A commonly asked query by hotelkeepers, building owners and those responsible for managing fire safety is – can I do my own fire risk analysis?
In this post, we’re going to clarify why it is feasible– but may not normally be the right decision to make. Who are we? Pyro Fire
The short answer is ‘Of course – you can conduct your own fire risk analysis’, there is absolutely nothing stopping you from Googling an online template for a fire risk analysis and filling out the areas to define your property, what you do, and any risks you can identify from the limited understanding 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 satisfactory prior to 2005, as the fire service used to check out your property 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 dramatically.
The law for fire safety – The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, which was really introduced in 2006– was created to reform 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 undoubtedly brought under examination, but the interpretation has since been made very obvious:
A suitable and sufficient fire risk analysis can only be carried out by a competent individual.
‘Competent’ can be defined as someone with sufficient training, qualifications, experience and attitude. A competent person needs to have received 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 right 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 inspectors.
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