KEN KIRSCHENBAUM, ESQ ALARM - SECURITY INDUSTRY LEGAL EMAIL NEWSLETTER / THE ALARM EXCHANGE You can read all of our articles on our website. Having trouble getting our emails? Change your spam controls and whitelist ken@kirschenbaumesq.com ********************** Subscriber wants short term rental tenants added to call list April 24, 2023 ************************** Subscriber wants short term rental tenants added to call list ************************** Ken I am on securing a new residential security alarm contract in a high end residential area with vacation homes that often rent for part of the season. My concern is the owner would like me to put the short term renters on the list that the central station would call, prior to calling first responders, whenever there are renters in the home. My first inclination is the renters have no vested interest in the property and could come after the alarm company or the homeowner if they mishandled an alarm issue. However, I can see at the same time this is the liability of the homeowner and not the alarm company. At a minimum I believe I should have a written email from the homeowner stating to put the renters on the call list. What are your thoughts? Thanks Steve ************************ Response ************************ This raises serious potential for exposure to liability. While the Standard Form Agreements, in this case the Residential All in One, should provide the contractual protection needed, the potential for exposure to liability is increased and should be avoided. To those who think they are adequately protected by the Residential All in One [and I’d like to agree with you and dismiss the rest of this article, but I wouldn’t bet the farm on it] let’s discuss those issues. The Residential All in One has a broad indemnification provision whereby the Subscriber, in this case the owner, agrees to indemnify. The owner also agrees to obtain insurance naming the alarm company, though this provision is rarely complied with or enforced. The Residential All in One makes clear that there are no third party beneficiaries of the contract. The next logical argument is that even if the short term tenant is deemed a third party beneficiary the tenant would only stand in the shoes of the owner who signed the contract and the Residential All in One contains other protective provisions that insulate against liability. This argument would be met by the tenant claiming that the third party beneficiary status somehow [it’s not a strong argument really] raises non-contractual duties that support a tort claim; a negligence claim. Keep in mind that this is not a situation where you sign up a residential subscriber and don’t know anything about a tenant using the system and your services. Here the Subscriber tells you that there will be tenants and also requests that the tenants be listed on the Call List, a sure sign that they are using the alarm system. This should be handled in one of two ways. * The tenants should be required to sign a written agreement that they acknowledge that the alarm company and their Landlord have entered into a written alarm contract and that the tenant agrees to be bound by all the terms and conditions of that agreement, including but not limited to the exculpatory, limitation of liability and arbitration clauses. * The Residential All in One should be modified to require the Subscriber to include a provision in every lease with a tenant that Landlord has entered into a written alarm contract with XYZ Alarm Company, a copy of which is attached to the Lease [or has been made available to tenant] and that the tenant agrees to be bound by all the terms and conditions of that agreement, including but not limited to the exculpatory, limitation of liability and arbitration clauses. This precaution, by the way, is not necessary if you aren’t on notice that the end user isn’t your Subscriber who signed the contract, but if you become aware of a different end user you need to immediately address that situation because you don’t want to continue providing alarm services without a proper written alarm contract. ********************** STANDARD FORM AGREEMENTS: To order up to date Standard Form Alarm / Security / Fire and related Agreements click here: www.alarmcontracts.com *************************** CONCIERGE LAWYER SERVICE PROGRAM FOR THE ALARM INDUSTRY - 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. *********************** ALARM ARTICLES: You can always read our Articles on our website at www.kirschenbaumesq.com/page/alarm-articles updated daily ************************* THE ALARM EXCHANGE - the alarm industries leading classified and business exchange - updated daily. https://www.kirschenbaumesq.com/page/alarm-exchange ************************* Wondering how much your alarm company is worth? Click here: https://www.kirschenbaumesq.com/page/what-is-my-alarm-company-worth ****************************** Getting on our email list / Articles archived: Many of you are forwarding these emails to friends or asking that others be added to the list. Sign up for our daily newsletter here: Sign Up. ************************** 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
