APX fails

Al Mitton/UVU Review

To any student even remotely aware of their senses, APX Security has come to represent a big-shot company on campus and within Utah Valley. With company recruiters frequently on campus showcasing a company that assures us they are “protecting families,” many students seeking wealth embark on an out-of-state adventure to sell for APX.

But taking a look at the Better Business Bureau’s (BBB) records on APX reveals lesser-known information about the company that one will be hard-pressed to find on any of their fliers or billboards; APX currently has an F rating with the BBB.

Why is APX struggling to make the grade? It’s because the BBB has processed 1,619 complaints against APX in the last 36 months. Jane Driggs, president of the BBB in Utah, says that the excessive numbers of complaints, combined with incidents of government action against the company, are the cause of their bad rating. She also said that, in her opinion, the F is justified.

Now, the BBB, a non-profit organization, knows that evaluating a company must take into account the company’s size, volume of transactions, the nature and number of complaints, and the company’s response to those complaints. This is why they evaluate companies using an algorithm that takes these complex variables into account. In APX’s case, an excessive number of complaints have been submitted to the BBB for a variety of reasons, including sales practice issues, service issues, advertising issues, and more.

Stuart Dean, Director of Media Relations for APX Security, says the company has some differences in opinion with the BBB regarding their bad rating. According to Dean, APX believes that many of the complaints against the BBB aren’t from customers but from people who’ve felt bothered by APX salesmen. In fact, he said APX estimates that only 30-40 percent of sales practice issue complaints are from non-customers. “There are times, in our opinion, when the BBB fails to properly assess a business like ours,” said Dean. “They do not take into consideration the number of consumer interactions properly.”

But according to Driggs, only complaints from actual APX customers have given the company an F rating. “While the BBB does take complaints from consumers who have not done business with the company, those are not included in the total number shown in our reports,” Driggs said.

It seems that APX misunderstands the rating process of the BBB. It may be convenient to say that many of the complaints against their company have come from non-customers, but even if that’s true, none of those complaints were used to give them an F rating. Only complaints from APX customers were used by the BBB to evaluate the company.

Driggs said that, to their credit, “APX has always listened to the BBB and is constantly implementing new ways to try and eliminate the complaints. They also resolve all complaints.” Driggs also said it’s important for consumers to evaluate a company, not just through the BBB, but also through other resources. So while the BBB’s evaluation of APX indicates big problems within the company, potential customers should do more research before deciding whether or not the company is a good fit for them.

Before you set out to sell for APX next summer, or let their friendly salesmen in the door, be aware that the company isn’t as picture perfect as they look on their large format freeway side advertising. The company has received enough ire among their customers to cause concern—enough to earn an F grade on their BBB report card.