Serving Los Angeles County
Security Guard Services in Los Angeles
In the City of Los Angeles a guard company needs more than a state licence: a City
police permit from the Board of Police Commissioners, and City registration for every
officer it puts on the street. Guardian’s BSIS-registered guards cover Los Angeles
posts under CA PPO #121089, backed by our California operations center around the
clock.
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CA PPO #121089 · ACO #7501
2,700+ California Businesses Protected
20+ Years in Business
The Los Angeles Rule
Los Angeles Requires a City Police Permit on Top of the State Guard Licence
California licenses every guard company through the Bureau of Security and Investigative Services. Los Angeles adds a second layer that most cities do not.
Under Los Angeles Municipal Code section 52.34, it is unlawful to operate a private patrol service in the City of Los Angeles without both a State of California licence and a permit from the City. The permit application goes to the Board of Police Commissioners and must carry a copy of the company’s state Private Patrol Operator licence, the territory it proposes to serve, and its procedure for investigating citizen complaints against its officers. Every uniformed officer who patrols on City streets must hold a state Guard Registration card and be registered with the City within 15 days of being hired; the Board keeps those permits on file. The ordinance also fixes what a Los Angeles officer may carry, how patrol vehicles must be marked, and a duty to report felonies to LAPD immediately.
That is the standard a Los Angeles buyer should hold every guard company to. Ask for the state PPO number and the City permit before you sign. Guardian Integrated Security operates under California PPO #121089, and every guard on a Guardian post holds a current BSIS registration.
On-site security guard services also do a job no camera can. A registered guard is the physical presence at the door, the gate and the lot during the hours your people and customers are on the property — and where a Los Angeles site is too large to walk, Guardian backs that guard with cameras and live agents from our California operations center.
“It shall be unlawful to engage in the business of maintaining or operating any private patrol service in the City of Los Angeles without first obtaining a license as required by the State of California and a permit from the City.”
City Permit Required
A private patrol service may not operate in the City of Los Angeles without a state licence and a City permit. (LAMC § 52.34(b)(1))
Officers Registered With the City
Every street patrol officer needs a state Guard Registration card and City registration within 15 days of hire. (§ 52.34(c))
Police Commission Oversight
The Board of Police Commissioners issues and keeps the permits and approves uniforms and patrol-vehicle markings. (§ 52.34(c)(1), (d), (e))
Felonies Reported Immediately
Every private patrol service and officer must immediately report felonies and listed misdemeanors to LAPD. (§ 52.34(f))
More in Los Angeles
All Guardian Services in Los Angeles
Licensed guards for LA construction sites, equipment yards and industrial facilities.
The Basics
What Security Guard Services Cover in Los Angeles
Security guard services put a licensed, uniformed officer on your property — at a lobby desk, a gate, a loading dock, a parking structure or on foot patrol — to control access, deter theft and disorder, respond to incidents while they are happening, and document them.
In California every guard company must hold a Private Patrol Operator licence, and every guard must be registered with the Bureau of Security and Investigative Services after a DOJ and FBI background check and Power to Arrest training, with 32 hours of security-officer skills training in the first six months. Guardian’s guards can be unarmed or armed, standing post or foot patrol, for a single shift or a 24/7 schedule.
On-site guard coverage typically runs $25–30 per hour, which works out to roughly $20,000 a month for a single post staffed around the clock. Where a Los Angeles site has more fence line than a guard can walk, Guardian pairs the post with live video monitoring — live agents on the cameras at under $3 per hour — so the guard covers the door and the agents cover the perimeter. Contact us for a quote on your specific property.
Our Operations Center
Los Angeles Guard Posts Backed by Our California Operations Center
A guard on a Los Angeles post is never working alone. Every Guardian post reports into our California operations center — the same team that watches our clients’ camera feeds around the clock — which tracks the guard’s timed check-ins and receives incident reports as they are filed. When a post also has cameras, an agent who sees activity on the perimeter can alert the guard on site and, once an intrusion is confirmed, alert and coordinate with LAPD using what has actually been seen.
Guardian sends its own licensed patrol when a post needs backup, and Los Angeles Municipal Code § 52.34 already requires every private patrol service to report felonies to the Police Department immediately — a duty our guards carry on every shift in the City. Your site gets a written incident report for every event and a supervisor you can reach.
Our Process
How Guardian Monitoring Works, Step by Step
A simple, proven process that keeps your business protected 24/7,
Assess
We walk the property with you — perimeter, lighting, blind spots, and the access points that matter after hours.
Install
NDAA-compliant cameras and on-site speakers, installed by Guardian’s licensed California technicians. Fast deployment for active job sites.
Verify
Our agents watch the feeds live. AI flags activity in under a second; a human confirms what it is.
Respond
Two-way audio warning on the spot, law enforcement alerted with verified detail, and a written incident report to you.
Property Types
Built for the Lobbies, Lots and Storefronts Where LA Does Business
Los Angeles commercial property is spread across a county-sized city, and a guard post has to fit the block it sits on. Downtown and Bunker Hill carry high-rise office lobbies and parking structures; Wilshire, Century City and the Westside add corporate towers and medical office; Hollywood and the Harbor area run hotels, venues and visitor traffic; and retail corridors from the Fairfax district to the San Fernando Valley trade on foot traffic that has to be welcomed and watched at the same time.
Beyond the storefronts sit the dealerships, logistics yards, warehouses and multifamily properties of Vernon, Commerce, the Alameda Corridor, the South Bay and the Valley — large sites where a gate post, a foot patrol and a camera system each do a different job.
Guardian staffs guard posts across Los Angeles County, including downtown LA, the San Fernando Valley, the Westside, the South Bay and the Harbor area, and the Eastside and San Gabriel Valley.
Retail & Parking
How On-Site Guards Protect LA Retail Centers and Parking Structures
Retail centers and parking structures across Los Angeles — from the Fairfax district and Hollywood to the Valley and the South Bay — share the same exposure: open entrances, customers coming and going, and a lot or garage where people are alone with their cars.
Guardian’s guards stand where that exposure is: a visible post at the storefront or garage entrance, foot patrol through the aisles and levels, an escort when a tenant asks for one, and a trained response when a confrontation starts — protect the people present, de-escalate, alert LAPD, and file the report. Where the structure has cameras, our California operations center watches the levels the guard is not on and alerts the guard when something needs attention.
Los Angeles Clients
Trusted by California Businesses for Two Decades
“Our liquor store had few break ins recently but since they deployed their security unit we feel very secure and have peace of mind now! They constantly dispatch warnings to suspicious trespassers!”
— Nabil Tadlaoui, Google Review
Nabil Tadlaoui Google Review
Los Angeles Data
One in Three LA Robberies in 2025 Happened at a Business or Its Parking Lot
LAPD’s 2025 incident data records 7,109 robbery offenses in the City of Los Angeles. Of those, 2,407 — 33.9% — occurred at 20 commercial premise types: parking lots and garages (498), other businesses (467), convenience stores (345), department and discount stores (204), grocery stores (171) and gas stations (143) lead the list. 1,361 of the commercial robberies, 56.5%, happened between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m., during business hours; 760, or 31.6%, had been cleared by arrest.
Widen the lens to crimes against persons — assault, battery, criminal threats and the like — at the same 20 premise types, and LAPD recorded 8,790 offenses in 2025, with 5,144 (58.5%) between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. and 13.7% cleared by arrest. Parking lots and garages alone account for 2,738 of them.
This is the case for a guard on site, not only a camera. Robbery and assault happen while the doors are open and people are present; the value is a trained officer already on the property when it starts — to protect staff and customers, intervene where it is safe to, and give LAPD a first-hand account.
Source: Los Angeles Police Department NIBRS Offenses 2024–2025, City of Los Angeles Open Data (dataset y8y3-fqfu). Figures are calendar-year 2025 by date of occurrence, queried 28 August 2026; the 20 commercial premise types and the NIBRS robbery code (120) are LAPD’s own categories. Clearance status is point-in-time; open cases may clear later.
Read the full data: Los Angeles Commercial Burglary Statistics
FAQ
Security Guard Services in Los Angeles — FAQ
Does a security guard company in Los Angeles need a City permit as well as a state licence?
Yes. Los Angeles Municipal Code § 52.34 makes it unlawful to operate a private patrol service in the City of Los Angeles without both a State of California licence and a permit from the City, issued through the Board of Police Commissioners. Each uniformed officer who patrols on City streets must also hold a state Guard Registration card and be registered with the City within 15 days of hire; the Board keeps those permits on file. The state layer is the Bureau of Security and Investigative Services’ Private Patrol Operator licence — Guardian’s is PPO #121089 — plus BSIS registration for every guard. Before you sign with any company in Los Angeles, ask for both.
When do robberies and assaults at Los Angeles businesses happen — after hours or during the day?
Mostly during business hours. LAPD’s 2025 incident data records 2,407 robberies at 20 commercial premise types in the City of Los Angeles, and 56.5% of them occurred between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m.; of the 8,790 crimes against persons at the same premises, 58.5% happened in that daytime window, and parking lots and garages were the single largest location. Burglary runs on a different clock — see our Los Angeles commercial burglary statistics — which is why a Los Angeles guard schedule usually starts with the hours customers and staff are on site, with cameras and live monitoring carrying the overnight.
Should my Los Angeles business use armed or unarmed guards?
For most Los Angeles commercial properties, unarmed. LAPD’s 2025 data on the 2,407 robberies at commercial premises records bodily force as the most common weapon — 982 offenses, 40.8% — and a handgun in 313, or 13.0%. A BSIS-registered unarmed guard trained on detention limits and de-escalation covers the typical retail, office, parking and multifamily post. Armed guards, who hold an additional BSIS firearms permit, are reserved for posts with cash, high-value inventory or a documented threat history; in the City of Los Angeles, § 52.34(d) also limits the calibers a street patrol officer may carry and requires the state firearm qualification card for that firearm. Guardian assesses the post before recommending either.
What does a Guardian guard do when a crime happens at my Los Angeles property?
Protect the people present first, then report. Los Angeles Municipal Code § 52.34(f) requires every private patrol service and every street patrol officer to immediately report felonies and listed misdemeanors to the Police Department, and to notify LAPD of any weapon discharge or private person’s arrest. A Guardian guard follows the post orders for that site — intervene where it is safe to, detain only within the limits California law sets for private persons, alert LAPD with a first-hand account, and file a written incident report you receive after the shift. Guardian sends its own licensed patrol when the post needs backup, with our California operations center on the line throughout.
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Reviewed by the Guardian Integrated Security editorial team · CA PPO #121089 · Last updated 1 September 2026