A security system is only yours if you can keep using it after the contract ends, the company changes, or you move. That depends on three things: who owns the equipment, who holds the codes, and whether the system needs the company’s cloud service to work. Ask about all three before anything is installed.
Who owns the equipment
- Bought, financed or leased. “Free” equipment that comes with a monitoring contract may be financed, leased, or kept by the company. The contract says which. Ask what happens to the panel, sensors and cameras if you cancel early, when the term ends, and if you sell the house.
- Wired or wireless. Wired sensors stay in the walls when you switch companies. Wireless sensors only work with panels that speak the same radio protocol, so ask whether yours are tied to one brand of panel.
- Cloud-dependent systems. Some systems need the maker’s servers for the app, alerts and settings. When Google ended support for Nest Secure, the system stopped connecting to Google’s cloud and stopped working in the app, and Google said it no longer recommends using it. Ask what still works if the company drops the product or you stop paying.
The codes, in plain words
- User code (often called the master code): arms and disarms the system and adds codes for family or guests. You always get this one.
- Installer code (also called the programming or dealer code): opens the panel’s programming, including sensors, zones, the monitoring account and phone numbers. A company taking over your system usually needs it.
- Programming lockout. Some panels can be set so that even the installer code doesn’t reopen programming without the dealer’s software or account details. A reseller’s FAQ for one common panel family (Honeywell VISTA) describes this, and says that if the previous provider won’t help, there may be no way back in short of replacing the panel. Ask whether any lockout will be turned on.
We found no Washington law that makes an alarm company hand over the installer code. Get its answer in writing before you sign.
Dealer-locked and proprietary panels
A panel is effectively locked to one company when:
- the installer code is kept from you and a programming lockout is on;
- the panel only reports to that company’s monitoring center or app service; or
- the panel, sensors or app are a brand only that company sells.
None of these is illegal, but each one makes switching harder. If portability matters to you, ask the company plainly: “Could another licensed company take over monitoring of this exact panel, and what would they need from you?”
Switching monitoring companies
- Read your contract. Find the term, the early termination charge and the renewal clause. As one example, ADT’s published residential terms (seen 2026-11-01) describe a 36-month monitoring contract where ADT may charge 75% of the monthly charges left in the initial term if you end it early. Terms differ by company, product and date, so read your own.
- Ask the old company to release the panel or give you the installer code, in writing.
- Have the new company confirm it supports your exact panel model and what it will replace.
- Check the new company’s licenses. Anyone paid to wire or service an alarm needs an L&I electrical contractor license covering alarm work (specialty 06, 02 or 01); check it on L&I Verify. Seattle requires alarm monitoring companies to be licensed with the city and publishes a list of licensed alarm companies. Tacoma requires an Alarm System Operator license for anyone monitoring alarms in the city.
- Tacoma’s device fee. Alarm companies pay Tacoma a $40 yearly fee per monitored system and may pass it on. Tacoma says the new company is not charged the fee again if the previous company already paid it that calendar year.
Watch for “takeover” pitches
In 2012, Washington’s Attorney General filed a consumer protection case against a door-to-door security company. The AG alleged its salespeople said they worked for the homeowner’s existing security company, or that they had “taken over” the existing service, and that customers wouldn’t face cancellation fees for switching. The company agreed to change its practices and pay restitution, and denied the allegations. The AG’s advice: call your existing company and ask about cancellation fees before agreeing to anything. See our guide to door-to-door alarm sales.
Questions to ask before you sign
- Who owns the panel, sensors and cameras, now and at the end of the term?
- Will I get the installer code at the end of the job, or when the contract ends? Will any programming lockout be turned on?
- Can another licensed company take over this panel? Which brand and model is it?
- What still works if I stop paying: local siren, keypad, app, cameras, video history?
- How long is the term, what is the early termination charge, and how does renewal work?
- Is the app account mine or the company’s? Does it move with me if I switch?
- What is the company’s L&I license number, and its city alarm license in Seattle or Tacoma?
Listings in our security systems directory show, where the company publishes one, its own statement about installer codes and local control (“The company says: …”, with a link). We don’t rate those statements. See how we list.