Monday May 25 2020

HOW TO RECOVER UP TO 90% OF THE FINE FOR A FALSE FIRE ALARM

A false alarm is a signal indicating the triggering of an alarm system linked to a central station that has caused the unnecessary movement of firefighters or police officers.  

The fines that your city may impose on you can go up very quickly (for example in Montreal: $ 2,700 per event for all false fire alarms after the 3^rd such false alarm accumulated over a 12-month period). 

In Montreal, you could however obtain a reimbursement of up to 90% of the fine imposed by a false alarm: 

According to article 5 of the regulation, the owner who, following the receipt of one or more invoices, incurs the costs of installing a new fire alarm system or repairing the fire alarm system – causing the false alarm, may request reimbursement of part of the costs incurred using the form provided for this purpose, after having fully paid all fire alarm invoices. The owner has 90 days from the date of issue of the last invoice received to file a refund request. The reimbursement request includes proof of payment of the costs incurred for the installation or repair of the fire alarm system.

To encourage you to make the required corrections, the City of Montreal has implemented a process allowing you to recover a portion of the fine if you make repairs to your protection system to correct the cause of the false alarm. . Here is the form to complete , which contains all the procedures to follow and the place to forward your request.

Here is a short summary of the fines provided for in the municipal by-law of Montreal:

It is important to note that each city has its own regulations and that they do not all work the same way. Here are the links to 2 other cities:
Laval
Longueuil

Also, you can read our other text to know how to prevent false alarms , to help you avoid possible penalties and the administrative headache of making a claim for a refund.

Robert Barrette
SolutionCondo