National Police Alarm Activation Response Guidelines

An analysis was conducted in line with the National Emergency Communications Working Group – Australia and New Zealand (NECWG-A/NZ) standing agenda item to introduce a consistent policy for the way in which Australia policing jurisdictions respond to alarm activations.

A comparative analysis was conducted of the information provided by each agency response. Based on this review, processes and policies that had the majority of alignment between agencies offered the greater potential for consistency.

The monitoring of alarms by private security service providers is no longer restricted to State, Territory or even national boundaries.

Organisations are increasingly selling security systems and indicating certain response behaviours by police. The installation of alarms and the definition of activations are standardised. In many jurisdictions, police have limited or no involvement in how alarms systems are promoted, including how they are responded to when activated, but are responding to increasing alarm activations, the majority of which are non-genuine activations. Equally difficult for Alarm Monitoring Providers (AMPs) is the variation in response provided by each jurisdiction to alarm activations.

Whilst jurisdictions have had localised engagement with alarm monitoring groups and regulatory bodies, to address the need for a consistent approach, formal consultation between NECWG-A/NZ and the Australian Security Industry Association Limited (ASIAL) occurred to address this consistency through an agreed national guideline.

This national guideline is designed to align police classification; requirements; and response to alarms and alarm activations. The guideline is deemed a baseline principle, allowing for individual States and Territories to include specific requirements above and beyond the national guideline, protecting the integrity of jurisdictional policies.