ADT Security is dishonest and won't cooperate

[somebizarredude]

warning this is a long frustrating mess!


I live in texas and in about November of 2010 i unfortunately decided to get an ADT security system. the salesman did his job as far as selling me the services but he also neglected to inform me off all the important details that that should be disclosed up front. it seems ADT has a don't ask don't tell sales policy. the only reason I chose ADT was because the small amount of information the Salesman told me. the big factor was that i could take the system with me as I moved if needed and as many times as I needed ( or so i was told ) so i said ok.
they called to set up the install and i was not going to be available at the time they needed so i asked if my neighbor could let them in. they agreed and the install guy came and did his thing. soon after they called me to have all the passwords and details set up and i was good to go. well around 9 months later I had to move and when i called to ask them to have someone come move my alarm they told me i had to renew the contract for another 3 years! I replied "what contract?" they began to inform me of the fine print on a contract they apparently had my signature on. when i told them that i was not present for the install and never sighed a contract and was never made aware of said contract until now. they hung up on me!!!!

so i called back several times for the next few months only to be transferred in circles over and over again. so i contacted the BBB and got a response from an ADT Corporate Customer Relations Consultant. upon request I emailed her a copy of my drivers licence to compare the signature. then I get an email back a few days later saying my case has been handed over to the fraud department the BBB has been informed and I would receive forms in the mail. 2 weeks later I get the forms and most of it's content does not even apply to my situation. it is also something I have to get notarized. so i am not signing a legal document that will cause me to make false claims due to the things contained in this document that do not apply to me. so i try to call her back with no answer and i leave a message. then i email her 4 hours later. no response for 2 days. so i call customer service speak to a manager and was informed her manager will make sure she calls me back. 5 days later NOTHING! and i still am unable to get anyone to cooperate!


Can anyone tell me what I do now?
or am I wrong in thinking that I am not responsible for a $1043.00 charge for canceling a contract that I was never aware of or physically signed?

I would appreciate any help I can get and if one of you is an attorney that thinks they can make money off of this I will gladly give you every dime you can suck out of them. I don't want a cent and I do not want to spend any more money. I just want them to leave me alone and keep my credit unaffected.....

please provide advise.

thank you

 

[Mass_Shyster]

Can anyone tell me what I do now?

You can refuse to pay, let them sue you.

They will likely claim that the person who signed was an authorized agent, thereby binding you to the contract.

They can also claim that the person who signed had apparent authority, thereby binding you to the contract.

They can also claims that since you made the payments, you ratified the contract.

 

[somebizarredude]

thank you for the reply.

I do not intend to pay them a cent unless it is court ordered. so for them to get a dime they will have to sue me.

I am mainly trying to avoid damaging my near perfect credit score by any means I can. this is very frustrating because I am not very familiar with the laws involved and I do not know what actions I can take.

the fact that ADT just keeps transferring me around departments and putting me at dead ends is starting to make me very angry. I have told them many times that if they can mail me a copy of the contract containing my signature I will gladly pay. but I have yet to get any response other than. " hold for a moment while I transfer you to my manager" followed by click and a dial tone**************..

 

[Mass_Shyster]

• I do not intend to pay them a cent unless it is court ordered.
• I am mainly trying to avoid damaging my near perfect credit score by any means I can.

You do realize that a judgment against you will damage your near perfect credit score, don't you?

 

[somebizarredude]

I am trying to avoid that scenario by getting advice on action to take now to prevent this. but if it comes to that then that is what happens and i will have to accept it. at least it would show some effort on their part and force someone to hear what I have to say. if the court system decides I am wrong and that ADT has the right to swindle me like this, then there is nothing i can do.

I still do not understand how they can hold me responsible for the remaining balance of a 3 year contract that I was not aware of and never had the opportunity to read or agree to. I paid around $400 for the install and alarm system up front and was told by all parties involved it was a simple month to month plan after that. I feel they made a mistake and that I should not have to pay for services I never agreed to and will never receive. I paid for the system and install, so they have no money to lose. the only thing they lose is the amount I would have paid if I had kept the services for the remainder of a contract I never agreed to.

In my opinion an honest business would realize this and just leave me alone

 

[Mass_Shyster]

I am trying to avoid that scenario by getting advice on action to take now to prevent this.

You can go to court and get a declaratory judgment that you are not bound by any contract. I'm sure it will cost more than $1043.

 

[swalsh411]

They are not required to send you a copy of the contract you supposedly signed. What they would be required to do is produce that contract in court if they decided to sue you.

So if you are absolutely sure that you never signed a contract, then send them a letter certified mail that you will not pay another cent and to stop contacting you. Their only recouse then would be to sue you. Stop wasting your time trying to get a copy of something you don't think exists.

 

[somebizarredude]

thanks for the advice.

I finally received a call back from the ADT representative I have been in communication with. after me explaining the whole scenario AGAIN she stated
they are not responsible for what their salesman did or did not say. she said I was aware that services were being provided and should have canceled said services in the beginning. even though I did not personally read or sign the contract or officially agree to any terms, i did allow another individual to to do so by giving them permission to enter my home. then she told me my only recourse is to fill out the fraud packet. I asked if I could contact the department that would be receiving the document to ask them what to do since the document does not apply to my case. she then told me there was no such number. I then asked if I could talk to someone that can help and she said. "no all you can do is mail what you think is sufficient information to the address on the forms and hope for the best" so basically my contact at ADT refuses to assist. I would throw out her name but i am not sure what the legal repercussions will be.

i am at a loss . the BBB tells me to contact the ADT representative handling my case and my ADT rep tells me to contact a department that doesn't have a phone number**************...

should I just do what she says and write them a letter telling my side of the situation and hope they contact me? as far as I can tell my only other options are to pay it. or ignore it and ruin my credit and possibly go to court. I know for a fact they have no document with my signature on it.

but in all reality how bad do you think this will affect a high credit score?

 

[Zigner]

Fill out the documents. Enter "N/A" in the appropriate lines. Or, you can enter "See attached" on those lines and attach a letter explaining the situation.

 

[tranquility]

she said I was aware that services were being provided and should have canceled said services in the beginning. even though I did not personally read or sign the contract or officially agree to any terms, i did allow another individual to to do so by giving them permission to enter my home.

That's an argument for quantum meruit. If that's what their claim is, it seems you might owe the cost of the services and not the cost of the bargain.

With the low marginal cost of an additional subscriber, that would bring their claim way down to a buck or two. (Add the cost of the installation too.)

So, obviously, talking with legal experts who are not being an expert but only trying to get money from you is not the best course.

I'm guessing they're claiming a contract you agreed to and not one you did not agree to but gained benefit from.

I'd do what Zigner said. In the letter, thank the nice representative you talked to. Say something along the lines of appreciation for the legal advice supplied by [phone worker]. If accurate, you will owe a lot less. If inaccurate and that error causes you harm, I believe she committed malpractice with her legal advice--you can argue the harm with the company.

 

[somebizarredude]

I will draft up a letter, read it and see how it turns out prior to mailing. as you can probably tell I do not have fantastic grammar and sentence structure. so I will have to read and edit it a few times before I am comfortable with what I write.

again thanks to all for the advice! its been a stressful situation....

 

[TheGeekess]

In every ADT commercial I've seen, it is stated that a contract is needed (usually 2 years) for an install to happen.

Looks like OP got snagged by a trunk slammer.

Next time you want an alarm system installed and monitored, contact one of the local independent installers. You'll pay less for monthly monitoring....

 

[LdiJ]

In every ADT commercial I've seen, it is stated that a contract is needed (usually 2 years) for an install to happen.

Looks like OP got snagged by a trunk slammer.

Next time you want an alarm system installed and monitored, contact one of the local independent installers. You'll pay less for monthly monitoring....

I had an ADT salesman take the signature page of the 2 year contract I signed, and attach it to a 5 year contract. I didn't pay and they never sued. They did put a hit on my credit report though.

 

[xylene]

"Perfect" credit don't mean junk.

Home security is a shotgun.

Don't pay them and suck up the credit ding.

 

[somebizarredude]

I will mail out the letter I wrote tomorrow describing the situation with
"Not applicable" written in most of the form provided. I am going to mail it certified mail so I will know when it is received. If I do not hear from them I will just ignore it and live with the blemish on my credit.

again thank you all for the advice


also TheGeekess I will definitely go with a smaller more personal company for my next security needs. these large corporations get away with to much sketchy activity.