Fire Risk Assessment

Some questions about Fire Risk Assessment (FRA):

•  What are the benefits?
•  What you need to know.
•  Guidance on doing it yourself.
•  What will it cost?
•  What will we do?

What are the benefits

Whether doing it yourself or Instructing a competent person, carrying out an FRA is a major step towards ensuring compliance with the law and the development of a comprehensive fire strategy.

For many premises, all it may mean is the introduction of some routine checks which shouldn’t have any notable impact on valuable time, but it should reduce the likelihood and consequence of fire.

It may highlight elements within your premises where further steps are required, or give you the peace of mind in knowing you have taken all reasonable steps to protect you, your staff and any visitors.

• You should share the assessment with staff for training, feedback and to assure them that you take their safety seriously.
• You may also wish to demonstrate to customers and visitors, having reached a suitable level of fire safety. The cover page of our report is ideal for display such as wall mounting.

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What you need to know!

• Fire risk assessments are not required for single private dwellings, but almost everything else.
• A fire risk assessment is a legal requirement on the responsible person.
• You may be deemed responsible for a building, as an employer, owner or occupier of premises.
• You must ensure a suitably competent person completes your fire risk assessment, to identify fire risks and hazards in your premises, and you must take appropriate action.
• If you employ 5 or more people, or your premises are licensed, you must document your assessment.
• We recommend documenting all assessments for reference and proof of meeting legal requirements.
• If using an independent assessor we advise using one who has been assessed for competency and that you carefully check their qualifications.
• Fire risk assessments are not an annual requirement, but regular review is required, and checks should follow any significant changes that might have an impact on fire safety.

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You will find links to a series of government guidance on the left.

These free to download guidelines provide useful information for anyone interested in carrying out their own fire risk assessment.

•  If you don’t have the time?
•  Want to save on the costs.
•  Just want some support.

Guidance on doing it yourself

As indicated in the documents linked below, the only requirement for anyone wishing to carry out their own fire risk assessment is a suitable level of competency. Knowledge about passive and active fire safety systems is important; the degree depending on the size and complexity of the premises.

These documents don’t cover all property types, and don’t cover everything, particularly when looking at complex buildings, but they are a good place to start.

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What will it cost?

Appointing Fire Risk Engineers Ltd to carry out your assessment will allow us to identify related cost savings, such as future checks and tests, which we will highlight after carrying out the survey.

We don’t only do fire risk assessments, and we won’t risk our reputation by flogging as many risk assessments as possible, but we aim to be competitive with reputable competitors.

We do have a number of alternative approaches which could mean our assessments are very competitive.

It should be remembered that failing to carry out a fire risk assessment, or using an incompetent assessor may be more expensive in the end. Businesses often don’t recover after a fire, and effective fire prevention starts by understanding the risks.

We will pass on savings to clients due to location, or group assessments, or if you wish to combine an assessment with another of our services, such as a fire sprinkler review.

But we will need some information to provide a price.

For further assistance please get in touch here!

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What we will do

• We will agree in advance a mutually suitable date for assessment.
• You will receive details of the assessor and their qualifications prior to the assessment.
• We will need access to all areas, and may need an escort where appropriate.
• We will highlight any routine checks and tests that need to be carried out periodically.
• We will advise on any training requirements.
• We will advise on evacuation planning.
• A detailed written report will be provided within the time scale agreed.
• A log book will be provided with the assessment.

We will always do our best to assist, and provide direct connection to our technical support for all clients.