Guides
Vetting a CCTV installer before the deposit
Ask four things before paying anyone: an itemised quote with model numbers on every line, a marked plan showing what each camera covers, written confirmation that you keep the admin password, and the price of a call-out after warranty. Installers who dodge any of the four have told you what you need to know.
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Model numbers make quotes comparable
Islamabad's market carries cameras that look identical on a shelf and differ threefold in sensor and build. A quote that reads 'complete 4-camera package' hides which one you are getting, along with the drive size that decides your retention. Insist on a line for each camera model, the recorder, the drive capacity, cable type and labour. Two itemised quotes can be compared in five minutes; two lump sums never can.
The plan proves the survey happened
Plenty of quotes in this city are produced over the phone from a camera count and a plot size. A sketch of your premises with each camera marked and its coverage arc drawn proves someone stood on site and thought about blind spots, backlight from that glass front and where the cable actually goes. If there is no plan, the number on the quote is a guess wearing a price.
Ask the year-two questions
The install is one day; the relationship is five years. Ask who holds the admin password — the only right answer is you. Ask what a call-out costs after the warranty year; ours start at PKR 3,000 in the twin cities and we will put it in writing. Ask whether they carry parts locally and offer a maintenance contract — ours from PKR 15,000 a year. Vague answers now become unreturned calls later.
How do I pick a good CCTV company in Islamabad?
Why do quotes for the same job differ so much?
Camera grade, drive size and whether a real survey happened. A quote with fewer, better cameras and thirty days of storage routinely beats one with more cameras and twelve days. Compare coverage and retention, never the headline figure.
Should I just take the cheapest quote?
Only when its plan and parts list stand up beside the others. The usual places a cheap quote saves are the drive, the power supply and the survey — the three savings that come back as faults.
Rather have it done?
CCTV installation means a free survey of your shop, office or home, a camera plan that covers gates, counters and blind corners, cabling run through conduit, a recorder sized for the days of footage you want, and phone viewing working before handover. A four-camera 2MP package in Islamabad or Rawalpindi runs PKR 55,000 to 85,000 fitted.
CCTV installation in Islamabad — prices and scope