Frequently Asked Questions

Question: I've been told I need to connect my fire alarm system to Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ - the fire service). What should I do?

Simply Contact Us and we'll ​we’ll guide you through what’s required. We’ll manage the process end-to-end, making it straightforward and hassle-free while taking care of the details for you.

Question: Why would I choose AFAM?

While AFAM isn’t currently the largest fire alarm monitoring company in New Zealand, we are the fastest-growing by market share. Our growth has been driven by a strong focus on exceptional customer service and continuous innovation.

We consistently reinvest in research and development to improve our core services and create complementary products that add value for our customers—often at no additional cost.

​We also recommend visiting our Blog, where you’ll find insights into our additional services and get a sense of how we operate and what sets us apart.

Question: Do you operate Nationally?

Yes—we operate nationwide. We currently monitor more than 7,000 buildings across New Zealand, ranging from single owner-occupied commercial properties, to nationally significant buildings, and others with some of the most complex fire alarm systems in the country. We are the sole monitoring provider for many national companies, regional councils, and other large organisations.

​No matter the size of the property or portfolio, we recognise that we provide a life safety service and treat each property and owner with the same level of service and care. ​

Question: My building is currently monitored by someone else, is it a hassle to change?

No it's very simple. We call this a migration. If your building is currently being monitored by one of our competitors we will happily provide you a competitive quote to migrate to us.

Typically we:

• Supply all required monitoring equipment, at no cost
• Organise and pay for the installation of the monitoring equipment, at no cost
• Coordinate directly with FENZ and the incumbent monitoring provider, at no cost
• Organise the incumbents monitoring hardware to be returned to them, at no cost

Migrations are a routine business process for us, and something that we do most days. Price wise we'll not only match, but beat, any of our competitors pricing for comparable services. You'll also find that unlike our competitors we won't look to lock you into a long term contract. We'd rather that you stayed for our service and the additional benefits that we offer, rather than locking you in and forcing you to stay!

Question: Can you keep me informed on what's happening at my building?

Absolutely. We offer multiple ways to keep you informed, including:

• Native mobile apps for Apple and Android
• SMS and email notifications
• Automated reports delivered on a schedule that suits you

​You'll also find that unlike our competitors we don’t impose arbitrary limits on how many people can receive notifications or how they’re delivered. Our goal is to provide a communication setup that works for you.

Question: How does the monitoring system work?

Again you'll find a couple of articles about this on our Blog. In essence, we install our monitoring equipment in your building and that monitors your fire alarm systems. We operate a highly fault tolerant distributed monitoring network throughout New Zealand and should our hardware detect a fire, fault, or other event in your fire alarm system we notify FENZ, your fire alarm service agent, and optionally you all in real time. All messaging is electronic and automated and there are no people involved in the delivery process. As you'd expect for a life safety system there is more to it than that but that's a high level overview.

​​Question: My properties Fire Alarm System isn't required to be connected to FENZ, should I consider getting it connected anyway?

We wrote a blog article about this here - Will Noise Control Save my Business? 

If a fire starts in an unmonitored building, the alarm may sound—but the fire service won’t be notified. If this happens overnight or when the building is unoccupied, valuable time can be lost before anyone calls for help. Unfortunately, many buildings and businesses have been severely damaged or destroyed because of these delays.

​In some cases, insurers may also offer premium discounts for monitored and directly connected fire alarm systems.

Question: I have a question....

We like questions. Just contact us and we'll be happy to help.