Be alarmed if these guys come knocking

By DAVE LIEBER

watchdog@star-telegram.com

Has the door-to-door alarm salesman knocked on your door? If not, he’s probably coming. He will try to sweet-talk you into an alarm system that, if you agree to it, you better love. Why? You’re going to have it for a long time.

Many contracts last from 39 to 60 months. And unlike with a wireless phone or electricity contract, you can’t buy your way out with a few hundred dollars.

Dan Lesley Sr. of Watauga learned that the hard way. "A guy came by selling home alarm systems," he recalls. "I bought one."

Two months later, his life turned upside down when he learned that his wife wanted a divorce. He moved out of the house. But when he called Pinnacle Security and asked how much it would cost to get out of his contract, he was told he has to pay the $40 monthly fee for the entire 39 months. Pinnacle offered to transfer the account to another address, but he can’t because he’s staying with relatives.

Pinnacle said he could try to get the current resident, his ex-wife, to take over the contract. He couldn’t do that, either.

Contract disputes make up a quarter of the 836 complaints filed against Pinnacle in the last three years with the Better Business Bureau. Billing, sales practices and refund issues constitute much of the rest. The company has a BBB rating of F.

In August, the Orem, Utah-based company was cited by the Utah Division of Consumer Protection for telling customers that they could cancel at any time when they couldn’t, that their existing alarm companies had gone out of business or that they were representing the customer’s own alarm company when they weren’t.

The salesmen also told consumers about a rash of burglaries in the neighborhood to scare them, Utah authorities charged.

A hearing on the citation is scheduled for Oct. 20.

The company also got into trouble in June when its sales staff implied to customers in Wichita, Kan., that a competing company had gone out of business when it hadn’t. Customers were told they needed to change their equipment and sign new contracts.

Travis Coleman, Pinnacle’s executive complaint supervisor, said the company is working to fix any problems.

If misconduct on the part of its sales staff is found, staffers are disciplined, fined or fired, he said. Disciplinary measures were taken after a company investigation into the Wichita incident, he said.

Pinnacle Security and a second Utah-based company, Platinum Protection of Provo, recruit as sales staffers former missionaries of the Mormon Church who have experience going door to door. This sales force is especially heavy in the summer months, when college students are working, but sales activity goes on year-round.

A year ago, a Platinum Protection salesperson visited Mary Lou Branson of Fort Worth and sold her a home security system, complete with a panic button. She signed a 60-month contract for $43 a month.

In April, she accidentally pushed the button. What happened next was an inadvertent test of the system.

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