A commonly asked query by property owners, building owners and those accountable for managing fire safety is– can I do my own fire risk analysis?
In this blog post, we’re going to reveal why it is possible– but may not always be the appropriate choice to make. Who are we? Find Out More
The short answer is ‘Without a doubt – you can execute your own fire risk analysis’, there is nothing stopping you from Googling an online design template for a fire risk assessment and filling out the areas to define your structure, what you do, and any risks you can identify from the limited understanding you have. If in doubt get in touch Pyro Fire
You could possibly even do your own research, perhaps even attend a fire safety program. This may have been appropriate prior to 2005, as the fire service used to check out your building and carry out an audit to provide 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 in fact introduced in 2006– was created to reform fire safety in England & Wales, to introduce the need for a suitable and sufficient fire risk evaluation to be carried out for all non-domestic premises.
The words ‘suitable and sufficient’ when used in law, were undoubtedly brought under examination, but the definition has since been made very obvious:
A suitable and sufficient fire risk assessment can only be carried out by a competent person.
‘Competent’ can be defined as somebody with enough training, credentials, experience and attitude. A competent person must have obtained specific training in relation to fire risk assessments, they must have some form of qualification to back that up, experience in assessing your type of building, and the proper attitude to ensure they’re able to communicate the results effectively. All of the above can be achieved for your fire risk evaluation by using external inspectors.
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