Understanding the enforcement of fire safety legislation
In the UK the Fire and Rescue Authority (FRA) are responsible for enforcing the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, which applies to workplaces, shops, schools, hospitals, and the shared hallways of flats and apartments.
The role of the Fire and Rescue Authority
The FRA visit properties to run fire safety inspections, and are able to issue formal notices to the responsible person that is in control of a premises.
If a notice is issued to a responsible person, and they fail to comply with the notice, the FRA can sanction unlimited fines against the responsible person, they can also enforce the implementation of imprisonment of a responsible person for up to 2 years.
What to expect during an FRA inspection
An FRA inspection includes 3 main steps that are used to assess whether your digital thread matches the physical reality of the building’s fire safety measures. There is a strong focus on evidence-based-compliance.
Step1: Document review
Inspectors will request to see your fire safety records. They will expect them to be well organised and preferably in a digital format.
An inspector will most likely request to see:
The date of your last assessment and if you have completed its ‘action plan’ items.
Maintenance logs with proof of testing fire alarms, emergency lighting, and fire extinguishers.
Training records that provide evidence of staff fire safety training, and a record of your most recent fire drill.
External wall information regarding the cladding and external wall system of residential buildings.
Step 2: Walking the property
Following the document review, an inspector will walk through the entirety of the property to look for potential hazards, and to check how well a fire could be contained.
They will check that fire doors are not wedged open and are working properly, that escape routes are clear with visible and illuminated emergency signage, that there are no ignition or fuel sources present on the property, and that all fire detection systems are working properly with no obstruction.
Step 3: Testing the system
The inspector may also ask for a live demonstration of how your system works. This can include a live alarm test to ensure that it is audible throughout the whole property, and staff interviews to gauge how effective your fire safety training is.
Powers of fire safety inspectors
The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 provides fire safety inspectors with the following powers:
Power of entry
This allows inspectors to enter any premises that they believe requires an inspection. They are able to arrive unannounced so long as it is at a reasonable time (for high-risk sites this can be 24/7). They cannot gain entry to a building via force.
Power of inquiry and investigation
Once inside a premises, an inspector is permitted to conduct a thorough audit of your safety management. Legally, they are able to conduct interviews with anyone on the premises, gather evidence throughout the property by requesting documentation such as a fire risk assessment, and they can take samples of materials from within the property to test their flammability and fire resistance.
Power to require assistance
An inspector can request assistance from a responsible person and their staff. If they do so, the staff and responsible person are legally obligated to provide assistance. This includes providing sufficient facilities for an inspector to do their job, and following orders to dismantle anything that they consider dangerous.
Power of enforcement
Fire safety inspectors are able to use a number of enforcement powers to ensure the fire safety of a property. These are split into 4 levels of notice for different levels of risk: Informal Notice (minor), Alterations Notice (potential), Enforcement Notice (Serious), and Prohibition Notice (immediate danger).
These notices have different levels of legal impact attached to them. These range from a written suggestion with no legal impact, to a legal order to fix specific issues within a timeframe, and in severe cases the legal ability to close a building down instantly, with no appeal available.
Who is the "Responsible Person" under UK law?
The responsible person under UK law is whoever is in control of a property and its occupants. This is usually an employer, landlord, or building owner. This is not necessarily an individual with most RPs being a company that acts as the legal person.
Common pain points in fire safety enforcement
Due to its spontaneous nature, it is very difficult to plan ahead for a fire safety inspection. This means that if a surprise inspection takes place it can be difficult to prove compliance when relying on siloed data and manual reporting. Most companies are only fully ready for a fire safety inspection immediately after they have completed their most recent compliance reports. The further away from a completed report an inspection is, the more difficult it is to provide all of the required up to date information.
Infrequently scheduled compliance reporting also increases the likelihood of a fault being present when a fire safety inspection is carried out. If you don’t check a system for a month, it could develop a fault that makes your building non-compliant, that isn’t picked up until a fire safety inspection takes place.
There are a lot fewer risks of non-compliance when taking a proactive approach to fire safety management.
How Drax Technology simplifies your compliance duties
At Drax, we are aware of how little time you have available to focus on fire safety compliance duties. That’s why we provide a solution that makes fire compliance easier and more effective.
Centralised critical alarm management
Instead of having to get alarm and alert reports from different systems by visiting a site directly, Drax technology allows you to monitor all of your fire safety assets in one centralised system. This enables the responsible person within a company to pull up fire safety reports for a property within their portfolio immediately, in a digital format that is preferred by regulators. There is no need for manual reporting or the collation of siloed data.
Automated audit trails and reporting
Our fire safety monitoring solution doesn’t just record the status of its connected alarms and fire safety assets. It creates automated audit trails that record all information from every event, alert and change that occurs throughout the fire safety assets within your portfolio. This ensures that nothing is missed, and that a regulator can be given a report that is fully up to date in real-time.
Asset health and RAG rating
For an easy overview of asset health throughout the fire safety assets across your portfolio, our software provides a dashboard that assigns a RAG (red, amber, green) rating to each asset. This allows you to quickly and easily identify any fire safety asset that does not have a green health rating. It also allows you to plan and prioritise asset maintenance based on their current health ratings.
Beyond the standard: Proactive fire safety
While a standard approach to fire safety that relies on reactive responses to potential fire risks can be sufficient to remain fire safety compliant, it is not an efficient or effective approach.
Taking a proactive approach to fire safety doesn’t just help to ensure fire safety compliance by removing a number of risks, it allows fire safety management to become a part of your daily tasks that takes up less of your time.
Instead of spending a whole day on a site visit to collect reports and run manual checks, Drax technology enables you to run a quick check of all of the sites in your portfolio in a matter of minutes. It also enables you to identify potential faults quickly, and to plan remedial maintenance that fixes a potential fault before it can become a serious issue.
FAQs about who is responsible for enforcing fire safety
Can the fire service do my risk assessment for me?
No. Your local fire and rescue service enforces the law but cannot perform the assessment. This is the duty of the Responsible Person.
What are the penalties for non-compliance?
Inspectors can issue enforcement notices or, in extreme cases, order the dismantling or destruction of unsafe materials.
Does the Fire Safety Order apply to private homes?
Generally, no. It applies to almost all premises except private individual family homes.
Back to Blog
