Burglar alarms and CCTV: decide the response first in Malta

An audible-only alarm, often called bells-only, relies on the noise scaring the intruder off and on neighbours taking notice. A self-monitored or smart alarm sends alerts to your phone, and you decide what to do. With a monitored alarm, signals go to an alarm receiving centre (ARC), whose operators contact you or your keyholders and, where the system qualifies, the police.

Police response is not something you buy from any installer. Repeated false alarms can lead to police response being withdrawn, so the quality of the installation and how you use the system both matter.

Insurers sometimes specify the type of alarm, the grade or the monitoring. Check your home insurance policy before you ask for a quote; a system that does not meet the insurer's wording can leave you with a claim problem after a burglary.

Wired systems run cable to each detector. They are reliable and need no detector batteries, but installing them in a finished house means lifting floors or running cable along skirting. Wireless systems are quicker to fit and easier to extend; the detectors run on batteries that need changing, and the radio signalling should be supervised so the panel notices if a device goes silent.

Most homes use Grade 2 equipment. Whatever the system, ask the installer to explain the grade, how the system is set (whole house, part-set at night), and what the maintenance visits involve.

• the type of response: bells-only, self-monitored, keyholder or police
• the grade of the equipment and the standard it is installed to
• where each detector, door contact and keypad goes
• monitoring contract length and how it can be ended
• annual maintenance and what a call-out costs outside it
• the inspectorate certificate, if police response is intended

Cameras on your own house raise a question alarms do not: whose images you record. The Information Commissioner's Office says that if a domestic camera captures anything beyond your boundary, such as a neighbour's garden, the street or a shared path, data protection law applies. You then need to put up signs, deal with requests from people who ask for footage of themselves, and delete recordings regularly.

A good installer places cameras to cover your property, uses privacy masking where a field of view would take in a neighbour's window, and can switch off audio. Talk to your neighbours before the cameras go up; many disputes start because nobody explained where they point.

An alarm tells you that someone got in. Locks, door construction and window security decide how easy that is. For many homes the better first step is a lock upgrade on the front and back doors, secure patio door locks, or window locks on the ground floor. An installer who also handles physical security can look at these together with the alarm rather than selling one product on its own.

Monitored and police-response systems come with contracts for monitoring and maintenance. Read the term, the renewal terms and what happens if the company stops trading. Avoid paying a long monitoring period up front. When you move into a house with an existing alarm, ask the previous owner for the codes and the name of the maintaining company, and have the system checked; installers often have to reset engineer codes on panels they did not fit.

Whether the installation needs a development permit from the Planning Authority depends on what is built and where; in apartment blocks, the rules of the condominium also apply. Ask before you commit, and let the business tell you which documents it needs from you.

Electrical installation work is carried out by licensed electricians; ask to see the licence and the certificate for the finished installation. Maltese businesses are registered with the Malta Business Registry, so ask for the company registration and VAT numbers, and check whether the quote includes VAT.

Source: mbr.mt

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