LifeStation Operates its’ own monitoring center which is certified to CSAA Five Diamond standards. Their ‘Caregiver Alerts’ feature where the user can designate others to receive email alerts for important events is awesome and they have two monitoring center specialists to answer each call. Cons: LifeStation only provides basic services and has no pill reminder, smoke detector, or carbon monoxide options. The system range is only 500 feet and many have said they only get 400 feet of coverage. They have only one monitoring center so there isn’t a back up facility if the primary site goes down. Bottom line: LifeStation is an experienced Medical Alert Services company with flexible terms and a UL-Listed/CSAA 5 Diamond central monitoring center. It is a reasonable option for those looking for a home medical alert system.Company Overview
LifeStation, based in New Jersey, is an established company serving the medical alert service industry. Their system is available nationwide in the US. A key strength of the LifeStation system is that it operates its own monitoring center in-house in the US and the center adheres to both UL Listed and CSAA Five Diamond standards. The monitoring center care specialists receive 160 hours of training before they begin working and then have ongoing training too. Something unique about their center is that two specialists handle every call ” one person stays on the line with you for the entire call while the other specialist contacts help.LifeStation specializes in home medical alert systems which is their main product, and don’t offer more advanced services such as medical dispensing or carbon monoxide alerts. In recent years, LifeStation has added auto fall detection and a mobile alert with GPS system to their line of products.We found LifeStation’s website disappointing. It was dated, lacked detailed information such as a ‘Terms of Service’ page and had no chat service. The website was clearly designed to funnel people to call a sales line where you must give the sales agent your personal information or they won’t answer your questions. We found the sales people to be pushy and aggressive.LifeStation sells directly to end users such as the elderly but It is also distributed through partnerships with agencies, hospitals and local government. Visit Life Station Now!Products and Equipment LifeStation has Three Main Products:At-Home Medical Alert
$25.95/mo
Range up to 400 ft
32-hour Battery Life
LandLine Required At-Home/No Landline Medical Alert
$36.95/mo
Range up to 650 ft
32-hour Battery Life
Wireless on AT&T network; No landLine Required Mobile Medical Alert
$35.90/mo
Range up to 400 ft
30-hour Battery Life
Wireless on AT&T network; No landLine Required The LifeStation medical alert systems have two main parts: a base console unit and a help button. This base unit has a speaker which allows you to communicate with a care specialist at the monitoring center and the waterproof help button activates the system. Because the pendant is waterproof you can wear it into the shower too.LifeStation has two home systems; one that works off a landline and one goes off an AT&T network. Most Alert systems don’t recommend VoIP phone lines, but if you are interested discuss this with their technical advisors before placing an order. Some complaints have been written about getting the service to work without a landline so make sure to do your homework and choose the right system.The alert buttons work within 500 foot range of the base unit according to the company but consumer comments report the units are more limited and a more accurate range may be closer to 400 feet. You will want to check this carefully in your home. They don’t offer a free trial so you will have to pick the right equipment from the beginning.A Mobile GPS service can be added to either of these systems for an extra $9.95/mo. The Mobile GPS service works off of the strongest signal in the area so when you are on the go you will still be covered.Installation is easy. You just plug it into a phone line and power outlet. The console is designed with a large emergency button, indicator lights and a powerful two-way communication system- a speaker and voice equipment. The console has 32 hours of emergency backup battery power.Upgrades and extras to the system include:
A key lockbox to store an extra key to the house so emergency responders can enter the house without having to damage a window or door to enter.
They also offer wall mount buttons which can be mounted throughout the house when you aren’t wearing the emergency button.
A deluxe service offered is ‘Activity Assurance’. A LifeStation care specialist will check in with you on a daily basis to make sure all is well.Monitoring Center One of the things LifeStation does well is maintain it own in-house call monitoring center which operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, at all times. The center adheres to both UL Listed and CSAA Five Diamond standards and is one reason why customers pick LifeStation over other companies. That being said, there is only one center and they don’t have a backup center if this one for some reason goes down.LifeStation calls their monitoring representatives ‘LifeStation Care Specialists’. These specialists receive 160 hours of training before they begin working and are well trained to handle your calls. Because they have two LifeStation Care Specialist on every call someone will stay on the line with the you until help comes. The other person is busy calling the people on your contact list and getting you the emergency services you need.When you press the help button a LifeStation care specialists will answer quickly, usually in 20 seconds or less. The pendant is waterproof meaning you can get help even in the shower. Additional pendants are available for a monthly charge.Pricing The cost of the LifeStation medical alert system starts at $25.95 a month and goes up from there. You don’t have to commit to a long term contract and can choose to pay month-to-month. While customers can cancel at anytime with no termination fees, you must send back the equipment back and provide 30 days’ notice in order to cancel.LifeStation does NOT provide refunds on any prepaid amounts. So if you prepay for a whole year and aren’t able to use the system for any reason you will not get your money back. It might be wise to consider a monthly or quarterly plan.LifeStation has no activation fees. They ship equipment free of charge but make sure you save the box the equipment is shipped in which is required to send the equipment back. LifeStation monitoring is available in both the United States and Canada.In writing this article we had a hard time finding accurate terms of service on the website and when asked for a copy of the terms of service were told we couldn’t have one. We called and emailed again and are still waiting for a copy. We are concerned about the aggressive sales tactics along with the lack of easy access to written policies. According to some complaints, the company did not honor their guarantee. In fairness to the company there is no way to accurately vet these complaints but it is easy to see how customers can be easily confused by their policies and terms. Especially if they won’t let you see them before you buy the service. Here is two reviews illustrating the confusion,“Their add [sic] says no hidden fees… well that is not entirely true… but it is more like they have surprise fees… Here is what I mean…You go to their website… sign up for the needed service… give them your personal numbers and credit card number and all seems right until the day you get the package… THEN is when you see that there is a $15 charge for a cardboard box the unit was sent in… A surprise note that says… you will have to pay $15 if you lose the box… a stupid cardboard box that it came in… I don’t pay $15 for any cardboard box… so I called them and they gave me the ‘policy’ spiel.. I didn’t agree so I canceled the order… Am still waiting for the prepaid sticker to send the unit back and it has been several weeks… You see you will be charged until they get it back… as they have your credit card number already…”“So far after a week or so I have no major complaints. The contract is full of the same extremely prejudicial language common to all legal boilerplate” terms which you don’t even get to see until after you’ve paid and received your unit.”Customer Service LifeStation representatives are available 24/7 to answer sign-up and account questions and to provide technical support. There is no online chat service. The email is available only to request a brochure”through a form which requires your name, address and phone number or you can’t submit it.The website was clearly designed as a sales system and not for customers to research LifeStation products or to get clear answers. Our personal experience with their customer service was negative. When you call on the phone they first ask you for personal information. If you don’t want to give them your personal information they won’t answer your questions. We found the whole system to be invasive and aggressive not the approach I would want for my grandmother.***Customer service is different from the service at the emergency monitoring center. The monitoring center responds to emergencies and is staffed by different people. The Customer service staff are the people who are responsible for sales, billing, equipment and other company related services. We point this out because a company may have a superior monitoring center but a poor customer service staff. If they get poor marks for customer service it won’t affect your medical monitoring or emergency services.***Straight Talk- Best AdviceWelcome
At Medical Alert Service Reviews we are dedicated to testing, reviewing, and analyzing various medical alert service companies. We then compare and rank them to determine who has the best service available. Our goal is to help you make the best decision possible.
Caring for your loved ones can be a difficult task and a big responsibility. We hope to make it easier for you by providing facts and analysis on several services. We also compare some of the major medical alert services side by side making it easy to find exactly what you are looking for.Our SiteSearchWordpress–>
