Arkansas News Bureau

LITTLE ROCK — Attorney General Dustin McDaniel filed a lawsuit against a Utah-based security alarm company today, alleging the business deceived consumers and violated state laws that regulate door-to-door sales.

The lawsuit against APX Alarm Security Solutions, Inc. of Provo, Utah, was filed in Pulaski County Circuit Court and alleges the company’s salesmen misled consumers regarding the product they were selling, its price and the terms of the monthly monitoring fees.

Some customers were led to believe that APX was affiliated with a competitor and would upgrade the consumer’s existing system when APX actually replaced the existing system with one from APX, the lawsuit alleges.

Also, APX marketed its alarm system as “free,” but waited until after installation to inform customers that they would be charged installation and monitoring fees, according to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit also alleges APX pressured consumers, some of whom were elderly and living alone, into installing the alarm systems on the same day, implying that the same day installation was required to take advantage of the free offer.

It claims APX conducted sales and marketing door-to-door in violation of the Arkansas Home Solicitation Sales Act and that salesmen engaged in a practice called “spiking,” where consumers was prevented from exercising their three-day right to cancel any home solicitation sale by installing the alarm system the same day.

“This company has flagrantly disregarded Arkansas law and abused consumers,” McDaniel said in a news release announcing the lawsuit. “This lawsuit seeks to remedy those abuses.”

Stuart Dean, director of corporate communications for APX, declined comment Friday afternoon, saying he had not yet seen the lawsuit.