To cancel Life Alert, call member services at 1-800-990-0595 and state your reason, but whether the company will let you out depends on timing. Inside the 36-month contract, cancellation is only permitted if the subscriber has moved to a facility with 24-hour care or has died. After that term ends, the account converts to month-to-month and you can cancel with 30 days’ notice for any reason. Either way, expect to return the equipment and to document every step, because continued billing after a cancellation request is one of the most common complaints against the company.
The 36-Month Contract and What It Allows
Life Alert’s standard agreement runs three years. Monthly fees range from about $49.95 for the base unit alone to $89.95 for a package with add-ons like GPS pendants. During those 36 months, the contract recognizes only two qualifying events for early cancellation: a permanent move into a facility providing round-the-clock professional care, or the subscriber’s death.1New York State Office of the Attorney General. Assurance of Discontinuance: Life Alert Emergency Response, Inc. – Section: V. Consumer Cancellation Rights
Cancel outside those reasons and Life Alert can hold you or the subscriber’s estate liable for the remaining months on the contract. On a $69.95 plan with 18 months left, that is over $1,250. This is the leverage that makes the process feel so difficult, and it is the reason a qualifying event and its documentation matter so much.
Once the initial three years end, the agreement rolls over to month-to-month. From that point you can cancel with 30 days’ written notice for any reason. If the contract is close to expiring, waiting it out is often the simplest path.
Documenting a Move to 24-Hour Care
For a move to a nursing home, assisted living facility, or any residence with 24-hour professional supervision, Life Alert requires written proof.1New York State Office of the Attorney General. Assurance of Discontinuance: Life Alert Emergency Response, Inc. – Section: V. Consumer Cancellation Rights A letter on official letterhead from the facility administrator or the subscriber’s physician confirming the move works. Make sure it states that the subscriber now receives around-the-clock supervision, not just that they live at the facility.
Documenting a Death
When the subscriber passes away, a certified copy of the death certificate is the standard documentation. You will also need the subscriber’s full name as it appears on the account and the subscriber ID printed on billing statements. The company cannot require more than the certificate itself as justification.
Making the Cancellation Call
Call 1-800-990-0595 during business hours and work through the automated menu to a live representative. Be direct about your intent to cancel and state the qualifying reason. Before you hang up, get a confirmation or reference number for the call, and write down the representative’s name along with the date and time. That record is your first line of defense if billing continues.
After a 2021 enforcement action by the New York Attorney General, Life Alert agreed to allow phone cancellation without requiring separate written notice by certified mail.1New York State Office of the Attorney General. Assurance of Discontinuance: Life Alert Emergency Response, Inc. – Section: V. Consumer Cancellation Rights Even so, a follow-up letter sent by certified mail with return receipt is worth the $4 to $8 in postage. It creates a timestamped record proving the company received your notice. Send it to Life Alert, 16027 Ventura Blvd, Suite 400, Encino, CA 91436.
Your letter should include the subscriber’s full name, the account or subscriber ID number, the date of the phone cancellation, the reference number you were given, and a clear statement of the qualifying event. Attach copies of your supporting documents. Keep the originals.
Returning the Equipment
Life Alert will not close the account until they receive the hardware back. That includes the main base station and every wearable pendant or help button. During the cancellation call, confirm the current return shipping address. The company does not provide prepaid labels, so plan to pay for return shipping yourself.
Use a carrier that offers tracking and delivery confirmation. Photograph the equipment before boxing it up and save the tracking number with the rest of your cancellation records. Once the package shows as delivered, call back to confirm the account is fully closed and no further charges will be processed. Missing or damaged equipment can trigger replacement fees running into a few hundred dollars, depending on the device.
Watch your bank or credit card statements for at least 30 days after delivery is confirmed. A stray charge caught quickly is much easier to reverse.
The Three-Day Cooling-Off Right for In-Home Sign-Ups
If a Life Alert sales representative came to the subscriber’s home and the contract was signed there, federal law provides a separate exit. The FTC’s Cooling-Off Rule gives buyers three business days to cancel any sale of goods or services made at their home, workplace, or a temporary location like a hotel meeting room. Saturday counts as a business day; Sundays and federal holidays do not.2Federal Trade Commission. Buyer’s Remorse: The FTC’s Cooling-Off Rule May Help
To use the right, sign and date the cancellation form the seller was required to provide at the time of sale, and mail it before midnight on the third business day. If no form was provided, write a letter stating your intent to cancel and send it by certified mail. The seller then has 10 days to refund all money paid.3eCFR. 16 CFR 429.1 – The Rule
This right does not apply if the subscriber signed up by phone, online, or at a Life Alert office, and it does not apply if the total sale price was under $25. For an elderly subscriber signed up during an in-home visit, though, those three days sidestep the 36-month contract entirely.
Canceling for a Parent or Deceased Subscriber
If you are handling this for a parent or family member who is still alive but cannot manage the process, Life Alert will ask you to prove your authority to act on the account. A valid power of attorney makes that straightforward. Without one, the company can refuse to discuss the account, citing privacy policies.
When the subscriber is cognitively able but physically limited, the simplest workaround is a three-way call where the subscriber verbally authorizes you to speak on their behalf. Ask the representative to note that authorization on the account. For a subscriber with dementia or a similar condition, a durable power of attorney (one that stays valid after incapacity) is the right legal tool, but the subscriber must still be legally competent at the time of signing. An elder law attorney can prepare one.
When the subscriber has died, the executor or personal representative of the estate can cancel by providing the death certificate along with documentation of their role, such as letters testamentary from probate court.
If Life Alert Keeps Charging You
Continued billing after a cancellation request is a recurring complaint. If you followed the steps above and charges keep appearing, there are several escalation paths.
Dispute the Charges With Your Bank or Card Issuer
If the charges hit a credit card, the Fair Credit Billing Act gives you 60 days from the date of the statement containing the disputed charge to file a written dispute with your card issuer.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1666 – Correction of Billing Errors Your dispute letter should identify the charge, explain that you canceled the service and the date you did so, and include copies of your cancellation confirmation and certified mail receipt. The card issuer must acknowledge the dispute within 30 days and resolve it within two billing cycles, no more than 90 days.
For charges pulled directly from a checking account by ACH, contact your bank to place a stop-payment order on future Life Alert withdrawals. That does not resolve past charges, but it stops any new ones while you work through the dispute.
Dispute a Collection Entry on Your Credit Report
If Life Alert sends the disputed balance to collections and it appears on a credit report, file a written dispute with each credit bureau showing the entry. Include an explanation of why the debt is incorrect, along with copies of your cancellation documentation.5Federal Trade Commission. Disputing Errors on Your Credit Reports Both the bureau and the company that reported the debt must investigate and correct inaccurate entries at no cost to you.
File a Complaint or Sue in Small Claims Court
The New York Attorney General’s 2021 action against Life Alert required the company to notify customers of their cancellation rights and to issue refunds to consumers who had been improperly denied cancellation.6New York State Office of the Attorney General. Attorney General James Scores Victory for Thousands of Elderly New Yorkers Your state attorney general’s consumer protection division handles similar complaints, and filing one creates an official record. You can also file with the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov, which feeds a national database regulators use to track patterns.
Small claims court is available if the disputed amount is within your local court’s limit, which varies by jurisdiction from a few hundred dollars to several thousand. Filing fees are usually under $100 and you do not need an attorney. Bring your cancellation records, certified mail receipts, and bank statements showing the continued charges.