Over the past few decades, more and more local governments have come to require alarm permits, primarily in an effort to better allocate emergency response resources to genuine emergencies. While it’s perfectly legal to install your own alarm in most cases, activating and operating that alarm may be a different story, depending on your location. Any level of remote monitoring or emergency response system may require a home alarm permit, and even something as minor as an unsanctioned alarm may incur fines without the right permit.
Home alarm permits were introduced as a means of disincentivizing false alarms in order to better allocate emergency response resources like police and fire departments. They’ve become more commonplace over the years, especially in largely populated areas like major cities. The specifications of these permits vary by location. While some cities may only require a single alarm permit to cover a range of security features, others may require distinct permits for different functions, such as fire and police alarms.
Standards for these permits can vary greatly. Depending on the laws of the local government, an alarm permit may require yearly renewal, while some are simply granted on a one-time basis. A city government may waive the need for a permit under particular circumstances, such as the owner being over a certain age or an unmonitored security system. It should be noted, however, that unmonitored alarms may still draw police attention and incur fines for false alarms. It may simply be easier to obtain a permit.
Another important thing to note is that a home alarm permit is not equivalent to an alarm license. Permits are generally only required for personal, in-home security systems. An alarm license, on the other hand, is something that may be required of professional alarm installers in order to activate and operate alarms.
Because alarm permits are typically issued on a city and county level rather than state or federal, applications are most commonly taken by departments of local government such as the department of finance, department of public safety, or sheriff’s department. For information about your local laws regarding alarm permits, try visiting the website of your local police or fire department. For your convenience, we’ve compiled a list of our most commonly serviced cities with alarm permit policies on record:
- Boise, Idaho
- Idaho Falls, Idaho
- Ogden, Utah
- Park City, Utah
- Salt Lake City, Utah
- Sandy, Utah
- St. George, Utah
- West Valley, Utah
For an easier shortcut to local permit requirements, contact your trusted security professionals. To speak to one of PEAK Alarm’s security specialists about your local requirements regarding home alarm permits, Call 800-444-7231 today!