KEN KIRSCHENBAUM, ESQ
ALARM - SECURITY INDUSTRY LEGAL EMAIL NEWSLETTER / THE ALARM EXCHANGE
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Defaulting subscriber claims unauthorized person signed contract / Changing contract terms
November 9,  2019
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Defaulting subscriber claims unauthorized person signed contract
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Ken,
            About two years ago, we signed on a new commercial fire account.  We were doing a monitoring sign up and fixing code issues.  About a year and a half into the contract the fire alarm panel died.  Instead of paying us to fix the panel, they stopped paying their contract and found another alarm company to service their account.  
            We did not receive a cancellation notice for about 6 months after they stopped paying their bill.  During this period we had been trying to collect their monitoring and service call balance.  About a month ago I received notice from their legal department stating that the employee who signed the contract was not authorized to do so, thus voiding our contract with them.
            We were never informed that this individual was not authorized to sign contracts.  I have thought about writing this whole thing off as a loss, but, these people have been so difficult to deal with I want to see if I have any recourse to get my money owed.  
            I have attached the signed contract, their dispute letter, and the invoice for services rendered.  Hopefully there is something that can be done about this situation.
Regards,
  Jeremiah Morales
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Response
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            If you have the Fire All in One, which is the appropriate contract for the services you were providing, then you have a 10 year contract and we can commence arbitration proceedings against this subscriber.  We hear this defense often and usually it turns out to be nonsense.  Any owner, shareholder, director, officer, manager or someone in apparent charge, is authorized to sign the contract, and once you are permitted to begin performance and especially when a payment is made, it becomes increasingly difficult for the subscriber to claim no authorization.  Also, subscribers back down when they find out that if the subscriber isn’t liable, then the unauthorized person who signed the contract is now personally liable.  
            It also seems like the more imaginative your subscriber becomes trying to spin some BS the more annoyed you are likely to become.  While you may look the other way most of the time, or all of the time when a subscriber defaults, a subscriber may successfully get under your skin and cause you to want to take action.   While K&K is not in the practice of enforcing personal vendettas, we are in the practice of enforcing contracts, alarm contracts in particular.  
            Contact K&K’s Collection Department by calling Ella Reynolds at 516 747 6700 x 321 or ereynolds@Kirschenbaumesq.com for our commencement of litigation papers.
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Changing contract terms
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Ken 
            We purchased a security systems contract from you when we started and haven’t had issue until now. One of our prospective clients is wanting to change some verbiage and wanted to consult with you before making any changes. Could you take a look and contact me anytime.
 Thanks,
 Shane
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Response
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            It’s a good idea to run contract changes by me.  While some changes are strictly business and issues you can deal with, other contract provisions are highly technical and should not be changed without careful consideration.  To encourage you to engage counsel, for your protection, we have added a great feature benefit to the K&K Concierge Program for the Alarm Industry.  The Concierge Program costs only $145 a month and one benefit is a $250 a month credit towards contract review.  Use the benefit or lose it, for the month, so I encourage you to use it.  
       If you’re still not sold on the Concierge Program you can still send me the subscriber requested changes for review and negotiations when appropriate, especially if you are using our Standard Form © Kirschenbaum Contracts™.  We know those contracts well and review takes a lot less time. 
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To order up to date Standard Form Alarm /  Security / Fire and related forms, click here:  www.alarmcontracts.com
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CONCIERGE LAWYER SERVICE FOR THE ALARM INDUSTRY PROGRAM
You can check out the program and sign up here: https://www.kirschenbaumesq.com/page/concierge or contact our Program Coordinator Stacy Spector, Esq at 516 747 6700 x 304.

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Ken Kirschenbaum,Esq
Kirschenbaum & Kirschenbaum PC
Attorneys at Law
200 Garden City Plaza
Garden City, NY 11530
516 747 6700 x 301
ken@kirschenbaumesq.com
www.KirschenbaumEsq.com