Most businesses hire security for the first time under pressure. There has been a break-in, an insurer has attached a condition, a tenant has complained, or an event is three weeks out and nobody booked coverage.
Hiring under pressure is how you end up with the wrong service at the wrong rate. This guide sets out the process properly: how to scope the work, how many guards you actually need, what it costs in BC, and what to put in front of providers so the quotes you get back are genuinely comparable.
Step 1: Define the problem, not the solution
The most common mistake is starting with "we need a guard." That is a solution. Start with the problem, because it frequently points somewhere cheaper.
Write down, specifically:
- What has actually happened, with dates. Three break-ins in six weeks is a different problem from one incident two years ago.
- When it happens. Overnight, weekends, during shift change, during trading hours.
- Where it happens. A loading bay, a parkade, the front entrance, the perimeter fence.
- What it has cost you, including deductibles, lost stock, downtime and staff hours, not just the replacement value of what went missing.
- What you have already tried. Lighting, locks, cameras, fencing.
That last point matters. A proper site assessment sometimes concludes that better lighting and a rekeyed door solve the problem for a fraction of what staffed coverage costs. A provider willing to tell you that is worth more than one who quotes guards for everything.
Step 2: Work out hours and headcount
Two numbers drive your quote more than anything else: how many guard-hours per week, and how many guards on site at once.
Hours. Map the actual exposure window. If your incidents happen between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m., you need six hours a night, not a 12-hour shift because it sounded thorough. Most BC providers apply a four-hour minimum per shift, so anything shorter still bills at four.
Headcount. For most commercial property, one guard is the answer. You need more than one when:
- The site is too large for one person to cover and still respond
- There are multiple entrances that must be controlled simultaneously
- Crowd numbers require it, which is the usual driver at events
- A lone-worker risk assessment concludes a single guard is not safe on that site
Do not over-specify. A provider quoting two guards where one will do is either padding the number or has not asked enough questions.
Step 3: Static, mobile, or both
This decision typically moves the price more than any negotiation you will do later.
Static guarding puts an officer on your site for the duration of the shift. You are paying for continuous presence, immediate response and a visible deterrent. It suits sites with people on them, a fixed access point to control, or a continuous risk.
Mobile patrol sends a marked vehicle to your property several times a night at randomized intervals, with every visit logged. Because the cost of the vehicle and officer is spread across several client sites, it delivers much of the deterrent value of a guard for a fraction of the cost. It suits empty buildings, yards, construction sites and multi-property portfolios.
Hybrid covers the highest-risk window with a static guard and the rest with patrols. For a lot of businesses this is the right answer, and nobody offers it unless asked.
Our static guards versus mobile patrols comparison works through the trade-offs in detail.
Step 4: Budget against real BC rates
Licensed guard coverage through a properly insured BC company generally starts around $28 per hour and runs into the $40s depending on service type, hours and notice. Specialized work such as executive protection sits above that range.
What moves the number:
- Service type. Concierge and front-desk coverage typically sits at the lower end; event and short-notice work at the higher end.
- Hours and shift length. Overnight, weekend and statutory holiday coverage costs more.
- Notice. Booking three weeks out costs less than booking tomorrow.
- Volume and term. Ongoing contracts price better per hour than one-off bookings.
Our security guard cost guide breaks the rates down by service type.
On quotes that look too good: a rate materially below the market is a signal, not a bargain. Guards in BC must be licensed, and a licensed company must carry insurance, run supervision and pay well above minimum wage to retain anyone competent. A quote well under $28 an hour usually means the guards are underpaid and will churn constantly, the insurance is thinner than it should be, or the work is being subcontracted to a company you have not vetted.
Step 5: Shortlist licensed providers
In BC, both the company and every individual guard must be licensed under the Security Services Act. This is not optional, and it is verifiable.
For each provider on your list, confirm:
- A valid security business licence. Ask for the number.
- Individually licensed guards. The business licence does not cover the workers.
- General liability insurance, with a certificate you can actually see. Fireball Security carries $2M CAD in comprehensive general liability.
- WorkSafeBC coverage in good standing. If it is not, exposure can land on you.
- References from comparable sites. A provider strong in event work is not automatically strong in industrial patrol.
Our guide to choosing a security company in BC covers the vetting in more depth, with city-specific versions for Kelowna, Vancouver and Victoria.
Step 6: Send a proper request
Vague requests produce vague quotes that cannot be compared. Send every provider the same information:
- Property type and size. Retail unit, warehouse, construction site, strata building, with square footage or acreage.
- Address, or at minimum the municipality.
- Coverage window. Exact days and hours.
- Duration. Ongoing, fixed term, or one-off.
- The problem you are solving, in a sentence or two. Providers who understand the problem quote better solutions.
- Specific duties. Access control, patrols, alarm response, opening and closing, key holding, parking enforcement, reporting.
- Any conditions attached. Insurer requirements, fire watch obligations, municipal or licensing conditions.
- Reporting expectations. What you want to receive and how often.
Ask each provider to quote the same scope. If one proposes something different because they think it fits better, that is useful, but ask for a like-for-like price alongside it.
Step 7: Read the contract properly
The rate is the part everyone reads. These are the parts that cause disputes:
- Minimum shift length and how partial shifts bill
- Overtime, statutory holiday and short-notice premiums
- Cancellation notice, for a single shift and for the contract
- Term and auto-renewal. Twelve-month auto-renewing terms are common, so know what you are signing
- Guard replacement. What happens when your regular officer leaves, and whether you get a say
- Subcontracting. Whether any part can be handed to another company
- Insurance and indemnity. Who carries what
- Reporting deliverables, written into the contract rather than promised verbally
Step 8: Set up the first two weeks
Coverage fails in the first fortnight more often than at any later point, almost always for the same reason: the guard was never properly briefed.
Before the first shift, provide:
- A site orientation in person, walking the property
- Written post orders. What to check, in what order, what to do when something is wrong, who to call
- A contact escalation list with names and numbers, and who is authorized to make decisions at 2 a.m.
- Access. Keys, codes, alarm procedures, parking
- Introductions to your own staff, so the guard is not a stranger to the people they are protecting
Then review at two weeks. Read the reports, walk the site, and ask whether the coverage window is still right. The first fortnight of reports frequently shows the risk sits an hour either side of where you assumed.
Frequently asked questions
1. How much does it cost to hire security guards in BC?
Generally from around $28 per hour into the $40s through a licensed, insured company, depending on service type, hours and notice. Mobile patrol costs less per property because the vehicle is shared across several sites.
2. Do security guards in BC have to be licensed?
Yes. Both the individual guard and the company employing them must hold current licences under the Security Services Act. Ask for both and verify them.
3. What is the minimum time I can book a guard for?
Four hours is the standard minimum shift in BC. Shorter bookings are usually billed at the four-hour minimum regardless.
4. How quickly can guards start?
For standard commercial coverage, typically a few days. For urgent situations such as a fire watch requirement or coverage after a break-in, considerably faster. Call 250-899-6620 and we will tell you what we can staff and when.
5. Should I hire guards directly or use a security company?
Hiring directly means you take on licensing verification, WorkSafeBC exposure, supervision, scheduling, relief coverage and liability. For most businesses the contract route is cheaper once those costs are counted, and it is the only practical option below roughly full-time coverage.
6. What can a security guard legally do in BC?
Guards observe, deter, report and control access. They are not police. They can make a citizen's arrest in narrowly defined circumstances, but a well-run provider trains guards to avoid that in almost all cases. Our guard duties and responsibilities article sets out the limits.
7. What should I ask for in reporting?
GPS-verified patrol logs confirming attendance, incident reports with photographs delivered within minutes, and a periodic summary. Without documentation you cannot evidence anything to an insurer or a court.
Getting a quote
If you have worked through the steps above, you have what you need to brief a provider properly.
Fireball Security has operated across British Columbia since 2020, serving 100+ clients in 11 cities with a roster of 100+ licensed guards. Every officer is licensed, every site gets GPS-verified reporting, and we carry $2M CAD in comprehensive general liability.
Send us the details and we will come back with a quote within 60 minutes during business hours, or call 250-899-6620.
