If a letter, email or new logo tells you your security provider has changed, find out in writing who is now responsible for your keys and your alarm response, and whether anything about your service has changed with them. A new name or owner does not have to mean a worse service, but you are entitled to know what you now have.
This applies to any provider of keyholding, alarm response or patrols. The checks are the same for a landlord in Chelmsford, a retailer in Southend or a facilities manager covering several sites.
Start with the basics: what has actually changed?
Names change after a sale, a merger, a rebrand or a change of ownership. Ask the provider to set out clearly:
- the legal name of the company now supplying you, and its registered company number;
- whether your existing contract carries on unchanged, or has been transferred or replaced;
- who your day-to-day contact is, and how to reach them out of hours;
- the date the change took effect.
You can check the company details on the public Companies House register, which is independent of anything the provider tells you.
Does the same team and response carry on?
Ask directly whether the guards and control room staff who know your site are staying, and who will attend an alarm tomorrow night. Familiarity with a building helps, so it is fair to ask how site notes and instructions have been passed across.
On response times, ask for the current commitment in writing and compare it with what you were promised before. If the old wording mentioned a time, check whether it still applies, and from what point it is measured. If you have no written wording, ask for it now. Our keyholding and alarm response page states that attendance follows documented procedures and your agreed instructions, without unsupported minute guarantees.
SIA licences and insurance
Ask the provider to confirm that the officers who would attend your premises hold the appropriate SIA licences. Individual licences can be looked up on the SIA public register. Company-level approval is a separate matter, so if one is mentioned, ask for confirmation in writing. Our officers are SIA licensed individually, and any company-level status is confirmed in writing on request.
For insurance, ask for a current certificate and check that the insured name matches the company now supplying you. Check with your own insurer too, because some policies set conditions about keyholding or alarm response. Do not assume that cover under the previous company name has transferred.
Who now holds your keys?
People often forget this one. Find out:
- where your keys are physically held now, and whether that has changed;
- who has access to them, and how they are identified when they collect a set;
- whether access is recorded each time keys are collected or returned;
- whether your key tags and records have been passed across or re-labelled.
If you have any concern, you can ask for your keys to be returned to you. Keep a written note of the date and who signed for them.
Contract terms and your right to review
Ask for a copy of the terms that now apply to you, even if you were told nothing has changed. Look at the notice period, the renewal date, any changes to charges and what happens if you want to leave. Then check what your contract says about ending or varying it. That is the clearest guide to your rights. If you are unsure, take advice before signing anything new.
It is reasonable to review a provider after a change, and reasonable to switch if the answers do not satisfy you. If you do decide to move, our guide to changing your keyholding provider in Essex covers the handover in more detail.
A short checklist
- Get the new company name, number and contact details in writing.
- Confirm who attends an alarm and what they have been told about your site.
- Ask how response commitments are worded now.
- Check SIA licences and the insurance certificate.
- Confirm where your keys are and who can sign them out.
- Read the terms, notice period and renewal date.
If you want a second opinion
If you are in South Essex and want to see how we work, our Essex keyholding page explains our local cover. We routinely cover South Essex from our Southend base, with sites elsewhere in the county reviewed individually. You can also try the free keyholding risk check, which takes about two minutes and needs no email address. There is no obligation to switch.