Key holding and alarm response.
365 days a year we are at your call 24/7.
Lets talk key Holding with a little food for thought!
What is key-holding?
Key-holding is simply that. We hold your keys and respond to alarm activations on your behalf. Other services can be added such as lock and alarm / unlock.
Why would I want a key holder?
The main reason is safety and safety and yes, safety. You may have had several call outs and all been false alarms. But what if you encounter a real break in? what then? Reality is no intruder will sit down calmly and offer you a cup of tea and say sorry off I go; their aim will be to get away unidentified with any option available. You the key-holder are at serious risk.
It is fine I nominate a member of staff to go, he is huge and no fear!
Ok, he may be one strapping lad with no fear, but the risk is still the same if not greater.
And what most do not realise is as crazy as it comes across, even criminals have rights, and if the strapping big member of staff encounters him and uses anything more than reasonable force he opens the doors for assault charges, or it could even make the intruder to use much more force to get away, the outcome could be horrific. no one untrained unlicensed and uninsured should be put in that position.
Then there is the legal element. Have you heard of vicarious liability?
In simple terms the controlling mind i.e. the Director Manager or Owner who ordered their staff to do the key-holding could be held liable for any outcome. As crazy as it sounds but it is real and has happened. In a serious incident which may sound like an exaggeration or fearmonger, but heaven forbid a fatality the controlling mind may be liable for corporate manslaughter. Vicarious liability and corporate manslaughter have been used in the courts of the United Kingdom. It’s simply not worth it.
Then there is the actual false alarm.
Right, Let’s say you attend at a silly hour in the middle of the night and it is another false alarm. Productivity the following day will not be good, no matter how much coffee you have.
The following time an alarm occurs it would be quite easy to just say “ohh its just false alarm I am not attending!” and then sods law it was real! your premises have now been breached and un secure all night. Let’s face it we are only human and at times we do make the wrong judgment and take risks, and more-so quite easily made at 3am when you have to be in at work at the crack of dawn.
So how does it work?
A site survey is carried out to ensure all aspects of your premises are known, to which we hold a set of keys. The Keys are securely sealed with a serial number and only identified by a unique number. The pouch is then secured in a safe with a tracker system on all vehicles. The keys are audited quarterly.
We are then your nominated key-holders for the ARK alarm receiving centre. We have mobile units ready to respond 365 days a year.
We will only ever call our clients out of hours if there is a serious incident and you need to know. Otherwise you will be left to sleep and receive a report by email the following day.
IN A NUTSHELL
Key holding services is managing risk and liability with no disturbed sleep the sensible and right way.
