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Verified Response Jurisdictions: What You Need to Know
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For many years, Police Departments have been faced with the challenge of reducing false alarms. Recently, some agencies have decided the best way to achieve this is by severely restricting their response to burglar alarm systems. One such jurisdiction is Sandy Springs, GA. June 2019 will mark the beginning of the city’s latest ordinance regarding Verified Response. Today, the City of Sandy Springs bills false alarm fines to alarm companies, rather than subscribers. Due to this practice, the enactment of this ordinance may expose alarm companies to vast financial liability. According to this new ordinance Sandy Springs will now require proof of an alarm event
via Audible and/or visual evidence, provided by a monitored alarm system, sent to the emergency communications center prior to dispatch of the city's public safety department(s). Standalone cameras, cameras tied into alarm systems, or audio recordings are all acceptable forms of verification for dispatch by a central station. To read the ordinance visit:
Sandy Springs Ordinance
. GELSSA is currently in litigation with the City of Sandy Springs, GA over this matter. If your subscribers have questions about the Alarm Ordinance you can direct them to this website created by Sandy Springs to answer their questions:
Sandy Springs Alarm Ordinance for Subscribers
Verified Response is not a new concept to CMS, but traditionally it has been dispatched to a private guard company, rather than the local police. CMS has a number of verified response solutions in place, including I-View Now, and soon Alarm.com video. With more and more agencies moving to verified response now may be the time for alarm companies to take action. To learn more about the options available to you
Contact your Business Development Support Representative.
If you are a dealer who has accounts in Sandy Springs, GA please be aware that you will be receiving a letter from us regarding
their
upcoming Verified Response Ordinance. As a reminder, this ordinance is set to go into effect on June 19, 2019. Due to this ordinance CMS will need to update the burglary alarm setup on monitored accounts. The ordinance will apply to Burglary intrusion alarms and will not apply to panic buttons, duress, holdup, fire and medical features.
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Did you know you can customize the CMS-Compass layout to fit your needs? Under the Menu options, click on Administration and then select the Default Settings tab.
- The General option allows you to change the Application Theme from the Default Setting (larger font, columns more spread out, must use the scroll bar at the bottom) to Compact (smaller font, compressed columns, essentially all data fits on the screen with no need to scroll left or right). You can also select your Default Global Search option. If you normally use the customer’s name, change the Default to Name. Or try the All Items. This allows you to search by any field including the customer’s name, address, phone number, contact names, contact phone numbers, contact PINS, etc…
- My Dashboard allows you to customize which columns display on each tab. Select the columns that you use the most.
- The Locations option allows you to customize which fields display on various data tabs and you can also rearrange the columns to fit your needs. If you want the Actions (edit and delete) on the Zones to be on the left of your screen instead of the right, you can easily click it and make it first. If you want the Contact Phones to always display on the Contacts, select the radio button for “Show”.
For more information on how to utilize your Default Settings please contact Dealer Support or your BDSR.
For more helpful Compass Tips take a look at these user videos:
CMS YouTube
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Have you heard about MyAlarms.com? MyAlarms is CMS' end user portal. This website includes many of the same features as CMS-Compass. For more information on MyAlarms and how to set up your subscribers for access contact CMS Business Development Support.
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Cellular technology is continuing to evolve. Carriers are rapidly phasing out legacy 2G and 3G networks to make room for more LTE networks. It's important for alarm companies to have a strategy in place to handle these changes. Take a look at the helpful chart below to see when your carriers plan to phase out these networks.
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Alarm.com Customer App Enhancements
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Are you an Alarm.com dealer? The following features are available to your customers right now in the Alarm.com App:
- In-App Cancel/Verify
- In-App Panel Panic
- Emergency Contacts
COMING SOON to CMS/Alarm.com:
- Remote Sensor Walk Test
- Visual Verification
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