Is alarm monitoring worth it for an empty or holiday property?

This is the case where monitoring is most clearly worth the money, because an empty property is precisely where a bells-only siren achieves nothing. Monitoring plus a local keyholder or a paid response contract is the standard arrangement, and insurers often require it for unoccupied buildings.

Unoccupied property insurance frequently carries conditions that occupied policies do not, and those conditions commonly include a monitored alarm, a defined inspection frequency, and specified response arrangements. Check the wording, because unoccupancy clauses are where claims get declined.

Practical priorities differ from an occupied home. You care about supervision — knowing the system is still alive, since nobody is there to notice a dead panel — and about response, since there is no one on site. Environmental monitoring for water leaks and low temperature is often worth adding, as burst pipes in an empty building cause more loss than burglary.

For a holiday let, add open and close awareness so changeovers and cleaners are visible, and be realistic about who attends: 'a keyholder' who lives two hours away is not a response plan.