DIGIBAL ONLINE Editorial｜Last updated 2026-10-27｜Singapore
- 1 licence｜Security Service Provider licence, required of the provider rather than the customer
- 5 checks｜the list below takes about 10 minutes and one email
- 2 warranties｜product and workmanship are separate documents with separate periods
- 4 exclusions｜conduit, after-hours access, high-level access equipment, making good after drilling
- 1 dispute｜the usual cause is not the camera — it is the bracket, the cable entry or the termination
| 1 HK$ = | S$ SGD | A$ AUD | £ GBP | US$ USD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reference rate | S$0.16332 | A$0.18128 | £0.09565 | US$0.12748 |
Why the licence matters to a shop owner
The licence protects you in the two situations where a cheap installer costs the most: a water leak through a cable entry, and an insurance claim that is refused because the work was not done by a licensed provider.
It is tempting to treat a four-camera install as a handyman job. The failure modes are unglamorous and expensive: a cable drilled through a waterproofing membrane, a bracket into a hollow wall that lets go in a monsoon, a PoE run terminated badly that browns out a port six months later. None of those are covered by a camera warranty, and all of them are the installer's responsibility — which is only worth something if there is a licensed company standing behind it.
Check 1: the licence holder's name matches the company quoting you
Ask for the licence holder's registered entity name, then compare it with the name on the quotation and the invoice. A trading name on a name card is not evidence of anything. If the quotation comes from "ABC Solutions" and the licence belongs to "ABC Security Pte Ltd", ask why — sometimes it is a legitimate group structure, sometimes it is a reseller passing work to a third party you have never met.
Practical step: request the licence number in writing, in the same email thread as the quotation, so the two documents sit together if you ever need them.
Check 2: is the person on site actually covered?
公司许可证并不会自动涵盖乘坐无标识面包车到场的分包商工人。直接询问：“负责安装的人员是你们的员工吗？他们是否受你们的许可证和保险保障？”
检查 3：公众责任保险
索要保险证明，并确认保单当前有效。安装工作涉及在库存上方钻孔、高空作业，以及将线缆穿过天花板。如果摄像头掉落砸到顾客，或电钻打穿了洒水管，最终由谁赔偿取决于保险，而不是善意。
这也是最快的筛选方式：拥有适当保险保障的服务商可以在一小时内提供保险证明。没有保险的服务商则会转移话题。
检查 4：书面施工质量保修，与产品保修分开
这是两项不同的承诺，而大多数报价单只明确其中一项。
必须坚持加入的条款：“施工质量保修期为自完工之日起 12 个月，涵盖线缆入口、端接、安装固定及录像机配置。”没有这句话，漏水的线缆入口就会变成一场关于摄像头是否本身存在故障的争论。
检查 5：书面列明的 exclusions（不包含项目）
在询价之前，先要求对方提供不包含项目。报价便宜 30% 通常意味着有三四项内容被移出了工作范围，等团队到场后又会以变更项目的形式重新出现。
How this changes what you buy
If you buy hardware yourself and hire an installer separately, you control both halves of the cost — but only if the bill of materials is complete. An installer quoting against an incomplete list will price the gaps as variations, which is where budgets break.
A complete 8-camera basket is an 8-channel PoE recorder with 2TB, eight 8MP PoE cameras and a 120W PoE switch — about S$1,498 in hardware, before any labour. The itemised breakdown, with retention arithmetic, is in CCTV cost for a small shop in Singapore.
We sell equipment and configuration advice only. We do not install, we do not refer installers, and we take no commission from any installer — so nothing in this article is influenced by a referral relationship.
What to put in the email
One email, five questions. Copy this:
- Please confirm your Security Service Provider licence number and the registered entity name that holds it.
- Will the installers on site be your employees or subcontractors, and is each covered by your licence and insurance?
- Please attach your current public liability insurance certificate.
- Please state your workmanship warranty period and what it covers, separately from the product warranty.
- Please list everything excluded from your price, and give per-metre and after-hours rates where applicable.
Attach the bill of materials and a sketch of the shop with camera positions marked. An installer who can answer all five in one reply is usually the one worth hiring.
Frequently asked questions
Is a licence needed for a single-camera installation?
What if my landlord insists on their own contractor?
Can I buy the cameras and have my own electrician mount them?
Does a cheaper installer void my camera warranty?
How long should installation take for 8 cameras?
Related guides
- CCTV cost for a small shop in Singapore — the itemised hardware basket and retention math
- HDB shop CCTV approval — Town Council steps and a letter template
- PDPA and shop CCTV — notice wording, retention and access requests
- Hong Kong version — same hardware, Hong Kong building rules
Sources and method
- Licensing requirement for CCTV installation services: SingaporeLegalAdvice summary referencing the Private Security Industry Act.
- Statute: Private Security Industry Act 2007.
- Hardware price: DIGIBAL ONLINE product API, 2026-10-26; 1 HKD = 0.1630 SGD.
- Warranty periods quoted are market norms we see in quotations, not a regulatory requirement. Not legal advice.