UK ISP BT to Close Redcare Alarm Security Division in 2025 UPDATE

Customers of BT’s Redcare division, which supplies monitored alarm signalling systems to UK homes and businesses that enable fire, security and more to be monitored over a secure network, have informed ISPreview that the telecoms operator has communicated their plans to close the Redcare service on 1st August 2025.

According to the “Important notice” sent to customers, which was distributed via both first-class post and email, BT says they have “made the difficult to decision to close all BT Redcare operations on 1st August 2025” (or earlier if your services are contractually due to expire earlier).

The operator says they “appreciate that this will not be welcome news” and hence why they’re giving “as much notice as we possibly can“, which is at least some consolation. But for some customers, it will not be either a simple or cheap matter to switch to a different service.

However, BT says they will “continue to accept orders up to and including 29th February 2024“, albeit obviously only on the express condition that no services will continue to be provided beyond 1st August 2025. The aim of this is to help give some customers, such as those who may shortly be out of contract, the maximum time possible to find an alternative.

BT are also waiving any early termination charges from 1st March 2024 for orders that have already been placed before 1st February 2024, and where Redcare services are already being provided. The announcement comes only a couple of weeks after Redcare’s Product Manager, Andrew Deeming, boasted about their products and said (here): “There’s a lot on our product roadmap. We have a clear view of where we are going as we add to the product range over the next few years.” That clearly hasn’t aged too well.

A BT spokesperson told ISPreview:

“As part of our strategy to simplify our business portfolio and focus on delivering core products and services for our customers, we have decided to close our Redcare business in 2025.

We have informed all our Redcare customers, to give them enough advance notice to find alternative suppliers – and we will be supporting them during this process.”

The operator doesn’t split out the Redcare division in any of their financial results, so we don’t know how well (or not) it’s been performing. But regardless of their branding and simplification changes, the standing assumption in these cases is often that if they were making enough money from the service, then it probably wouldn’t be closing.

UPDATE 10:11am

We’ve added a comment from BT above.