Oklahoma Fire Alarm Systems:The Steep Cost of False Alarms

A Tulsa or OKC fire alarm sounds at a local business and the fire department hurries to the scene. But as they approach, they see no indications of a fire, no flames, no smoke, all looks well. As they check the property, they realize there was in fact no fire at all. It was just a false alarm.

A relief perhaps, but false alarms come at a cost all their own and are a real problem for Oklahoma communities. It must be recognized that these false alarms could prevent personnel from responding to real emergencies. In this case, a false alarm could prove extremely costly, even fatal for ones in real need of help.

There were, in fact, 4,013 false alarms in 2012, acccording to the City of Tulsa website.

Notably, it’s also expensive for the fire department to respond to an alarm - both real or false. So false alarms can increase these expenses unnecessarily. And taxpayers, of course, will share in bearing these costs.

In Oklahoma City, however, repeated false alarms can cost home and business owners much more than just taxes.

This Oklahoma City ordinance “provides for an ‘excessive false alarm fee’ of $65 when the Police Department responds and $107 if the Fire Department is called out. Alarms are considered excessive if there are more than three false alarms within any 365 days,” the City of OKC website noted.

These fees for excessive false fire alarms are actually not the only consequence owners could face. In some situations, the City could even revoke the owner’s fire alarm permits.

“This would involve serious actions such as making false statements in an application, refusing to fix faulty equipment when officially notified or making bogus check payments,” The City of OKC noted. “Six false alarms in any 365 days can also result in revocation.”

The Tulsa Fire Department headquarters also reported that chronic false alarms can result in a business being cited.

What should home or business owners do if their alarm goes off by and there is no real emergency?

“If you know your alarm has gone off improperly, call your alarm company immediately. If the call is cancelled before officers or firefighters arrive, it won’t count as a false alarm,” the City of OKC disclosed.

There’s also many things you can do to help prevent false alarms:

Ensure that your fire alarm is correctly installed, is up-to-date, and in good working order with regular inspections and maintenance. Upgrade any outdated equipment as older systems can be more susceptible to false alarms.

Make sure your business has taken all the necessary steps to prevent a fire such as keeping areas uncluttered and clean.

Make sure all employees know how to operate and cancel an accidental alarm.

When doing  renovations or construction, make sure smoke alarms are covered. However, be sure to remove the covers when the work is done.

For more help on preventing false alarms, check out False Alarm Prevention for Tulsa and OKC Security Systems on our blog.

Mac Systems in Tulsa and OKC can make sure your fire alarm and fire suppression system are working properly and conduct all needed inspections.