Every security proposal looks identical in a spreadsheet: headcount, shift pattern, monthly rate. The differences that decide whether you get protection or just presence never appear in that grid. Ask these instead.
1. Who supervises, and how often do they visit unannounced?
Guarding quality decays without supervision. Ask for the area officer's name, their span of control, and the documented frequency of night checks.
2. What is your guard attrition rate?
Above 40% annually means you will be training new faces every quarter. Ask for the figure and for their reliever bench strength.
3. How is attendance recorded?
Register signatures are fiction. Biometric or app-based attendance with geo-tagging is the current standard.
4. What happens at 3 AM when a guard does not report?
The answer should be a named control room number, a reliever roster and a maximum response window in writing.
5. Show me the last PF and ESIC challan.
Not the registration certificate - the most recent payment challan.
6. What training did these specific guards receive?
Ask for induction dates and refresher records for the actual people who will stand your posts.
7. Are post-wise duty instructions issued in writing?
A guard without written instructions defaults to whatever the last guard did.
8. How are incidents reported and escalated?
Look for a standard incident format, a defined escalation matrix and monthly reporting.
9. What insurance cover exists?
Public liability and workmen's compensation, with sums insured stated.
10. Can I speak to a client you lost?
The most revealing question in the list. How an agency answers it tells you more than any reference they hand-pick.
