There is no official ranking of Houston security companies. "Top" is whatever holds up when you check it: an active state license, officers commissioned for the post, current insurance, and a written record of every patrol. Reliable Guard & Patrol Service posts licensed armed and unarmed officers at Houston commercial sites, tracks every round by GPS, and issues a certificate of insurance the same day. Texas DPS license B07315701, active since 2018. About 150 officers across the metro.
What actually makes a security company "top" in Houston
Most “best security company” lists rank firms by star count and review volume. Review count tells you a company was busy last year. It does not tell you whether the license is active this month, whether the officer on your site is commissioned for the work, or whether anyone is writing down what happens overnight.
A company worth hiring in Houston clears four checks that a review score does not measure. Its company license is active in the Texas Department of Public Safety database, not lapsed. Its armed officers hold a current Level III commission, confirmed by name. It carries general liability, workers’ compensation, and commercial auto, and it will show you the certificate. And it proves the work with GPS-logged rounds and written incident reports, not a promise that a car drove by.
High review volume and current compliance are not the same thing. A firm can carry hundreds of five-star reviews and still be operating on a license with an open issue, because reviews are not connected to the state’s records. The state records are public. You can check them in a few minutes, and the next two sections show you exactly how.
The 5-Point Security Company Check
Before you sign with any Houston security company, run it through these five checks. Each one is verifiable before deployment, and four of the five you can confirm without taking the company’s word for it. Apply the same five to us.
# | Check | What to ask for | How to verify it |
1 | Company license | The Texas DPS company license number and class | Search the number in the state TOPS portal. Status must read Active, with services that match what you are buying. |
2 | Officer commission | For armed posts, each officer’s Level III commission | Confirm the individual commission in TOPS. A company license alone does not let a guard carry a firearm on your site. |
3 | Insurance | A certificate of insurance naming general liability, workers’ comp, and commercial auto | Read the effective and expiration dates. Ask to be added as a certificate holder. |
4 | Proof of work | How each patrol is recorded | GPS guard-tour logs and written incident reports you receive. If the company cannot show you the record, there is no record. |
5 | Contract terms | The shortest term offered and who your point of contact is | A fair company offers weekly or month-to-month. One named account supervisor, not a call center. |
Checks 1 and 2 are the two most Houston buyers skip, and they are the two that carry the most liability. A lapsed or missing license is your problem as the client, not only the company’s, and an uncommissioned guard carrying a firearm on your property is a claim waiting to happen. Run all five. We will hand you the answers to all five in writing.
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We Cover Houston, TX, Sugar Land, TX, Pearland, TX, Conroe, TX
How to verify a Houston security company's license yourself
You can confirm any Houston security company’s license in the state’s public database in about five minutes. Here is the exact process, and our license number so you can practice on us.
- Open the Texas TOPS portal. Go to Texas Online Private Security (TOPS), the public license search run by the Texas Department of Public Safety.
- Search Licensees by company or number. Enter our company license number, B07315701, or search “Reliable Guard and Patrol Service.”
- Confirm the status reads Active. Check that the license is current, the class covers guard services, and there is no open issue. A lapsed or suspended license is a real insurance and liability problem for you.
- Ask for officer-level proof. For an armed post, confirm the assigned officer holds an active Level III commission. We provide officer names on request so you can check.
The state keeps disciplinary records too. Companies do get administrative suspensions in Texas for failing inspections or record-keeping rules, and those actions do not show up in a Google rating. Two minutes in TOPS tells you more about risk than a page of five-star reviews. That is why we put our license number on the page instead of asking you to trust an adjective.
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Free Armed & Unarmed Security Proposal
Why Houston businesses choose Reliable Guard & Patrol Service
Why Choose Our Armed Guards:
01. Fully Licensed to Carry in the State of Texas
02. Background-Checked and Drug Tested
03. Trained in Firearms Handling and De-Escalation
04. Experienced in High-Risk Property Protection
05. Serving Houston Businesses for Over 20 Years
06. Corporate, Construction, Retail, and Event Coverage
07. 24/7 Coverage Including Holidays
What a Texas security guard can legally do
A licensed security officer in Texas has the authority of a private citizen, not the powers of a police officer. What you are paying for is an officer trained to use that limited authority correctly and to document it, so a stopped incident holds up afterward.
When an officer can act. Under the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, any person, including a security officer, may arrest without a warrant when a felony or an offense against the public peace happens in their presence or view (Article 14.01). For theft, Texas also lets any person seize stolen property and hold the suspect when there is reasonable ground to believe the property was stolen, as long as the seizure is made openly and the matter is handled without delay (Article 18.16).
What happens next. A detained person is turned over to police without delay. A security officer does not file charges, transport, or jail anyone. Force is limited to what is reasonable, under the same self-defense and defense-of-property rules that apply to any citizen.
Armed versus unarmed, in legal terms. A Level III commissioned officer may carry a firearm on duty. That does not widen arrest authority. The difference is deterrence and the response option on a higher-risk post, not extra legal power. Both officer types work inside the same citizen-authority limits.
An officer who oversteps that authority creates liability for the property owner, not only for the company. Training, clear post orders, and a written record are the controls that keep a stop defensible.
The 6-Point Officer Standard
Guard reliability is the thing clients worry about most, so no officer works one of our posts until they clear all six checks. The same six apply to every officer, on every site, before deployment.
- DPS license verification. Active Texas DPS registration confirmed for the level the post requires, before the officer is deployed.
- Fingerprint background check. Full criminal background screening, with fingerprint-based checks consistent with state requirements.
- Drug testing. Pre-assignment drug testing, armed or unarmed, no exceptions.
- Interview to standard. An in-person interview against company conduct and presentation standards, not only a license check.
- Verified references. References contacted and confirmed. We check history, we do not assume it.
- Recurring training. Unarmed officers complete Level II training. Armed officers requalify on firearm proficiency and complete 6 hours of continuing education at each two-year license renewal.
Armed or unarmed: which your Houston site needs
Most commercial posts in Houston are unarmed. Unarmed officers handle deterrence, access control, visitor checks, and observe-and-report work, which covers the large majority of commercial theft, trespass, and vandalism. Armed officers cost more per hour and fit a narrower set of sites.
Choose armed when the site has cash on hand, high-value or easily-resold assets, a history of violent incidents, or a specific credible threat. Otherwise, unarmed deterrence with a clear escalation plan handles the job, and we will tell you when that is the honest answer for your site rather than selling you the higher-cost option.
Unarmed officer | Armed officer (Level III) | |
Best for | Construction sites, warehouses, vacant buildings, offices, retail lots | Cash handling, high-value assets, prior violent incidents, a named threat |
Main risk addressed | Theft, trespass, vandalism, unauthorized access | Armed threats, robbery, workplace violence, high-value asset loss |
Training | Level II non-commissioned course and state exam | Level III course, minimum 45 hours, plus firearm proficiency |
Renewal | Ongoing per state requirements | Firearm requalification and 6 hours of continuing education every two years |
Who we are for, and who we are not
We staff two officer types across commercial sites: construction, warehouses, buildings and offices, retail and shopping centers, and vacant buildings. Commercial posts are the whole business, which is why our officers know them.
We are not the right call for everyone. We do not take residential, HOA, or event work, and we do not run K-9, fire watch, alarm response, or parking enforcement. If that is what you need, we are not your company, and we will say so on the first call instead of stretching to fit.
Proof every patrol happened
Every officer we post is tracked by GPS guard-tour, with documented rounds, real-time incident reports, and supervisor check-ins. You see the activity, not a claim. That record is the point. It is what holds up with an insurer or in a dispute later.
Here is what stopping a loss actually looks like. The entries below are taken from our Houston patrol logs, with client names and exact addresses removed. Most of the losses we stop happen overnight, before a break-in is finished, and every one of these was GPS-logged and written up as an incident report the client received.
- Construction site. A pickup circled the site, then stopped near a gated entrance while the occupants studied the access points. The officer switched on the patrol vehicle’s emergency lights and moved toward the gate. The truck left. The officer logged the vehicle description and notified site management. No property lost.
- Construction site. Two people carried materials toward the perimeter fence in an unlit corner of the lot. The officer lit the area with a spotlight and gave a verbal challenge. Both dropped the materials and ran. An inventory check came back complete.
- Construction site. On a scheduled round, the officer found a storage container forced open and a person pulling out rolls of copper wire. The officer called police, held visual contact from a safe distance, and fed updates to dispatch. Responding officers made an arrest. The copper went back to site management.
- Vacant building. Two people were prying at a boarded rear window. The officer called dispatch and police and ran the patrol vehicle’s lights. Both left before getting in. A later check found minor damage to the window covering and no entry.
- Distribution warehouse. After hours, an unauthorized vehicle sat near the loading docks while a person tried a secured storage area. The officer called dispatch and the site supervisor, identified himself, and directed the person off the restricted area. A dock-and-gate check found no forced entry and no missing inventory.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you require a long-term contract?
No. We work weekly, month-to-month, short-term, or long-term. You set the term to the job.
How fast can you start?
In most cases, the same day. The usual path is a first call, a free proposal, a short site assessment on larger jobs, then deployment.
Are you licensed, and how do I verify it?
Yes. Texas DPS company license B07315701. Search that number in the state TOPS portal and confirm the status reads Active. We will also confirm an armed officer’s Level III commission by name.
What’s the difference between armed and unarmed officers?
Unarmed officers handle deterrence, access control, and observe-and-report work. Armed Level III officers add a firearm for higher-risk or high-value posts. Both operate within the same citizen-authority limits under Texas law.
Do you offer event security, fire watch, K-9, or residential service?
No. We staff commercial posts only, and we do not run K-9, fire watch, alarm response, or parking enforcement.
Are your officers background-checked?
Yes. Fingerprint-based criminal background checks, drug testing, verified references, and an in-person interview, before deployment.
Do you have Spanish-speaking officers?
Yes. We staff bilingual English and Spanish officers across the metro.
How do you prove the patrols actually happen?
GPS guard-tour tracking, documented rounds, real-time incident reports, and supervisor check-ins. You receive the record.
Get a free proposal for your Houston site
Tell us the site type, the hours you need covered, and any specific risk. We will confirm whether armed or unarmed fits, quote a fixed scope, and in most cases deploy the same day with your certificate of insurance in hand.