A frequently asked question by property owners, building owners and those responsible for handling fire safety is– can I do my own fire risk analysis?
In this post, we’re going to illustrate why it is possible– but may not always be the appropriate decision to make. Who are we? Find Out More
The short answer is ‘Certainly – you can perform your own fire risk assessment’, there is nothing at all stopping you from Googling an online template for a fire risk assessment and filling out the areas 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 Fire Risk Assessment
You might even do your own research, perhaps even enroll in a fire safety training course. This may have been reasonable prior to 2005, as the fire service used to visit your building and carry out an audit to provide you with a fire certificate. But, since then, the demands and law for fire safety became much more rigorous and things changed considerably.
The law for fire safety – The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, which was effectively introduced in 2006– was designed to reform fire safety in England & Wales, to introduce the need for a suitable and adequate fire risk evaluation to be carried out for all non-domestic premises.
The words ‘suitable and sufficient’ when used in law, were certainly brought under scrutiny, but the definition has since been made very clear:
A suitable and sufficient fire risk analysis can only be carried out by a competent professional.
‘Competent’ can be defined as somebody with enough training, certifications, experience and attitude. A competent person needs to have acquired specific training in relation to fire risk analyses, they must have some form of certification to back that up, experience in assessing your type of property, and the correct attitude to ensure they’re able to communicate the results effectively. All of the above can be achieved for your fire risk analysis by using external assessors.
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