The Firstline Security / SAI alarm company is a fucking RIPOFF

I am currently on the phone (ON HOLD) with SAI (Security Associates International) trying to get them to answer the phone.

These sleazy bastards came around my neighborhood back in August of 2007 and sold us an Alarm System which I blogged about in full detail here and here.  Their crappy equipment stopped working in late November or early December of 2007 and I have not had a single moment's rest since then.

The alarm control panel in our home beeps 5 times incessantly every few minutes notifying us that one of our smoke detectors is malfunctioning.  Mind you, this is a smoke detector that started malfunctioning on December 14, 2007.  I detailed what happened here. 

in the 140 days since 12/14/07, I have placed multiple calls to SAI customer service, waited over an hour on hold on the phone each time and have been repeatedly LIED TO BY SAI.  On every occasion that I have managed to get through, they have promised me service, or a visit by a technician or something of that nature and nothing ever happens.  I have come to the conclusion that SAI and or FrontLine are operating some kind of a front, bogus scam company that has no intention of honoring the terms of service of the contract we signed with them.

Unfortunately for us, we agreed to let these fuckers do a direct debit for the monthly service fee from our checking account.  I think the only way I can get their attention is to STOP PAYING THEM.  For this I have to go to my bank and tell them that I want to cancel the direct debit access they have to our account. 

I foresee a fight to do this, because late last year or earlier this year I stopped by the branch of our bank and tried to get them to stop the direct debit payments to Firstline/SAI but the bank employee stated to me that in order to do that, they would have to receive an order from FirstLine/SAI.

I guess my only recourse then would be to CLOSE my account at this bank in order to stop paying FirstLine / SAI for a monthly service that I have NOT BEEN RECEIVING SINCE NOVEMBER of 2007.

Right now, as I type this, I have been on hold for the last 38 minutes, listening to crappy hold music that is interrupted by a recording asking telling me "We appreciate your business, we are working as fast as we can, someone will be with you shortly, all agents are busy, etc".

Well.  A "Mike" from "Technical Services" at SAI has finally picked up the phone and is starting to fed me the same line of BULLSHIT about the fact that "he's going to send a technician to fix the problem, blah, blah".

I told Mike that I just wanted to cancel the service and he stated to me that I would need to talk to someone in Customer Service to process the request to cancel the service.  Eventually I was connected to a "Makesha" who stated to me that I need to fax a letter to them stating my intent to cancel the service and the reason WHY I want to cancel the service.

What she told me also is that since we signed a 36 month contract, the monies owed, a total of $1,259.72 is still due to them.  I am, regardless of the fact that my alarm service has been out of service for the last 5 months, supposed to pay the balance on the contract or I can expect them to come after me via a collection agency and or dings to my credit report.

"Makesha" game me the following information to send the letter to:

Attention "Makesha" (she wouldn't give me her last name) in Customer Service
Address: 2101 S. Arlington Heights Road
Arlington Heights, IL 60005
Fax #: (877) 724-7719

So to sum it up, I will FAX and mail them a certified letter, stating that i want to cancel my service with FirstLine/SAI because they didn't honor their service commitment.  That does not in any way free me from the obligation of having to pay them the balance on the contract.

It seems like the only way I will be able to avoid paying the $1,259.72 is to sue them for breech of contract and that is likely to cost much, much more than the money I owe them to begin with.

What a lesson learned.  I will never, ever again buy ANYTHING from anyone who knocks on my door offering me any kind of service.

Stay far, far away from Firstline/SAI/Alarm.com.  It is a scam, a swindle, a cheat and a ripoff. 

You have been warned.