By ANNELIA NIXON

Tribune Business Reporter

anixon@tribunemedia.net

Financial blows have prevented business owners from investing in safety and surveillance equipment, according to one alarm system service provider.

Following three shooting incidents on Monday, all within an eight-hour window and in the vicinity of businesses, the country continues to see a spike in crime. Candace Weatherford, owner of Sure Alarms Systems LTD which installs, monitors and services alarms and cameras, said she just recently realised how many customers have given up their alarms and in turn have undermined their security. Mrs Weatherford points a finger at the COVID-19 pandemic, stating safety and security comes with a price that many can no longer afford.

“Some of them are schools, like private schools, different places, they were hit so hard financially from the shutdown that they still haven't recuperated,” Mrs Weatherford said. “It's like it's not in the budget. It's disheartening. And here we are in 2025 and I'm looking at 2022 at all the places that either had to close down or had to just give up certain things because they just couldn't afford them anymore. And it's disheartening that COVID is still affecting us to this date and time, and I can't blame it on anything else, because before COVID, it was booming.

“Before COVID, things were steady, they were good. And through COVID, we worked with a lot of our customers who were feeling the pinch, and we gave a lot of customers, like six months free monitoring, because they were valued customers. And some of them still never recuperated. They never opened their businesses back up, or things like that. The ones that did recuperate, they stayed with us and we all struggle through. [Hurricane] Dorian was the straw that broke the camel's back, but COVID started it all.”

Noting they are seeing a slight increase in the sale of surveillance equipment, Ms Weatherford said it does not beat pre-COVID numbers. Stephen Wilson, owner of Security Depot, however, said he has seen a vast increase in the sale of “solar camera systems and the systems itself” and other surveillance products. He said about 40 percent of those sales rest with business owners. When asked what equipment is best for businesses establishments he responded, “Cameras, especially cameras with motion sensors, and that is app ready, meaning that you could download the app.”

“So what most people do is they would actually view the cameras before they get at home, so they would see if any activities at home are going on,” he added. “And then, with the motion sensor, it'll alert you before you even go to it.”

Mrs Weatherford said while many persons are leaning towards cameras “because there's no additional billing each month” she argued that alarms may be more beneficial. She also noted that changes with BTC also impact services provided by Sure Alarms Systems Ltd.

“A lot of people are turning towards cameras nowadays, because there's no additional billing each month,” she said. “They put in some cameras. They put it on their phone. But the thing is, a camera doesn't help you until after the fact. You could say, I got robbed and shot. Let me go look at the video.' Whereas an alarm, when you put an alarm in, when they break into your establishment, a siren goes off. Somebody's hearing it. Neighbors are looking out of the window. It's sending something to the central station that they can now send somebody out to help you, if you need help. Cameras can't do any of that for you. They're kind of a notification after the fact. You can look and see that guy's got a mask on. Don't even know who he is, nothing you can do about it.

“But you know what isn't helping either with a lot of customers is the phone changes Batelco's [BTC] making because they're switching fiber, and they're using substandard equipment, and the alarms can't use it because it's so ancient. And then, they're taking away the landline. So then you have to go to IP monitoring. So you either have to buy an alarm that now does IP monitoring, which is great for the new customer, because that's a one shot deal. But the old customer, if they don't want to replace their entire alarm, has to buy a device that tricks it to thinking it's using the internet instead of the phone. So they have that added expense on that device. So, a lot of customers are waiting. They're got their alarm. It works locally, but it's not calling anybody, because they've got to spend this money on the update. So that takes a bite out of your budget as well. Everything bites your budget. That's your problem."