CPI Security | Review: Police Dispatch Issues, Alarm System Locked Out

Had CPI for about 4 years.

Twice, I did something stupid that should have brought the cops. Once, we had friends staying with us and I had to leave early for work. I armed the system, like I always do on my way off to work. Apparently my friends got up right after I left and set of the motion detector. The CPI 2 way thingy came on, they didn't know the passphrase, and CPI called the police. Thirty minutes later I get to the office and have a voicemail from CPI that my alarm had gone off and they had called the police. I knew then what I had did. I called CPI, told them it's a false alarm, I absent-mindedly armed the system forgetting I had sleeping guests in my home. They said they would call the police but didn't know if they would be able to stop them from arriving. Well the cops never showed. My alarm goes for 30 minutes, CPI's vaunted two way speaker communicated with people in my home that don't know the passphrase and the cops still did not show.

Incident #2, is similar to the first. I was leaving home and started up my Roomba vacuum cleaner. I set the alarm and went on my way. Twenty minutes into my drive, I realized my error and called CPI. Same old story. They had called the cops 20 minutes ago, I called them and said it's false, they called the cops and nobody ever showed up. Now I think these two incidents probably have more to do with the Raleigh PD than CPI, but the fact is so many people have these things now, they simply don't come screaming with lights flashing when these residential alarms go off.

Last, and this is why I would not do business with CPI. They advertise $99. By the time you are done, it will be 3 or 4 times that. Their advertised deal simply doesn't have all the components you need to do the job adequately. When I cancelled with them, they said they would send out a technician to take the control chip from the system. I'm like "I spent over $400 and you said the system was mine to keep when my 3 year contract is up, not to mention I've been with you for 4 years without one late payment".

They said the system is yours, but the control chip is their property and it is in the contract. I got out my contract, and sure enough in like 1.5 font, it was buried near the bottom of the page. They never mentioned it and the sales guy kept emphasizing I was purchasing a great system that was mine even if I don't continue monitoring with them when my contract is up. You have this wonderful expensive system that is worthless because the brains are gone and it's not a part you can buy off the shelf. They keep it, wait for you to sell the house, and come stick it in for the next sucker who buys the house. That's what they don't tell you. They are sleazy and I recommend you look at another company. Like some other posters said, the alarm system is nice to have and is useful, but the monitoring is worthless as far as the police go. Maybe the fire response is better, but I don't know since I never had any false fire alarms.