I was just re-reading some of the information on the HMS web page and circled back to one small paragraph mentioning the need to contact local offices to determine whether an alarm permit is needed for the system. The brief note says that permits are not required in “most” cities. I checked my local sheriff’s web page which states that I do need a permit and the cost is $20 per year. Just wondering how many users may not be aware of the need for permits in their location.
Here is a quote from the website:
Do I need a permit to use Wyze Home Monitoring Service (HMS)?
Not in most cities. Here is a detailed page about this from the city of Seattle: https://www.seattle.gov/business-regulations/alarm-system-monitoring.
Some cities may require a permit for a professional home security system. Please check with your local government for specific requirements and rules.
I actually just wrote a post about this. I just got hit with a $45 permit and $25 false alarm fee (our fault). After Googling, it looks like there are tons of places that require a permit in the US.
I didn’t see whatever notice you are referring to and it really irritated me that this was not a a part of the setup to have users confirm this. This is a required step, not something that belongs in fine print or buried in a FAQ. I understand places are different and not everyone needs this, but that doesn’t mean everyone shouldn’t check.
Thanks for posting this. Indeed, my state requires this. Luckily we just installed our system so I was able to register without getting fined. And bonus - we don’t have to pay to register!
I recently received the permit from my local sheriff which included a list of fines for things like false alarms. One item that stood out to me: Non-permitted alarm users that create any type of alarm call – $500 per citation
GET YOUR PERMIT!!!
I got mine just in case something goes wrong and NoonLight gets an alarm and summons the sheriff, even though I’m in TEST mode.
agreed. get your permit. just smarter to do that – because may get fined anyways if do not get a permit in time. in my city, the cops respond to all alarms. and my city makes a big deal about fining for no-permit alarms as well as false alarms. anyways if get a system like this with full professional monitoring, then you really should get the permit if required in your area.
anyways have to get the permit within 30 days of setting up an alarm system in my city. permit is like $30 per year in my city. the false alarm penalties for us are scary at $100 first false alarm, $200 second false alarm, $500 for each false alarm afterwards. there was an alarm school online class that you take after submitting the permit application online. was approved right away and a day later got an official “decal” certificate pdf with my permit number to print and display in my window. (also have put one of those wyze alarm warning signs from ebay in the yard.)
got a “protective device” insurance partial discount on our property insurance for the rest of the year which at least covers the permit cost. i’m guessing the full discount for a full year should be more than double that to also cover the annual wyze-noonlight fee. so i figure that’ll cover a good portion of the wyze alarm annual costs for me. (but LOL i’ll have to eat the combined annual cost on the Cam Plus for my cams around the house but that’s so much more cheaper than the monthly cost for the big brandname alarm systems.)