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Brinks

They Don't Just Drive Armored Trucks

6.0

Overall Score

2 days ago

Brinks

Review

Rating: 6.0 / 10 (Average)

Brinks Home Security is a brand that encompasses multiple home security companies including the companies formerly known as Brinks, LiveWatch, and Moni (previously Monitronics).

Best known for their armored trucks, Brinks has had much success in the home security space due to its relatively low costs — provided you sign a 3-year contract. Their systems are designed to be DIY, but you can hire a technician to take care of the install for an added fee.

With Brinks’ 2.7 out of 5 rating on ConsumerAffairs, their recent mergers don’t seem to have solved the longstanding issues with customer support. The frequent rate increases certainly haven’t helped.

 

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How is Brinks Rated?

Breakdown
Equipment
6/10
Monitoring
6/10
Reputation
4/10
Contract & Price
5/10
Technology Integration
7/10
Overall Rating: 6.0 / 10 (Average)

You can get started with a plan for as low as $29 per month. Some plans include the equipment or offer promotions that reduce or eliminate the equipment cost, but require a three-year contract with Brinks. The range of high-tech features is designed to fit into your lifestyle. Having a home security system shouldn’t be a hindrance to you getting into and out of your home easily. Brinks has a number of quality of life improvements that make this part of the process seamless.

Pros
  • Nest/Alexa Compatibility
  • 30-day Trial Period
  • Customizable Systems
  • Crash and Smash Protection
Cons
  • Pushy sales process
  • Cameras and Sensors are Allegedly Poor Quality
  • Inconsistent Quality of Professional Installation
  • Poor Customer Service

HOW DOES Brinks WORK?

Equipment - 6 / 10

Brinks offers two plans (Home Complete and Home Complete with Video) that offer partially or fully covered devices, as well as the option to add more equipment to your plan.

The IG Gen 2 Security Panel is the brains of all Brinks Home Security systems. It comes equipped with a cellular chip for communication as well as battery backup. It also has a built-in camera and multiple wireless radios including Z-Wave Plus to help you connect to and control smart home devices like smart lights, locks, and thermostats. This system is compatible with Nest, Amazon Alexa, and Google Home.

One of the panel’s most unique features is Bluetooth disarming or touchless disarming. With your phone in your pocket, the panel can sense your presence and will request to disarm your system. The panel uses encrypted signals, includes a glass break sensor, and uses dual-path connectivity to protect in the event that the Wi-Fi goes down or the panel is compromised. Brinks also offers Google Nest equipment.

Brinks equipment is wireless, making installation easier. However, if you don’t feel comfortable installing the equipment yourself, Brinks has technicians who can come out to your home and install it for you.

Professional installation extends the warranty of your devices from 2 years to lifetime coverage. If you want to add install services, you can pay monthly at a rate of $10.00 per month or you can pay a one-time fee of $199.00. Alternatively, you can upgrade to a lifetime warranty without installation services for $49.00.

Professional installation is only valid for the two Brinks plans. Nest Secure is also wireless, but it is 100% self-installed.

Installation Professional
Self-Install (DIY)
Equipment Manufacturer Undisclosed
Ability to Reallocate System
Wireless Sensors
Control Panel
Event Triggered Siren/ Alarm

Security Monitors, Sensors, & Devices

  • Intrusion Protection
  • Door & Window Sensors
  • Garage Door Sensors
  • Glass Break Protection
  • Motion Sensors
  • Surveillance
  • Indoor Cameras
  • Outdoor Cameras
  • Doorbell Cameras
  • Tilt & Pan Cameras
  • Live Surveillance
  • Environmental Protection
  • Carbon Monoxide
  • Flood
  • Temperature Change
  • Smoke
  • Life Safety
  • Panic Button
  • Medical Alert

MONITORING

Monitoring - 6 / 10

All packages include 24/7 monitoring, cellular backup, two-way audio, a smartphone app (Alarm.com), home automation, and geo-fencing. With the brand consolidation under Brinks, they no longer offer the old Livewatch plan that included a 12-month contract, and the return period is only 30 days.

The monitoring goes over broadband, landline, or cellular.

Monitoring Options Professional Monitoring
Monitoring Technology Cellular
Broadband
Landline
Number of Monitoring Centers 1
Monitoring Center Type Owned
Professional Monitoring Services 24/7 Professional Monitoring
2-Way Intercom
Police Dispatch
Medical Dispatch

How much does Brinks cost?

Contract & Price - 5 / 10

All Brinks monitoring plans come with a three-year contract.

Brinks offers two plans that provide partially or fully covered devices, as well as the option to add more equipment to your plan as needed.

Brinks Home Complete starts at $39/month with a $19 activation fee and $499 equipment cost. You get a comprehensive home security system that includes the equipment you need to stay safe.

This falls under a 36-month rate locked agreement, and if you don’t feel like you’re getting value out of the system in the first 90 days, you can return it without incurring penalties.

This plan includes LiveVoice Assist, Crash&Smash Protection, home automation features, 24/7 monitoring and smartphone control.

Brinks Home Complete with Video starts at $49/month with a $19 activation fee and $699 equipment cost (waived during promotions).

This plan includes all of the features of the base-level package and adds video cameras into the mix. You get a live video streaming view whenever you need to see what’s going on, as well as cloud video storage for these files.

In addition to the equipment already included in the base package, you also get an indoor camera and a doorbell camera.

Monthly Fee (min) $39.00
Monthly Fee (max) $49.00
Number of Available Packages 3
Installation/ Activation Fee $19.00
Contract Required
Minimum Contract Length 36 months
Cancellation Policy You can cancel your service within the first 90 days, with no termination fee. After that, the terms of your agreement will be in effect and you'll be responsible for any remaining balance.
Warranty 2 years

Contract & Price Fine Print

Monthly prices listed are for the first 12 months.

TECHNOLOGY INTEGRATIONS

Technology Integration - 7 / 10

Brinks offers 24/7 professional monitoring. When an alarm goes off, the ASAPer services push alerts to SMS, voice or email (depends on the customer’s configuration).

Also, Brinks security service includes Crash and Smash Protection, LiveVoice assists, smartphone control and cloud video storage.

  • Mobile Access & Alerts
  • Phone App
  • ndroid App
  • mail & Text Alerts
  • ive Surveillance Feed
  • emote Arm/Disarm
  • eo-location Services
  • Home Automation
  • Lighting Control
  • Thermostat Control
  • Electronic Door Locks
  • Event-triggered Automation
  • History Log
  • Unique User Codes

Brinks reputation

Reputation - 4 / 10

Brinks customers report issues with sensors falling off, slow response times after alarms were triggered, and poor customer support. Some customers even called in multiple times to resolve tech issues and were unable to get a live person on the phone. In many cases, customers were put on hold for over 30 minutes.

Customers also report that Brinks does not honor previous agreements to not raise their monthly rates for the duration of the contract, even for customers who’d been with them for many years.

Trust Pilot Rating 7.9 out of 10
BBB Rating A+
Number of BBB Positive Reviews 20
Number of BBB Neutral Reviews 3
Number of BBB Negative Reviews 121
Date Collected 2019-01-24
Year Founded 1990
  • Certifications & Associations
  • Central Station Alarm Association (CSAA)
  • Factory Mutual (FM)
  • Electronic Security Association
Top Rated
Home

Overall Score

  • Excellent reputation for customer service
  • Security camera & mobile app options
  • 100-day free trial, risk-free, money-back guarantee
  • Home automation devices available