Do smart home alarm systems get police response?

Not on a self-monitored basis. A DIY smart alarm that only sends alerts to your phone cannot obtain a URN, so there is no police response to its activations. Some brands offer a paid professional monitoring add-on, and whether that reaches police response depends on the installer and Alarm Receiving Centre behind it being approved — which is worth verifying rather than assuming.

Marketing in this space is frequently loose, with wording like 'professional monitoring' or 'we can request police dispatch' that stops short of the specific claim.

The specific claim to ask for is: is this system installed and maintained by an NSI- or SSAIB-approved company, is it monitored by a certificated ARC, and can you obtain a police URN for my address? A provider that can do that will answer plainly. A provider that cannot will change the subject to response times and app features.

There is also a self-installation problem. Police response conditions require professional installation and maintenance by an approved company, so a system you fitted yourself generally cannot qualify however good the hardware is.

None of this makes smart alarms bad. They are convenient, they deter, and they give you eyes on the property. Just do not buy one expecting police attendance.