SPD won't answer burglary alarm calls without video evidence

Seattle police won't respond to burglary alarms without video proof

Thousands of homes and businesses around Seattle have alarm systems, but if someone illegally enters the building, Seattle Police now say they won't dispatch officers to the alarm call without video verification.

SEATTLE - A triggered alarm system at a property in Seattle will soon require more information to get an officer’s attention. Seattle Police Department (SPD) announced a new policy for responding to alarm calls.

SPD’s interim police chief, Sue Rahr, announced the updated standards in a letter dated Sept. 13. She wrote that, beginning Oct. 1, "SPD will only dispatch officers to calls from alarm companies with supporting evidence, such as audio, video, panic alarms or eyewitness evidence that a person is illegally entering or attempting to enter a residence or commercial property."

Washington Alarm installs and monitors fire alarms, security systems, video surveillance systems, and access control to approximately 65,000 customers in Seattle. CEO Shannon Woodman said her company found out about SPD’s new policy one week ago.

"The challenge with that is it's only two weeks’ notice. We have to notify all of our customers, we have to change how we monitor those alarms, we have to change dispatchers on how they respond to alarms in Seattle," said Woodman. "We’ve been told that [SPD] has been working on this for eight months, but they never reached out to the industry or the monitoring companies. So, we are asking that they now work with us and just give us some more time."

Woodman and others from Washington Alarm gave public comment on Tuesday during Seattle City Council’s Public Safety Committee meeting and full council meeting. They voiced their concerns, not only about the short notice from SPD, but also the impact on customers who don’t have audio or visual capabilities on their systems.

Woodman said households on fixed incomes, for example, would take on a big financial burden to update their alarm systems. She said the update would be even more costly for businesses.

"An 80,000-square foot warehouse, for instance. To put cameras inside and outside could cost upwards of $100,000 for a new system," said Woodman.

In her letter, Chief Rahr said the Seattle 911 Center receives about 13,000 residential and commercial burglary calls from alarm companies per year. However, she said the majority of the calls are false alarms, "an unintended sensor trip by a homeowner or employee." She explained that for the 13,000 calls in 2023, less than 4% were confirmed to have a crime associated with them that ended in an arrest or a report filed.

Rahr wrote, "With depleted resources, we cannot prioritize a patrol response when there is very low probability that criminal activity is taking place."

Those with Washington Alarm said they understand false alarms are an existing problem, but would have appreciated an opportunity to study the issue with SPD before implementing the policy change.

"Law enforcement and the security industry can work together to come up with a solution that benefits our customers in a way that doesn’t leave them stranded and vulnerable at the most dangerous moment," said Ashley Barber of Washington Alarm.

"Our fear is that the business owner or building owner is going to go down to that building and see what is going on. And with no police there, we could potentially be in a dire situation if there’s actual criminal activity going on at the property and they don’t have police to back them up," said Woodman. "Other cities that have done this [have seen] the crime has gone up. And we certainly already have an issue in the city of Seattle with crime, and we would not want to see crime go up."

The CEO of Washington Alarm said they certainly don’t want to strain the police force any further than it already is. However, since SPD announced its new policy, Woodman asked the department and city council to consider postponing the start date. This would allow Washington Alarm more time to connect with customers, and update systems.

"We don’t have the resources in the industry to be able to go see every single alarm system. This is 65,000 alarm systems and do the upgrades by October 1. It’s just not feasible," said Woodman.

The City of Seattle does charge a fee when officers respond to false alarm calls. Companies receive that fee, which is often passed to the customer to pay for it. The city said the fee isn’t for profit, but rather to cover the costs for dispatch and police response.