July 20, 2011
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Question
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Ken
Although I bought your complete contract package last year, there is still a problem on a leased PERS if the user/signer dies.
How do we recover the equipment and past due payments especially if the death is shortly after install. Then there is the retirement centers that lock the apartment for only the family members to enter. I have heard horror stories that after a death you can pretty much kiss everything good by.
John
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Answer
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There are several variables with PERS. You can sell or lease the unit. You can install it or sent it to the subscriber for self installation. The Standard Form Contracts offer PERS in a Sales contract or a Lease.
Recovery of equipment is of course a problem. The PERS contract comes to an abrupt end in the event of death, but also terminates if the subscriber is too ill to use the system or moves to a nursing home facility. While the contract may give you certain rights to pursue your equipment, and you can always pursue a dead subscriber's estate, the reality is that the PERS unit is not worth pursuing, and more than likely neither is the balance of the recurring revenue due, assuming there is a breach that permits the balance to be recovered.
Another issue is stopping the signals from reaching the central station once the subscriber has stopped paying for the service. As I understand it, even signals that are ignored can be annoying. Knowing when you can ignore the signal is another issue.
The good news is that the PERS unit is not costly. I suggest you consider the unit a loss when you figure out what you will be charging for your services.