On Sun, 24 Sep 2017 10:27:03 +0100, nomail wrote:

On 24/09/2017 09:29, Mark Allread wrote:
... snipped

I'm assuming that you *don't* want a monitored system and that it is
*not* an insurance requirement.


This raises an interesting point. I've not declared the alarm to the
insurance company because I did not want to find that the insurance
company wriggled out of a claim if we had an "incident" and had
forgotten to set the alarm, the same with window locks. Am I right to be
concerned about this?

No - if its not a requirement you don't have to declare it. If it is a
requirement it must be used whenever the property is empty (even if a
short trip into town).

Insurance requirements usually require a maintenance contract too.

Also, currently dithering about whether or not to start paying for a
monitoring service again. As the OP said: it feels a bit like the
printer ink syndrome but, in a rural area, is there any point in setting
an alarm without monitoring?

Depends on how close your neighbours are and if they have a key for
access. Monitored systems are OK in that they will notify you/keyholder
but can be expensive. Only you know what that peace of mind is worth.