service. I work for a telecommunications company and once Laquita found out who she bashed, my company, Laquita said is switching from the company I work for because of bad experiences she had. I didn’t know that I was going to try to retain her business on my call I made as the consumer. At the end I was told I had to write a letter to cancel which I thought is crazy and double checked online making sure because I know it would hurt her numbers if I were to cancel. Bad experience and I will be writing that letter tonight to cancel.

I mailed the letter in next two days and I thought everything is done. I did not notice the automatic payment in my credit card is still getting charged for next two months after the phone call. Then I called them to ask about the charge and they said they did not receive the letter. Then they decided to take out the automatic payment and cancel the service. Then after a month I received a statement again for service.

When I called them today they are saying that after the cancellation I still have to pay a month service fee. And the person who spoke to me still very rude saying he is not responsible to postal delays and says they made an exception for canceling my service where we don't stay for past 4+ months. And he says it is all written in the contract which no one understands. I am not sure what kind of business plan they have but it is a master one to rip off the customers. I don't want to argue with them anymore by wasting my precious working hours and i paid the remaining charges today.

We have been fighting this since august of 2014. Now they want us to pay $500.00 plus for something we do not have, because of their incompetence. This company should be banned from operating. They are collecting money for a service that they are not furnishing and never did from being. Bad business. My husband is 79 years old and has not worked since 2002. I was told by their attorney today that what the sales person told us was different than the contract we signed. What a scam.

I gave it a few days to see if it was working and then called to tell them to stop monitoring. They said I had to send a letter... Then it would be a month after that it would be cancelled. I told them I had no contract. She said “Even though you don't have a contract you still have to cancel.” I said “What am I cancelling?” “It says in your contract that you have to give notice.” I said "Do you mean the contract that I don't have?" She said “It is an assumed contract.” I said “Cancel me effective immediately” and then sent a letter too. I know I will be back on here in about two weeks when I get a bill or a letter stating that I didn't follow procedures or something. Ridiculous and blatant attempt to screw people out of a couple more months’ fees. You can't send email or do it online.

They must receive a written cancellation 3 days prior to the date of when I signed (01/29/2012) in order to cancel service. Well, the lady I spoke with, told me what they would do to help me on my bill, was to reduce the total amount due of $301.94 to $120.78 in which I made that payment over the phone, with my card, on that day. So now I have 3 more months to pay them, and when that final bill/payment comes in, (01/2016) I'll be sending them a check along with a notarized cancellation of service.

To everyone out there, considering on adding a security system to their home, please don't make the same mistake I did, and that's signing a contract to have security. You do not need a contract to have a security system installed into your home. Beware of signing anything before you've read it, and know exactly what it is your signing for. Don't get yourself into a bind, as I did.

So, they will not let us cancel even though we have been a good customer for 15 years and much of the time the system was not functioning. They instead lied and said I verbally committed to the 4 year contract by phone. Number one I would never commit to a contract knowing that the system was not working properly. They said because the technician installed a part to get it back up and working, I verbally committed to the 4 years. I explained to the manager whose name was Porchia I hope that is the correct spelling that I am terminally ill and don't have long to live. None of this matters to them. I have scleroderma and when I get upset it affects everything heart, lungs, stomach, muscles and every other part of my body. I am at my wit's end and really don't know how to handle this since we have already signed a contract with the other company. I need our account cancelled and our automatic bank draft stopped.

Monitronics has terrible business practices. Their teams are not on the same accord. It's taking me almost 4 weeks to get reimbursed from their mistake. I would NEVER recommend this company to anyone. By the way, I called my sales rep from National Security Alarms and they never called me back either. Please take heed and do not do business with Monitronics or National Security Alarms.

One of the independent contractors actually recommended a different security company and admitted Monitronics-Alliance is one of the worst security companies out there. I am embarrassed to say I didn't read reviews before I signed the contract because I thought all the services were the same and it was a good idea to save a few bucks. Please look elsewhere for a security company. You will not be happy with this company's service, customer service or equipment.

A quick Google search of Anthony shows he has a criminal record for theft, so I ask who is doing the background checks on the representatives? Just keep in mind that the rep who is in your house may be the very element you are trying to guard against! The contract is on their paperwork so he was representing Monitronics in this matter. We got no action from Monitronics even after filing a complaint with the BBB. Please do not do business with this company.

To show how poor their monitoring system is I had the system replaced with another company and it took them a month to call me to realize that my system wasn't online and the only reason why they noticed is because I sent them a cancellation letter!!! I never received a phone call, text or email indicating that they knew that the system was not functioning. When the customer service person called to try to find out the reason why I was canceling he didn't even know that their system was disconnected! He was unknowledgeable, discourteous and impolite. How am I supposed to trust my family and my valuables to a company that only is interested in my business when I cancel my service? I still have some time remaining on my contract with Monitronics but I will happily pay for the peace of mind knowing that a responsible and accountable company is protecting my family and property.

I asked about any type of confirmation letter from the individual I spoke to and she said she could not send anything; this should have been a red flag however, I had a laundry list of things to secure so I moved on and trusted her word. We sold our home in July 2015, I went through the process of living in a hotel while we transitioned out of San Antonio and eventually getting into post housing at my new duty location, August 2015. I begin to go through my bank statements and find that Monitronics has continued to charge my account for monthly services that I have not been receiving. I called their toll free number this morning and spoke with a very helpful, professional individual named Barry who explained that because I had not sent in a cancellation letter and a copy of my orders, I would continue to be charged on this account.

I explained to him that doing this was an extremely easy task that I could have taken care of in July had I been informed. In any case, I am sending in this letter of cancellation, a copy of my orders, and a copy of my on-post lease agreement this morning. I will then pray over the next week that someone receives this and does their part because as I found this site this morning and read other reviews, I am not 100% confident that I will find an easy resolution to this issue. Apparently when I said I was moving, the individual I spoke to in July interpreted this as, "I want to continue service at my new location", when in fact those were not my exact words. It is not a long story, I was moving, I did not know where I was going to be living however because of the location of our new duty station I knew that being in on-base housing was in the best interest of my family.

I have to state here that it does not make good sense to me that anyone would be charged for services that they are not receiving, for any reason (account hold status or otherwise). I asked about sending in a signed and scanned document and I was told that it had to be hard copy only (again, no paper trail for me to track that I have done my part and someone on the other end was doing theirs). Barry was amazing in providing me information about the contract agreement, the transition to month-month service after initial contracts expire and the process to move forward, however, my opinion with this process is that it does not make it easy for me to recommend Monitronics to any of my peers in the Military or otherwise. I want to submit a receipt as a verified buyer however I do not have anything other than my bank statements which I would rather not attach.

I am trying not to throw too much negativity through this review, I am expressing my frustration through my experience. We will see how this all ends up however as soon as I am done with this post I am going to contact my bank and then I am going to the JAG office on post to get some legal counseling on this matter.

All my Mother wants is the right to cancel, being she never agreed with Monitronics to take over the home. We were told we must payout the remaining contract (we never signed) for release. We live in Compton, California, by His Grace we've never experienced any home violation or illegal entry. My Mom would like to cancel a contract she never approved.

Original Review: Sept. 14, 2015

After 3 years I decided I no longer require their alarm service. I recently called in to cancel my policy and was directed to a manager/retention individual. He tried to win me back offering a lower monthly rate which I in turn said I was no longer interested and that I wish to cancel my service. The rep finally came to the realization that I seriously wanted to cancel then he explains to me that in order to cancel my service I needed to write a letter to the company stating reasons for cancelling and all this other crap information they need... Yes a written letter!!! I ask if they could send me a PDF of the cancellation letter so I can send it back via the mail and he said to just write it on a piece of paper.

Yes this is a technology company that is protecting our homes. Needless to say they will not cancel my service until they receive this letter. I live in Canada and have never seen or heard of anything more ridiculous than this in my life. I guess I will send them a hand written letter and hope they receive it? Also they refuse to cancel my alarm until they receive this letter and will cancel it 30 days after they get it so they can soak me for another month of service I don't want. Are there not laws protecting the average Joe trying to cancel a service he no longer wants? Not sure about the rest of the world but who writes letters anymore?

I sent the letter but do not expect them to acknowledge it. I will give it a week and then I am contacting the Better Business Bureau and my lawyer. I never had a contract with them and they should have contacted me saying they were taking over the account. Shame on them. This Ashley person says the exact same thing in every post, this is not indicative of them. It certainly is. Look at the BBB and see all the complaints. Again, Shame on them. They even gave me a different account number - shady.

Three days later we received a letter stating they would not cancel our contract because it "auto-renewed" for 3 more years. I repeated, again and again, NO CONTRACT. I cancelled my bank card so they couldn't access the account. Many more calls to our home re payment. We cut the wires on the box and demanded they release the "gsm communicator" for the other security company. Manager stated, "We can't do that." We had to threaten legal action against Monitronics. We just received a letter stating they were "cancelling our contract" (that ended 5 months ago). Unbelievably dishonest company, nags like a dog over a bone and will drain your account with lies, dishonesty and misrepresentations. A dog is a better alarm than MONITRONICS. "Get 'em, Rover!"

Original Review: Sept. 3, 2015

My home was broken into in 2010 and the next day, I signed a contract for monitoring services. I did not want a 5 year contract so the sales rep wrote it for 3 years. He did not point out the auto renew clause and I have never heard of contract auto renew for more than month to month, and I was pretty shaken up from the break into read the fine print. I was blindsided when it auto renewed for an additional 3 years without any notice in 2013. I called 1 month after they auto renewed me to cancel since we no longer had a home phone to use for the system and they said I would have to pay 50% of the remaining 3 year contract. Not wanting to do that, I was forced to upgrade to the wireless system for a higher monthly rate and pay for new equipment.

We had several issues with the motion sensor that never worked properly. We called again last week to cancel as we only have a year left and they now say we must pay 100% of the remaining term to cancel. So they want $45/month for providing no service. I take issue with their sneaky tactics and then changing the % to cancel. Not only that, but I am completely current on my bill and the rep on the phone threatened to take me to collections when I said I would not pay them for no service. He also told me they were a big company with a A rating at BBB, so I shouldn't bother filing a complaint. Very condescending and have no regard for customers.

Apparently they rely on shady contracts, not good customer service to keep customers. Oh and talk about great protection, we disconnected our system last week to try selling the touch screen panels to put towards the $500 cancellation fee and they have not been concerned (or probably even noticed) that our system has been offline over a week.

Original Review: Sept. 2, 2015

I am frustrated with the customer service received by Monitronics. I feel that Monitronics have business practices in place that are barriers to my consumer rights to cancel service, that harass and cajole consumers, and prevent the consumer from an expedient termination of service that costs the consumer additional unnecessary costs. I will begin with the poor service received by Monitronics. Within the first year, we required several service requests to repair the faulty system. The last service call was going to require us to pay additional money to repair the system. At that point, I had deployed twice to Afghanistan within two years and did not have the energy to pursue repairs and considered the system and service a sunk cost. I could not wait for the end of the 36 required months on the contract to end the service.

In September 2014, I called Monitronics to cancel my service. After talking to a service representative for about 10 minutes about cancelling my service, the representative told me that he could not cancel my service and had to transfer me to another representative. After explaining why I wanted to cancel the service to the next representative, she cajoled me into keeping the service for free for the next three months and then request a cancellation in January 2015. After going round and round with the representative, I made the mistake of keeping the service for the free three months. I deployed short notice to Liberia in October 2014 and became overwhelmed again until we sold our house in June 2015. I called Monitronics on 6 July 2015 and requested to cancel the service because I moved. Again the first representative I talked to for over 10 minutes could not cancel my service and transferred me to another representative.

The second representative again tried to sell me the service claiming that I have been a loyal customer and have a free upgrade / transfer of services to our next home. I declined multiple times as she explained I could transfer the free upgrade to the new home owner, other family members, or keep it myself for our next home. Again and again, I declined. She finally gave into me and understood stating that she will cancel the service. On 8 July 2015, I received an email from Monitronics asking me not to go and offering a fabulous promotion. This was a signal to me that the service was cancelled. I monitored my credit card during he month of July and never received a charge for services. Another signal that the service was cancelled. On 24 August 2015, I noticed that I was charged by Monitronics for services. I called Monitronics on 25 August 2015 and requested a refund for the services.

After verification, the representative apologized for the errant charge, confirmed that my services were cancelled in July, and stated that I would receive a refund to my credit card within 3-5 days. I received my refund on 27 August 2015. On 1 Sep 15, I received a voicemail from Monitronics stating that I was pass due on my account. How can this be? I was just refunded my money because the representative admitted that my account was cancelled. My wife called Monitronics before I could and they told her that my account was not cancelled because they have not received a written letter requesting the cancellation. Why is a written letter required?

During my move, I cancelled service with AT&T, Verizon wireless, and DirecTV. They did not require a written letter, nor did they cajole me to keep their services. Monitronics inconsistencies wasted my time and energy leaving me feeling harassed. After reading other consumer reports, I feel that I can expect additional charges to remedy the situation while I waste additional time and resources to send them a letter of cancelation.

Finally, I go to a meeting and she told me that I would have to write a letter and send it to Dallas in order to cancel. I was also told that it would be 30 days after they receive the letter before my account would be cancelled. This tactic gives them one more billing cycle that I do not want. This is 2015 - the account can be cancelled with the click of a mouse.

Monitronics never provided me with any service these 9 months, and would only reimburse me 2 months of the 9 months of payment that they took out of my checking account. Buyer beware, this company has ripped me off... Furthermore, their personnel in customer service was rude and refuse to resolve my issues. Please look for a better alarm service company for Monitronics is a provider of a security service, but does a darn good job of ripping people off.

I called the company and was told that their policy was to require a 30 day notice for cancellation and that the service would be ended thirty days from receipt of the letter. That will result in me being charged for two months of service and their equipment has been removed. I was told that the charge covers their contacting agencies to let them know that they are no longer servicing our home. When the letter was received in Dallas, Texas, no one told me about the additional charges. They were only concerned about keeping my business - at that point I was with another company and at a lower monthly charge, with new equipment.

I was told that they would not refund me my two months of billed money that they took due to the fact that I did not send in a handwritten cancellation. I told them I was not aware of that and regardless the company was no longer monitoring my alarm so why would I pay for services that were not being done? I was then directed to look at my 4-year-old sales contract that by some miracle I still had. Ok so there it is, but when the company sends you a letter saying that my alarm will be disconnected June 1st why would you think to go grab your contract? So great they're keeping my money for doing nothing, sounds like a crook to me!

So the account manager tells me to send in the letter and there will be no more billing. Done, letter sent in beginning of August. August 20th I receive a call from an "account manager", they received my cancellation letter but will not cancel my account until the 30th but was once again told I had a zero dollar balance. Well I checked my banking account yesterday and SURPRISE!!! They took more money from me! WORST COMPANY EVER!!! Stay away from these guys, trust me, I wish I had!

Original Review: Aug. 26, 2015

Fulfilled my contract, 3 yrs plus couple more yrs. Sold our home 6/15/15. Called to cancel the service. Was told they would provide the new home owners with 1 month free service. Said they cancelled my service. Monitronics took no money in in June. My natural assumption was the acct/contract is done. Then in July on the 23rd they took $40.94 without my approval, BUT since in the original agreement I agreed to electronic withdrawal they are "free" to take money as they wish! I called them AT THAT TIME, was told "You have to cancel by sending a letter to Dallas, TX."

So, on 8/23 an email is received saying they will help themselves to another $17.17 on 9/13. Called them today 8/26, and got a lectured by Francisco that the contract had to cancelled in writing and my does not end till 8/30/15!!! Asked to speak to a manager, told him NOT to lecture me, get me a manager... Francisco HUNG UP!!! To stop payment for $17.17 it will cost $25.00!!! My conscience would not let me do business like this. And, yes. I have had 2 small businesses. Francisco would be allowed this rude conduct, once!!!

Original Review: Aug. 26, 2015

Our original home alarm system was with Security Network. My husband's job causes us to move every three years. I explained this to our installation rep who informed us that we could do a month to month contract. Our experiences with them were horrible and we decided to cancel after numerous false alarms and other issues with our equipment. After thinking my services were canceled, we found out that the company was bought out by Monitronics. We did not receive any notification of this change. We experienced some of the same issues with Monitronics (false alarms, bad equipment, etc). I informed them that we canceled our services with Security Network only to discover that someone forged our initials next to the 60 month (5 year) portion of the contract.

They offered us a buy-out after apologizing for the forged initials. I agreed to it but told them that I was on medical leave for 12 weeks and unable to pay it all up front. A few weeks later, I came home from the hospital with threatening letters from a collection agency! I cannot believe I was turned over to a collection agency after the security company acknowledged my initials were forged! I have been with a few security systems but I've NEVER experienced anything like this before!

Original Review: Aug. 25, 2015

I recently sold my home and moved out of state. I contacted Monitronics to cancel my service. I was transferred to the cancellations department where I provided all the required information and was requested to consider installations at my new residence (lease). Informed them I wasn't able to and was told I had to submit a written request. I completed the written request only to find out a month later that the address that was provided was not correct. Called again and was told to mail in another letter. Received a letter back stating that my request was denied due to my contract being enforced for 3 more months.

I called the number provided during the hours provided and the recording stated the department was closed. Sent email and two weeks later receive a call that nothing could be done as it is the procedure to enforce the contract. But as a courtesy they would turn off the system but I would still be required to pay for the next 3 months. I am disappointed in the entire service experience and at this point will not recommend Monitronics nor will I choose them as a company for further alarm services.

Original Review: Aug. 25, 2015

I was a customer for about 7 years. As soon as I tried to cancel it became impossible. They put my service on test mode since I was no longer going to have it, so there is no monitoring going on. They advised, "Send a letter to cancel," so I did. Then I continued to get billed. I called, they advised never received it, so I sent another one. Still continued to get billed for something they are not providing. Now 12 months later they are still trying to bill me and send me to collections, still stating they did not receive any of my letters.

Finally, after being disconnected and trying to terminate/cancel the home security services for over two hours, a representative called me and he went on and on about why I was terminating/canceling my home security services. He went on to tell me about the crimes in the area and that they received a report with this information. I asked him if he would terminate/cancel my home security services and he stated, "Yes." He finally told me that I needed to write a letter with the following four things included: account number, reason for terminating/canceling the home security service and my passcode and it will take 30 days for them to terminate/cancel the service. He informed me that this was included in my contract.

I never received a contract. I asked if I could fax/email this letter to Monitronics and the representative informed me that USPS is the only option. I instructed the representative that since this call is being recorded, please note that I am asking that the home security services being terminated/canceled effective August 24, 2015. I did immediately write a letter with the requested information and asked that the termination/cancellation of the home security services go into effective immediately, as of August 24, 2015. I just want the home security services terminated/canceled immediately without the harassment from Monitronics.

Original Review: Aug. 23, 2015

My complaint is about a battery replacement for my alarm and charged me a different amount than quoted. I only had a couple of months left on my contract of three years and I was informed my battery needed to be replaced. When I called I was told specifically the charge would only be $5. Later, I received a bill for $30. I had called Monitronics and spoke with two people, one who was a manager. The issue did not get resolved.

The next day I talked to my neighbor who also had their battery replaced by the Monitronics. I asked if she had any issues and she was very mad. She said that Monitronics offered to come out at no charge to replace the battery. Later, she received a bill for $50. She then cancelled their service but is still having her checking account deducted by Monitronics. I am really concerned about cancelling that I will have to not only send a certified letter to cancel and change my credit card that they debit, that they will still harass me as they have others. When I was transferred to inquire about cancelling the person from Monitronics was unprofessional and it definitely made my final decision to cancel.

About a month ago, my husband and I were traveling, when my son called to tell us police showed up for another false alarm. In this case, alarm wasn't armed and no indication in our home to indicate anything was amiss. The most recent incident happened on a Friday evening when the entire family was out. My niece (who lives upstairs) called to report that police were on the property about an alarm call. My niece said there was no noise, no siren or anything to indicate an alarm situation. When we arrived home, the alarm pad showed no abnormal activity.

The police reminded us that they can charge us for the false alarms, although they have not to date. I am completely fed up and want to change companies, but was told today I am tied to a 3-year contract. I have requested a call from Customer Service to discuss compensation for the extreme inconvenience we have experienced. Meanwhile, a technician will be calling me to check out the equipment. I'm so disgusted. Is this what I'm paying for?

When I called to cancel, they said I owed $392 to cancel. I asked for a copy of the contract they said I signed, but they will not send it. They will not cancel over the phone and must have a written request along with the money, but do not have a published email address that you can send anything to, thus not having any proof of said request. This company has terrible practices. This is only the second time in my life I've given anything a negative review online. Hopefully, I can save at least one person the headache and money.

He chuckled a little bit and then asked me if I have seen the signs in other front yards, I said "Yes, I know what your signs look like but we are not interested. We are in the middle of dinner, can I please get a card or something and if we are interested we will call." He gets on his two way radio saying something I couldn't understand and a lady comes jogging up our driveway, who says nothing. As he flips through his binder he asks me again if I have seen the signs and shows me a picture. I say again, "Yes, but can I get a card so we can continue our dinner." He ignores me and continues on trying to tell me about the services. My husband then intervenes and says, "Excuse me, Sir, but my wife says we are not interested so can you please just give us a card so we can continue dinner." He chuckles a little bit again, the woman still saying nothing.

I believe we asked him maybe another 3 or 4 times to leave us be before he finally said "Ok, have a good evening," still not handing us any information. Apparently I was being too nice, because I could have just slammed the door in his face but instead I was trying to be respectful. But I got the complete opposite in return, and was ignored even after my husband and I both told him and the woman that we were not interested repeatedly. If this is your sales practice, you might want to train your salespeople better and show more respect to the doors they are knocking on.

Original Review: Aug. 13, 2015

I had purchased an alarm with a contract through another alarm company and that contract was eventually purchased by Monitronics. I haven't been pleased with the service of Monitronics for several reasons but fulfilled my part of the agreement. Once our contract was up I decided to go with another company. Monitronics has refused to accept that I have canceled our services & stating that I must do several things prior as it is in our contract because they put it in all of their contracts. I pointed out that I never signed a contract with Monitronics and they stated they don't care and that is what they will go by. I had previously written as well as called them to cancel the services. That system has been removed for over a month and they called stating they were receiving a signal and didn't ask for the safe word. Monitronics continues to refuse to cancel the monitoring.

Later after talking to the local police and finding out it had not been reported I advised them they had failed to provide me with the security I was paying for and therefore wanted to cancel my service and they said I would have to pay a $1200 termination fee. Said they had it on tape that I requested for them not to call the police TWICE and therefore they cancelled the call. My husband was a police officer so I know a lot of unsavory people but that doesn't mean they should have free rein of my home.

This was the last straw after being conned, lied to from beginning to end, hung up on (including a supervisor) several times while trying to find out an answer as to what went wrong & what they wanted me to do with their equipment cause I was done! Still to this day no one can tell me if or where to send their equipment. I immediately contacted another security system company and had a new system installed. I am now receiving constant calls about the termination fee THEY THINK I still owe them. DO NOT SIGN UP WITH MONITRONICS OR ALLIANCE!

Well apparently one of their 10,001 different "offices" didn't get the memo because I continued to get harassing phone calls, multiple times a day, for another 6 months before I found the official Monitronics Hater Facebook page (Monitronics is BAD), which had I nice little link to this site where I could officially share my story and supporting evidence. This company is complete garbage with a very good scheme for scamming people out of hard earned cash. DO NOT USE MONITRONICS!! Use any other home security company other than Monitronics.

It was to my understanding that once I fixed the camera there was to be a continued recorded video to of my front yard. Once I found out my car was moved a severely damaged I logged into my alarm.com and there was not recorded video of any. The last dated recorded video was on July 30 when I request the camera be checked. Now I have no footage as to who could have come into my yard to drive my car off my driveway and just return it in terrible shape. I have filed a police report for the situation. I am very upset when I called Monitronics several times only to find out that my camera is malfunctioning and was never set up properly to recorded important video when my car was tampered with.

I spoke with a Robert for the general customer service department. His supervisor ** and ** to get further assistance. All of them told me they could do nothing about the situation other than to schedule a service appointment to have someone come out and check the camera. To me that defeats the purpose because my car is already damage and the camera was set up to record any motions that were detected. The only maintenance works available that could come out to my house was through Alliance a 3rd party company. I would rather have a supervisor tech from the company I purchase my security from as opposed to someone who is just getting paid to "fixed" my camera once again.

I was also told that Monitronics has not access to pending video of potential recorded video. I don't understand why Monitronics the company that sold me the camera does not have any type of sensitive access to view footage that could help a potential theft case. This is highly unprofessional and I would seriously consider ending my service with Monitronics because of the lack of customer service that was put towards this regard.

The service is now cancelled, and I appreciate your help with getting past the tactics used by your front-line employees, in preventing cancellation. I can honestly say that I will never use your company again, based entirely on the way I was treated.

Thanks again for your help. I truly do appreciate it.

Original Review: Aug. 4, 2015

Alarm salesman came to my door and sold us an alarm system. Signed a multi-year contract (which they hold you to with no exceptions). Once the contract term was over, I called to cancel the alarm service and was told it couldn't be done over the phone, and that I had to submit my request in writing, and that needed my name, account number, address, name and date. I submitted as requested, and while balancing my checkbook, 3 months later, I found they were still charging me.

Once again, I called Monitronics only now to learn that they are refusing to cancel my service because I didn't place a signature on the written request (however I am pretty sure I did sign the request). They are playing hardball and stealing my money. They know I want to cancel, and refuse to stop taking my money. I will never do business with this company again, and tell everyone I know to avoid them. They talk about keeping your home safe from thieves, however they are about as dishonest as they come.

Eventually we stopped trying (to have it fixed) and did not even use the alarm system for many months.. We had gotten them to send a technician out to make repairs a few times that most of the time they wanted to charge us to send a technician out even though it was their own system that was failing. Getting on the phone with them was never easy. I have spent hours on hold and getting transferred from technician to technician. Every one of their employees at all departments seems to use the strategy just transfer the call to someone else.

It has been painful to use this company. They have seriously lacking integrity and definitely have not kept up their end of the bargain or their end of the contract. Because it was such a hassle I let the payments keep hitting my account for at least six months. For the last three months I have called every couple of weeks to try to close the account. Each time I called I was placed on hold and transferred around for at least one hour. I have gotten hung up on many times.

I am not rude on the phone -- I'm very courteous and I don't get upset at the person I'm dealing with. For them to transfer me around and hang up on me is really ridiculous and unnecessary. It must just be their protocol and strategy to get people to give up. Each time I call I am on the hold and transferred around for at least one hour. I have gotten hung up on many times. As if trying to close the account and having terrible customer service and non functioning alarm system was not bad enough, on the day that I closed the account the representative manipulated the math and I ended up paying more than the supposed 30% down that she claimed to have gotten approval to get it down to.

I was lazy and frustrated and didn't do the math but when I got off the phone I finally did and was ripped off an additional $50. This company train their employees well, in terms of saving the company money or making the company money. The employees are not trained to work in the interest of their customers. Seriously stay away from Monitronics Alarm - all sounds very feasible after what I have been through the last year with them. This is so sad that they are not accountable yet work so diligently to rip their customers off. What a nightmare.

In January, 2014 I called CRS Services, Monitronics, and was told that I signed the contract and had to honor the contract. I was resolved to deal with the scam, but in February, my son was killed in Afghanistan. My whole world was upside down and now dealing with the worst tragedy of my life and CRS was no longer important. A little over a year later, I once again called Monitronics. At that time, I wasn't sure of the length of the contract and asked that the system be removed. I was then told that the system could be removed but I would still be responsible for the balance of the payments -- over $1700.00 left.

I told the representative on the phone that I was scammed into getting the system. I didn't explain the scam, as I still felt very stupid for falling for Alvin's scam. However, without the scam, I would never have signed the papers to get the system installed in the first place. Consequently, I have paid $30.00 a month extra each month since January, 2013, plus a $199.00 installation, and future $49.99 payments until January, 2018.

The representative I talked was rude and threatened my credit if I didn't continue to pay, even court and costs. The fact that I was scammed was my fault, not their problem, and they take no responsibility for their employees. I asked to have the alarm system removed and the contract voided as of removal. With the level of disrespect and the cost of the scam, I would like to be reimbursed for installation fee and all fees paid to date.

I called again on Monday and asked if I could hire someone to remove the system from the old house as we were closing the next day. I did that and then made an appointment to have the system installed in the new home. Again, the service rep was unable to keep the appointment because of a sick child. I rescheduled for a Saturday and actually had to fly to Michigan to meet the service rep at the home.

Shortly after the system was installed that Saturday, the ability to control lights and thermostat from my phone failed. I had to await the arrival of the service technician again on the following Saturday. Last Friday the ability to control the lights and thermostat from my phone again failed. I called customer service and held for an eternity. I finally hung up. I have received several notices via email that the light control and the thermostat have experienced a problem since then. When I receive the first email on Sunday evening I called the toll free number but received a recording that customer service was not open on Sunday. I called on Monday and held for an eternity again. The telephone technician worked me through the problem and had me test the connection between cell phone and thermostat...it worked.

I thanked her and hung up satisfied. Twenty minutes later I tried the lights and nothing happened. I called back again (again I held for over 17 minutes) and was told that a technician would call me with an appointment time that day (yesterday actually, 07-28-2015) between 1100 and 1:00. I did not get a call so I called the toll free number again... again holding for an eternity, and was told that because the technician was based over 100 miles away he would have to call me the next day (today, 07-29-2015) and make an appointment. It is now 7:00 pm the next day and I have not heard from anyone.

At this point I don't care if I ever hear from anyone at Monitronics again. I am sure I will though as my next call will be to American Express to NEVER allow another payment to this company. They have ZERO response to your needs unless you live in a major metropolitan area. I had to rate them with one star only because NO STARS was not an option. If you want poor, poor... no, make that HORRIBLE RESPONSE TO YOUR SERVICE FAILURES then by all means use Monitronics. If you want peace of mind and a system that works I would suggest you shop around and read reviews. I am getting a neighbor to watch the place and turn the heat/ac up and down. Monitronics is another word for NIGHTMARE!!!

Original Review: July 25, 2015

After a total of 4 calls over 4 weeks and 2 emails, they have yet to install a system in our new home after our move. We are paying for home security and getting nothing in return. We are constantly told by customer service that a tech will call by Friday, but no one ever does. I want my money back!

Now on the last digital pad after replacing the batteries had a problem. It was all lit up but no icons to press. So I called customer service a 2nd time on the same day. The representative had me try everything we could for 45 plus minutes. After not being able to fix it over the phone she stated she would have a service agent call me tomorrow (Wednesday) to schedule an appointment. I said "that's fine and could I get a phone number of that department in case they don't call." The rep, let me clarify, a Monitronics rep told me they use Contractors to do the service and the contractor has told Monitronics NOT to give out that phone number but they will call. I find this ridiculous! What company lets their workers, vendors or contractors dictate and tell the actual company what to do.

So Wednesday 7.22.15 I get a call at work from the contractor company. And that rep said "the earliest we can come out is August 5th between 11 and 2 pm." I told them that, "that's not going to work as I don't get off till 2:30 pm and my wife at 3:30 pm and the soonest I can be home is 3 pm and the fact that the whole second floor of my house is not armed (no security)." That rep said "the contractors don't work past 2 pm" which is a lie because we were told last year when we inquired about adding some window pins for extra security that the techs stop doing service calls at 2 pm but for new service they will work until at least 7 pm. And they came out around 5 to 6 pm when we started our service. THIS IS HORRIBLE SERVICE right here to penalize your customers if they want to add items or fix something but if you want new service they will accommodate you for sure... So then the rep said "sorry we can't help you and I will send this back to Monitronics."

No lie!!!! 30 min later a Monitronics Rep called me and stated what the contractor rep told me and that she was going to find me someone after 3 pm and could I hold. I said "I am at work and I should be working so could you call me back?" She said she would in about 15 min. I then reiterated that Monday thru Thursday at 3 pm and after will work! The rep said she got it and that she would get back to me. Again this was Wednesday 7.22.15. And guess what? Never ever got a callback! NOT A SHOCKER!!! So 2 days later today Friday 7.24.15 I call Monitronics and ask for a supervisor or a manager. The agent put me on a 15 min hold of course. The lady may be named Theresa said she was an account manager. So I told her the whole story I just wrote.

I reiterated that it was ridiculous that no one does service calls from 3 pm and after and that this is very important because half of my house is not secured! So she said she heard what I said and that if I could hold she will search for a contractor. After another 15 min she (The supposable Manager) tells me I was right that the first contractor that called me only worked till 2 pm and no Saturdays. I was like "you put me on hold to check out if I lied about what the contractor said?" She said she was sorry and if I could hold a bit longer she is calling another contractor.

About 20 mins later this account manager said "well I found someone to come service you on August 5th between 1 and 3 pm." I was dumfounded at her answer! I asked her if she heard a word I was said to her. She said yes but was wondering if I could have a neighbor or friend wait at the house while someone fixes my security system. How ridiculous is that. IT IS MY FAMILY PERSONAL HOME SECURITY! Having neighbors and friends knowing your codes and system fixes is ludicrous!!! Lastly I asked this manger to "tell me the truth that if I was asking for new service would they come out at any time, but you have a cut off time for service?" She would not answer and only talked over me and said she would have this escalated and that team would call me in 48 hours. Lolololol. 48 hours.

Reading this please take away the HORRIBLE Customer service. Also take away that once they install your system you will need to take a day off plus wait a while until they can fit you in. And lastly take away that they know full well that I have no security for my 2nd floor of my house and that they are fine taking 48 hours to get back to you and ok with scheduling service 2 plus weeks out, that they are not concerned with your security. The only thing they are concerned with is that monthly payment. Again DO NOT USE MONITRONICS!!! I AM CALLING AND ASKING OTHER COMPANIES ABOUT THEIR SERVICE SCHEDULES AND HIRE ONE THAT IS AT THE VERY LEAST, A HAIR BETTER AT CUSTOMER SERVICE THEN MONITRONICS!!!

Finally I got in contact with someone that was willing to give me at least a discount to cancel the service, so I am done with it. But it would be nice if they could keep everything together and get their stories straight. They clearly have people in sales and customer service that have no idea what they are telling people. If you sign a contract you should be provided a copy and you should not be lied to. I'm glad Elizabeth was finally able to be polite and offer me some discount off from the incredible amount due up front, but it still was a very unpleasant experience. I am in the military and am required to move frequently. I would not have signed a contract because I know that I move constantly. I would not recommend this company mainly for the fact that they lied to me and, other than one person, they were extremely rude.

Original Review: July 21, 2015

Several months back my husband called on our contract with them. He asked if we could cancel our contract on the day it was up (6-14-15), so we wouldn't have any more automatic payments come out, or just any payment at all, because we wanted to cancel. The customer service agent told him "No problem. We could do that!" July rolls around, and boom another payment comes out.

We call customer service again, told them what happened, and being transferred 3 different times. They said "No we can't do that" and told us how to do it, and told us they can't credit back OUR money, which overdrafted our account all because they're agent told us WRONG in the first place!!! That is their fault. They won't fess up to it and we get stuck with the bill and very unsatisfactory customer service. It's bs and of course they had "no record" of my husband's phone call at all. He knows he made that phone call and I, his wife witnessed it also. Don't appreciate being called a LIAR!!! Poor customer service!!! Customer # **.

After a year of service and not having a single issue besides never receiving a Monitronics sign, which seemed kind of bizarre given that we were signed on as a "Promotional Home" but couldn't promote the company, I tried contacting Monitronics to get both a sign and a breakdown of the bill. They sent the sign but said I would have to call Vision Security to lower my bill, or at least get a breakdown of it, as they own my contract. I called Vision to see if we could lower our monthly bill and possibly cancel. Now I was calling to see when my contract was up as it just seems like we are paying way too much a month when there are definitely cheaper options out there.

When I got through, I was told since I was still in the initial contract, I could not have my bill lowered. Little did I know, my initial contract was a 60 month contract. Had this been made aware to me during the sales pitch, no way I would signed on for this. When I asked what the cancelation fee would be, they said it would be the remaining balance up to May 2019!

This blindsided me as I was never made aware how long of a contract I was signing on for outside of just ensuring that I planned on staying at this home for at least a year. Then Vision Security told me to call Monitronics and talk to their customer service department. I called Monitronics and the same stuff was told to me. I was locked in until May 2019, my bill could not be lowered because I am still in the initial contract agreement stage, and that it would cost me the remaining balance to cancel. Complaining about the contract got a, "sorry to hear that sir, I understand" but do they really understand? If a salesperson doesn't disclose what kind of contract a person is signing on, and then holds customers hostage for 5 years, doesn't exactly seem like a fair business practice.

I would love more than anything to get out of this contract but my remaining balance, if calculated correctly, is somewhere in the ballpark of $2,340 since I am under contract until May 2019. So it looks like I will either have to fork over that much money to get out of this contract or just deal with it. For the time being, it appears it will just have to be the latter and ensure I do not have any friends join this company and get suckered in like I did.

They removed a 12 month extension and I was able to afford to pay off the remaining balance on the account. Considering I have called them many times in the past to resolve this I'm not rating them much higher. As far as I'm concerned their customer service should have been able to resolve this without going to consumer affairs but I do applaud them for working with me.

Original Review: July 15, 2015

We signed a 2 year contract with the company and had nothing but trouble getting their wireless devices to stay connected in our home. They tried to charge us for service calls when their window and door sensors would get disconnected from the alarm panel. Eventually they were able to get the system working okay. After owning the system for 1 year, we move out of state for work so we packed up the system and installed it in our new place. We didn't have a hardwired phone line in the new home so they had to install a wifi card in the alarm panel to make it work. It seemed to work fine with no issues.

When our two year contract was close to being up, I called them to get the balance on the account and they told me that our contract had been extended by 1 year because we moved the system and it had to be updated! I told them I wanted out of the contract and they refused to let me out without paying a huge penalty. Why we were penalized with a contract extension is beyond me but I decided to just move forward and pay until the end of the contract. We then moved to another state and this time I decided not to call them or even hook the system up.

At this point the system hasn't been used for over a year. I recently called to find out how much we had left to pay on the balance of the contract and they told me over $1600. That's equal to 3 years of the monthly fees they charge for the service. They had again extended my contract without my permission. I have already paid over $1800 in monthly fees to this company so the equipment has been paid for many times over. Monitronics is the most unethical and dishonest company I have ever dealt with. If they really stood behind their product and wanted to keep customers, they wouldn't have to resort to these underhanded tactics. DO NOT SIGN A CONTRACT WITH THIS COMPANY FOR ANY REASON!

They are telling me I will have to pay for the rest of my contract which apparently was extended when they upgraded my equipment that never worked in the first place. I do not have a written contract of this, I never signed a contract for 5 years! This is no way to serve a family that has been a loyal customer for over 10 years and has to move because of the military. Horrible company. So far I have no resolution to this.

Original Review: July 1, 2015

We purchased an alarm system from Devcon May 2012. Salesman ** told us we were signing up for a 3 year contract. If we needed to cancel, it would be no problem, however they do like you to stay 3 yrs since the equipment was installed at no charge. OK, understood. Monitronics bought them out at some point. Problem comes in November of 2014. We had to move from our rental home of 9 yrs due to the seller was selling the house.

We moved to an apartment building where they do not allow alarm systems and besides they are already a secure complex. I called Monitronics and spoke with a female who stated that it looked like we signed up for a 42 month contract (wow) with Devcon, but they would honor a 36 month since that is all they require. I told her that we moved and no longer needed the service (nor did anyone want this service) and had no need. She said that I could cancel with a letter explaining details and that we would be responsible for 55% of the remainder. It could be paid all at once or continue to make monthly payments (auto-pay) until paid off. That was to expire in May. It is now July 1st.

I called to question and make sure this service was cancelled. Got 2 individuals that I could hardly understand. Was on hold for an eternity. This person that I talked to today was adamant that we now have to stay in this agreement until November of 2015. I asked if the phone conversations were recorded - he stated yes they were. Then proceeded to try to sell me on moving this service to my current address... Apparently not an active listener as I had already told him we could not have this at our current address.

So now, according to them, I have to pay for a full year of service for an empty house that is not mine. I have NEVER been so unhappy with a company as I have been with this one. We were scammed from the very start. Made to sign the documents online while ** just pointed here and here to click and "sign". Had no clue that he flipped the script and made it a 42 month. Probably would never have signed up for it had we known this.

Today's rep continued to try to move or gift it to a family member - the answer was NO a hundred times. He said to take down the address to send a letter I told the representative many times that I was driving and unable to write down an address for his company. I asked him if he could email the information. They do not email, fax or do anything that would make life easier. I would never recommend this company to anybody. It has been nothing but headaches. I just want them to honor what the female that I spoke to around November told me because the male that I spoke to today changed everything. Terrible customer service!

The representative set me up for a transfer even though I told her I didn't believe I would be doing so. She said nothing about me not being able to terminate my account. At the end of May, just after I had moved in, I contacted ** who advised me that I would be able to cancel my account. He gave me instructions on how to and to whom I could write my cancellation letter. I went ahead and did this and believed everything was taken care of until I received and automated letter that my cancel request is incomplete until my contract ends in December of 2016. I was able to get in touch with ** again on June 26 after talking with 3 other people and being put on hold for way too long.

** (who probably talks with 50 or 60 people per day) says he remembers talking to me and that he told me that the letter I sent was not for cancellation, but only for review. So he knew all along I couldn't cancel but gave me a different story, most likely because he wanted to get me off the phone. It is unfortunate that a company like Monitronics is so driven by money (and lack thereof customer service) that a customer who has moved and no longer needs the service, is stuck with a contract for 1.5 years longer. I was a good customer for several years and am dumfounded why a company like this would never even consider doing the right thing for a long-time customer.

Humph, I'm still waiting, yet I was assured that I would continue to get billed until they get the letter in an envelope sent by the USPS with a stamp to a PO box where you CANNOT send it registered. I simply advised her that any further debits from my card would be unauthorized. I hate to get nasty with them but this is absurd at best!

I called the cancellation department and they said the only way I can cancel my bill is to send a letter. I inquired about the current outstanding bill they are trying to collect and they informed me there is nothing they can do about it because they have not received my cancellation letter sent in May! I don't think it is legal to bill for services not provided. I am sending an additional letter for cancellation, however, I'm refusing to pay for the 2 months of service I never received. The cancellation department informed me that "they would look into the billing" and "see what they can do" once they receive my letter. This is still an ongoing problem.

Another thing I'd like to add - there was one time when I forgot to unarm the house and opened the door, the alarm went off and no one ever came over the intercom or called to make sure everything was ok. So even if we could install it at our new place, I would not want to. Anyway, they are saying the only way to get out of the contract is to pay 80% of the rest of the contract (over 4 years). The rich get richer and the poor get poorer! Yes, we should have read every single word of the contract. We are young and trusted the manipulative way all of this was explained to us.

I made another call and they asked more questions such as the password, address, phone number, SS# etc. Then they proceeded to tell me that they needed a letter from the assisted living complex stating that she was a resident there and it had to be mailed. Asked if I could fax - was told they didn't have one! Really? No fax or e-mail? Sounded a little absurd to me. Very inconvenient.

After 4-5 calls I hope we have it cancelled. I will check her bank statement to make sure that it isn't automatically drafted out her account again. I appreciate the security questions but it would have been helpful to me if they told me everything they needed the first time I called so I wouldn't have to make so many calls. Of course I guess they got what they wanted, an extra 5 months of payments that we should have been reimbursed for.

Original Review: June 15, 2015

Monitronics advertised that if you refer a friend or family member, using online account that both the person making the referral and the person that signed up for a new Monitronics account would both get a $50 Target Gift Card. I submitted a referral online as required and the family I recommended did sign up for a new Monitronics account for a house they purchased on 3 Mar 2015. On 7 May 2015 I contacted Monitronics to find out where the Gift Cards were since it had been more than 8 weeks and their offer states you will receive the $50 Gift cards in 3-5 weeks after the account is online (the family I recommended did not receive their Target Gift Card either) .

Monitronics told me to call (877) 686-9047 to find out about the Target Gift Cards. I called and you have to leave a message and they will call back within 24 hours. It is now 15 June 2015 and they have not called back. When talking to Monitronics personnel (phone (800) 784-2042 and (877) 866-8643) - about the $50 Target Gift Cards they say they have talked to more customers that did not receive the Target Gift Cards.

The account resolution department person also had mentioned to me during our phone conversation that after 24 months is up on my contract I could have called them and they would of lowered my monthly price down to $30.98 which I was not aware of. I think they should honor the new price they were willing to give me 10 months ago but they will not do that for me. I also do not think I should have to sign another three-year contract with the company and they should just fix my technical issue that my system is having. Unless I upgrade my contract I am pretty much stuck with having a system that is currently broken that I am paying $35 a month for. Also my contract that I signed three years ago was for $34.99 a month and within the last three months Monitronics has been charging me $35.98 a month.

So, I got really upset and I called them asking them what was going on, that's when they told me we had a 5 year contract. I was not aware of that, so I had to pay 3 months of service and still paying on a service I no longer need. After, I had moved in they said, "oh the person that has purchased our old house can take up the payments (I don't know this person, so why would I ask them that? And I was never told I could take that service with me). So, I have until 2016 to finish paying them off. I can't believe an alarm company is so BROKE, that they make you pay for a service you no longer have or need. I HATE MONITRONICS and will never refer them to anyone. People can't afford healthcare, what make them think we have money just to give them. I give them 34.99 a month for NOTHING!!!

I called Monitronics customer service number, 800.447.9239, asking for my money back and to cancel their services. The customer service representative did his job in a proper manner. After he listened to what I wanted, I got the song and dance numbers blah-blah-blah -- "We'll drop your monthly charges down by $7 since you have been with us so long." I said, "No." Then more blah-blah-blah -- "How about if we drop your monthly charges down another $3? That's $10 total!" I still said, "No." At that point, it became a matter of principles.

After this failed attempt, if I wanted to cancel my account with Monitronics, I will have to SNAIL MAIL a signed letter to that fact. I could have handwritten the letter, scanned it as a PDF, and sent it digitally to the email address of the customer service representative that I was talking to within 10 minutes of our conversation being done! If I had received proper notice (digital emails are very efficient) -- my account was coming to an end -- I would have a choice to treat this 36 month contract like any other contract, an agreement between two or more parties for the doing or not doing of something specified.

The lady I spoke with was so rude and smug over the phone. She kept saying that he was probably hitting the button himself to trigger the false alarm. I asked them to send out a technician and it turns out his life alert pendant was faulty. He was not pushing it for fun like the representative suggested. I then asked for a copy of this so called signed contract since my grandfather said he never signed anything. It came in the mail yesterday and guess what.. They forged his signature!!! I will be contacting a lawyer after this. I have never dealt with such a rude and dishonest company in my life.

Original Review: June 1, 2015

I have been a Monitronics customer since October of 2007. I moved in 2012 and decided after moving to purchase an alarm system for my new house and decided because I had had a relatively good experience to go with Monitronics again. I am now selling that house and after being a customer for 8 years have 3 months left of a contract that I can't see and didn't sign that they will not forgive. I was even happy to provide the buyers of my house with paperwork they would provide (as they did the last time I sold my home), so they would have the option to continue the service. There was absolutely no consideration from the customer service agents I spoke with, and the second one could not turn off the attitude as I tried very hard to show restraint throughout the phone call.

The system I have only used Cell service, which apparently was never adequate, so I could never actually use the monitoring part of the service and only could use the alarm as a local alarm, so really I should have cancelled the service at the beginning but I didn't, mistake on my part, since by the end I couldn't even do that because all it would do is set off the alarm because the signal was bad, but that was not the fault of Monitronics. Anyway, I believe since I will no longer own the home and they certainly have the option to provide service to the new owners, they should cancel my service without question. This is what you call customer service at its absolute worst!!

One month later, May 30th Monitronics continues to bill us for services we haven't had for two months. As our contract for service was through Zenith and NOT Monitronics, they have not provided proof of contract between ** (billed party) and Monitronics. As of May 30th they've stolen $102.98 from our bank account. We placed a 'stop payment' request against their withdrawals. Now they are mailing us bills.