Home security company ADT, ex-dealer to pay $41,000 to settle consumer protection case
National home security systems provider ADT and one of its former authorized dealers have agreed to pay more than $41,000 in fines and civil penalties to settle a consumer protection case filed earlier this month by the Sedgwick County District Attorney’s Office.
Court documents filed in the case allege Florida-based ADT let EVO Alarm and one of its representatives, McKay Erickson, sell alarm systems and enter people’s homes without having licenses required by the City of Wichita. The District Attorney’s Office initiated the case after a 71-year-old local Navy veteran complained about his interaction with the companies.
Court documents filed Feb. 13 say the Navy veteran agreed in 2017 to buy home security system services for three years for $1,439.64.
At the time of the sale, Erickson’s business card stated he was an “ADT Authorized Dealer, EVO Automation.”
The Navy veteran ultimately decided to cancel his service through ADT but was told he couldn’t, the court documents say. He filed a complaint with the Consumer Protection Division of Sedgwick County District Attorney Marc Bennett’s Office on Jan. 15, 2018.
City of Wichita records showed neither EVO Alarm nor Erickson were licensed by the Metropolitan Area Building and Construction Department or had undergone a criminal background check before going into customers’ homes, which violates city code, according to court documents. The DA’s Office alleges the lack of license and background check also violates the Kansas Consumer Protection Act.
ADT had a contract with EVO Alarm for at least four months while the company and Erickson were unlicensed and not properly certified, according to the DA’s Office.
ADT denies that it violated the Kansas Consumer Protection Act or engaged in deceptive or unconscionable business practices and that EVO Alarm and Erickson were its legal agents, court documents say.
EVO Alarm and Erickson also deny wrongdoing.
As part of the consent judgment ADT agreed to not buy or service any home security accounts from unlicensed agents and to audit all of EVO Alarms accounts.
If a technician who entered a home doesn’t meet the city’s licensing and background check requirements, the companies have to notify the customer “clearly and conspicuously,” the court documents say.
EVO Alarm and Erickson agreed to not sell any alarm services or operate an alarm business in Sedgwick County unless its workers are certified and vetted. They also agreed to perform background checks on anyone entering local homes.
Under the agreement, the companies will pay a total of $41,352.05 including:
- $334.65 in restitution to the Navy veteran who complained
- $197 in court costs
- $821.05 to the DA’s Consumer Protection Investigative Fund to cover expenses and fees associated with the investigation
- $40,000 in civil penalties, which will be deposited into the county’s general fund.
