NFPA 72 code sections · Regulatory Compliance & Inspections
Prove the monitoring: certificate or placard at the panel
Owners frequently tell inspectors they have 'central station monitoring' when they have a dealer forwarding signals to a third-party station. Listed central station service requires documentation that proves the service is what the code says it is: a certificate issued by the listing organization or a placard posted at the protected premises, and a current contract that covers monitoring, runner service, record keeping and testing. The inspector looks for the certificate or placard; without it the system is evaluated as remote supervising station service, which has different requirements.
NFPA 72 reference
Chapter 26 — Supervising Station Alarm Systems
26.3.4 Indication of Central Station Service (26.3.4.1 certificate or placard documenting the service; 26.3.4.2 posted at the protected premises); 26.3.3 contract requirements; 26.3.2 listing
References use NFPA 72 2019/2022 numbering — section numbers can shift between editions, so confirm in the edition your AHJ has adopted.
On the job
An inspector asks a property manager for the central station certificate. The manager produces an alarm company invoice. A call to the dealer reveals the signals go to a contract station that is not providing runner service — it's remote station service, not central station. The Record of Completion is corrected and the owner decides whether to upgrade or amend the service.
Quick check
1. Evidence of listed central station service at the premises is a:
2. Without the certificate/placard and contract, monitoring is evaluated as:
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