How much do burglar alarms cost in the UK?

There might be a temptation in some circles to imagine that burglary is a slightly ‘old-school’ crime that no longer causes quite as much concern to residents as it once did – particularly since the COVID-19 pandemic changed how we lived in and related to our homes. After all, didn’t statistics show that burglaries around the world plummeted during the coronavirus lockdowns?

That might well be the case – but there is also evidence that the burglary figures began to creep up again once those restrictions were loosened. Nor does the fact that some people are increasingly working from home negate the importance of effective home security systems, given that even businesses also routinely invest in sophisticated technology to detect and ward off intruders.

But putting aside the topic of the continuing relevance and necessity of security measures for homes and workplaces, how much can you expect to pay for a burglar alarm at your property? Well, this largely depends on the type of alarm you choose.

With burglar alarms being available in all manner of shapes and sizes across the entire home security market in the UK, any figures we give here are always going to be ‘ballpark’ estimates. The effective cost of a given alarm system might also include installation and maintenance costs, so it is important to check how these elements are itemised by whatever security provider you are considering.

Nonetheless, the following are some of the broad prices you can expect for various systems, taking into account installation costs, but not maintenance contracts:

Bell-only Wired Burglar Alarms

Typically take about one or two days to install. Presuming the alarm in question consists of two sensors and one door contact, you might expect to pay about £150 to £550 for such a system. If you have a burglar alarm already in the home, this may well be an older wired one, and you might simply choose to upgrade it while retaining as much of the existing cabling as possible.

Bell-only Wireless Alarm

If the alarm you are interested in is still bell-only but is wireless – and with two sensors and one door contact – a sound estimate for the cost of the system plus installation might be around £300 to £400. Of course, you don’t have to settle for a bell-only alarm if you’re interested in the wireless option, although if your budget is tighter, you might like the idea of starting with such a system and then building up its sophistication over time.

A monitored alarm system

A monitored alarm system – again with two sensors and a door contact – may cost you approximately £250 to £500 including installation, and again take about a day to install. It’s worth noting that both wired and wireless domestic intruder alarms can come in the form of fully police-monitored systems. You can also expect an ongoing running cost for your monitored alarm system, which will likely be about £15 to £45 a month, depending on the number of sensors you have.

Dialler alarms

Dialler alarms work much like their name indicates – in response to being triggered, they dial the homeowner’s saved phone number or the authorities, to alert them to a break-in. For a system like this with one sensor and one door contact, you will typically pay something between £200 and £600.

The above figures are not the start and end of what a burglar alarm will likely cost you, given the need for ongoing maintenance; an annual service, for example, will typically cost from £75 to £125, and if a fault is discovered with your alarm, the price to repair this might be around £80 to £120, depending on the alarm type and the specific issue detected.

Would you like to find out more about the competitive price you could be paying for a wired or wireless burglar alarm system in the UK that also meets your most specific needs? If so, you are always welcome to enquire to the Metro Security team for tailored advice and guidance.