A regularly asked question by landlords, building owners and those accountable for managing fire safety is– can I do my own fire risk analysis?
In this short article, we’re going to explain why it is possible– but may not actually be the right decision to make. Who are we? Find Out More
The short answer is ‘Yes – you can perform your own fire risk analysis’, there is nothing at all stopping you from Googling an online template for a fire risk analysis and filling out the fields to describe your property, what you do, and any risks you can identify from the limited knowledge you have. If in doubt get in touch Find Out More
You could even do your own research, perhaps even go to a fire safety training course. This may have been acceptable prior to 2005, as the fire service used to visit your property and carry out an audit to deliver you with a fire certificate. Having said that, since then, the criteria and law for fire safety became much more stringent and things changed substantially.
The law for fire safety – The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, which was really introduced in 2006– was created to change fire safety in England & Wales, to introduce the requirement for a suitable and adequate fire risk analysis to be carried out for all non-domestic premises.
The words ‘suitable and sufficient’ when used in law, were definitely brought under examination, but the meaning has since been made very obvious:
A suitable and sufficient fire risk analysis can only be carried out by a competent person.
‘Competent’ can be defined as someone with adequate training, qualifications, experience and attitude. A competent person needs to have obtained specific training in relation to fire risk evaluations, they must have some form of qualification to back that up, experience in assessing your type of property, and the proper approach to ensure they’re able to communicate the findings effectively. All of the above can be achieved for your fire risk analysis by using outside inspectors.
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