If you’re thinking about getting a personal alarm, you may have lots of questions about how they work, the costs involved and the service you’ll receive. So let us help your decision making with answers to the nine questions we most commonly get asked.
1. How much does the service cost?
The cost for the rental of our in-home personal alarm service starts from £17 per month, with our out-and-about service starting from £25 per month. We also charge a one-off admin fee of £49.99 – rising to £59.99 if you opt for the activity sensor as well. This monthly fee covers the cost of the rental and monitoring of your equipment. And gives you peace of mind that you have 24-hour access to our contact centre team, 365 days a year. Find out more about the costs involved, cancellation policies and VAT.
2. Do you offer installation?
In some areas we are able to offer an installation service at a cost of £100. To find out if we can organise an engineer installation in your area, please call us on 0300 333 6511. However, our equipment is user-friendly and quick and easy to install in your home yourself. There is no mess or fuss, and it can be installed virtually anywhere in your home.
3. How do you protect my personal information?
We are compliant with all GDPR principles as well as ISO 27001 for information security management systems. The information you provide us with when you sign up to the service includes existing health conditions, the name and contact details for your GP, details of your nominated key holders and next of kin.
4. Why do you use digital equipment?
Digital equipment is used to ensure that our customers are future-proofed for the anticipated 2027 digital switchover. BT is replacing all analogue telephone lines with digital lines, and in some areas, this is already happening. All of our digital alarms work without the need for a phone line. Our equipment uses a roaming SIM card, which seeks out the strongest mobile phone signal in the area you’re in to send an alert to Careium. Find out more about the digital switchover and what it means for our customers.
5. What happens when I press the button on my alarm unit or pendant?
If you activate your alarm, it will place a telephone call to our contact centre, alerting our team that you may need assistance. Our operator will have access to your full details, including medical information and next of kin details, and they will be able to talk to you via the loudspeaker and microphone in the base unit.
Once they have determined the situation, they will agree with you on the best course of action. This may include calling the emergency services or speaking to a keyholder to check in with you. No call is cancelled until we are certain the call has been dealt with appropriately. If the emergency services are called, we will also contact your next of kin unless requested not to and stay with you on the line.. Check out more FAQs for our in-house personal alarms.
6. Can I have more than one pendant on the same base unit?
Yes, and this is particularly useful if someone else you live with would also benefit from the service. It’s possible to link up to two pendants to each base unit. There is an additional monthly charge of just 99p for extra pendants. Take a look at more FAQs relating to our pendants to understand how they work.
7. What are the benefits of the out-and-about alarm?
Our out-and-about alarm can provide extra reassurance outside of the home. It uses GPS trackers to monitor a user’s location and movement and offers fall detection, two-way speech and an SOS button for emergencies. In addition, it can be configured with a safety zone. This uses geo-fencing to determine if a user leaves a predetermined safety zone, in which case an automatic alarm will be sent to our contact centre. Read more FAQs about this service.
8. Will your equipment affect other equipment in my home?
Other equipment in your home shouldn’t interfere with the functionality of our base units or pendant alarms – including your TV and wifi services. If you have any concerns please call us on 0300 333 6511 to check. Read more technical FAQs.
9. Do I need to have a key safe to use your service?
Having a key safe is not essential but we would recommend all our users consider having one fitted. We ask for details of at least two key holders who live within 20 minutes of your address. However, in the event they can’t attend to you quickly, having a key safe installed will facilitate timely access by emergency services if required.
Our C500 Key Safe is the first and only key safe in the UK to have police approval. It can be purchased for the cost of £65. Learn more about key safes.
Here to help
If you have any other questions or can’t find an answer to the information you’re looking for, please contact us either by calling 0300 333 6511 or emailing [email protected].