Me vs. ADT for $8,010.15 - Part 6/
The Breakdown
Intro:
This sixth post continues the weekly thread summary.
We pick up with Tweet 31.
If you're just joining the story, you can start with Part 1:
The story continues below.
31/
In August 2024, my ADT bill jumped from $45.13 to $49.41—a 9.5% increase. I didn’t notice right away.
But looking back… something about it doesn’t feel right.
#TimeForUs #Billing 📎 [Screenshot: Billing statement from Aug 8, 2024 and Jul 8, 2024]
32/
In the 2020 agreement—the one where they got the $99 fee from—I found this clause: They can’t raise my bill more than 5%.
I guess that went in the “nah” pile alongside:“Provide a replacement for any defective part without charge.”
#TimeForUs #TexasLaw 📎 [Image: Clause Screenshot]
33/
Up until now, it was already a lot. But what tipped the scale? A few days before March 20. The panel started beeping. No alerts. No explanation. Just beep. Every 30 minutes, on the dot. We recorded it. For our own sanity. That day, this story changed. #TimeForUs #AlarmFail 📎 [Video: Panel beeping]
34/
It took a moment to troubleshoot. No alerts. No notifications. I wasn’t 100% sure the beeping was coming from the panel.
So I powered it down and the beeping stopped—it was clear. The panel was the source of the beep.
#TimeForUs #diagnosis
35/
ADT had charged me $99 for service before. I wasn’t thrilled—but this time, they had a new (to me) option: free remote troubleshooting.
We tried it on March 20. By the end of the call, she said a technician would need to come out—and that would cost $99.
#TimeForUs #Support 📎 [Image: March 20 call log—77 minutes with ADT]
36/
Back in Tweet 2, I mentioned May 8.
That’s how long it took me to wrap my head around actually dealing with this—waiting on hold just to pay $99 to fix a panel they installed.
#TimeForUs #Deductible 📎 [Call log]
37/
The morning of May 8 was actually… pleasant.
I spoke with a rep named Tai. She scheduled a tech for the next day and offered a new deal: $33.99/month for 36 months.
The rate was fair. I agreed. I expected a working alarm the next afternoon. #TimeForUs #Renewal 📎 [2025 Extension]
Commentary:
This week, we focused on the facts. We saw what happened—and we saw that, at this point, ADT and I were still trying to resolve things in good faith.
On May 8, we agreed to a deal that felt fair: $33.99/month for 36 months. I said yes. The system would be fixed the next day.
But if you’ve been following the thread, you already know: “tomorrow” is never that simple.
Unless something unexpected comes up, I plan to complete the timeline on X/Bluesky by the end of June. Then I’ll be taking the July 4 holiday—and the surrounding days—to step back, spend time with family, and reflect.
If you haven’t seen it yet, we posted a detailed breakdown of the $8,010.15 demand yesterday. You can read it here:
We’re not quite at the end yet. But this is where the shape of the story becomes harder to ignore. You don’t get to $8,010.15 in frustration. You get there in receipts. We have them.
In this week’s Sunday Feature, we logged 7.5 hours of time that we billed for. Keep an eye on this week’s posts to see where that time went.
As always, if you’re still here: thank you.
If you’ve got questions, feedback, or thoughts—my inbox is open.
—David