ADT is known for providing security systems and home monitoring services, but they offer medical alert services as well. The ADT Companion Service can be added on to existing ADT services, and you can also opt to just use their medical alert services.

What The ADT Companion Service Provides

Like most other medical alert services, you are provided with a waterproof pendant that allows you to press a button on it to request assistance. Support agents are available at all times, day or night, to provide you with help or call emergency services if you need them. There are three versions of this service, which are Medical Alert Basic, Medical Alert Plus and On The Go.

With the Medical Alert Basic service, a base station is connected to your home phone lines. The base station communicates with your pendant, and your pendant will work within 300 feet of the base station. Medical Alert Plus does not require you to have home phone service for the base station to work, and you can also opt for fall monitoring for an additional $10 per month.

If you want to have your pendant work wherever you are, including outside of your home, you can select the On The Go service, which works off of GPS signals. This service can also be upgraded for an additional $10 a month to provide fall monitoring.

Benefits of The ADT Companion Service

One of the biggest benefits of using the ADT medical alert service is that ADT is a well-known and trusted company with a solid reputation. If you already have home security services with them, it’s easy to add on the Companion Service.

The equipment provided is reliable, the pendant is waterproof and ADT will replace the battery if it dies. A battery backup is provided with the base station, so if you lose power, your service will still work. Response times are also fairly short, and most people only wait about 45 seconds for a support agent after pressing the help button.

You don’t have to enter into a contract to use the base level of the service, so you can pay from month to month. You may also be able to install the base station on your own, which means you can potentially avoid an installation charge. If you are unable to get the service working, an ADT installation specialist can come out and handle the installation for you.

Currently, there is no activation fee, and once you sign up with ADT, your rate will not go up as long as you don’t cancel the service. There are a variety of discounts that ADT offers, including ones for both USAA and AARP members. Additionally, ADT regularly runs discounts, such as 50 percent off of the cost of fall detection.

Potential Downsides of the ADT Companion Service

Although there’s nothing particularly bad about the equipment provided by ADT, there are several other comparably priced services that provide better equipment. Their base station has a 12- to 20-hour backup, but other services provide base stations with backup battery packs offering up to 36 hours of life.

Additionally, ADT does not disclose how long the battery life is on their pendants. They will replace the battery, but you have no idea of when it may go out. Additionally, you need to verify that the service is working correctly at least once a month, and many other medical alert services have this done automatically.

If you opt for a service that doesn’t require a phone line to operate, which are the Medical Alert Plus and the On The Go services, you must be an AT&T cellular customer for them to work. You should also be aware that if with the On The Go service, you need to bring both your transponder unit and your pendant with you, and you need to stay within 100 feet of the transponder unit for the service to work. Additionally, while the pendant is waterproof, the transponder is not.

The only significant drawback of the ADT medical alert service is that both the battery life for their pendant and their base are either questionable or not on par with what is available with other services. However, the price and general service are in line with what you can expect from most providers.