Who needs a fire risk assessment?

Under Article 9 of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, virtually every building that is not a single private dwelling needs a fire risk assessment — blocks of flats with shared areas, HMOs, workplaces and commercial premises. The Responsible Person (owner, landlord, employer or managing agent) must ensure it is done by a competent person and kept under regular review.

How often should a fire risk assessment be reviewed?

Guidance recommends reviewing the assessment every year and redoing it in full every three years — sooner if the building changes materially, after a fire or near-miss, or if there is reason to think it is no longer valid.

How often must fire alarms and emergency lighting be tested?

Fire alarm systems should be tested weekly by the user and serviced periodically by a competent engineer to BS 5839. Emergency lighting needs regular functional tests and an annual full-duration test to BS 5266, with certificates recording the results.

Fire Safety Certificates & Assessments

Fire risk assessments, alarm system testing and certification, emergency lighting and fire panel installation — for HMOs, blocks of flats and commercial premises where fire compliance is a legal duty, not a nice-to-have.

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The rules at a glance

Who the Fire Safety Order applies to

The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (Article 9) requires a fire risk assessment for virtually every building that isn't a single private home — HMOs, blocks of flats with shared areas, workplaces and commercial premises. The duty sits with the Responsible Person: the owner, landlord, employer or managing agent. The Fire Safety Act 2021 and Building Safety Act 2022 have widened those responsibilities further, including for external walls and flat entrance doors.

Fire safety services

Assessment, testing and installation

Fire Risk Assessment

A structured assessment by a competent assessor covering ignition sources, means of escape, detection and warning, compartmentation, emergency lighting, signage and the needs of vulnerable occupants — with a prioritised action plan you can actually work through.

The five steps we follow

Identify fire hazards — ignition, fuel, oxygen
Identify people at risk, including vulnerable occupants
Evaluate, remove or reduce the risks
Record findings, plan for emergency, instruct and train
Review and update regularly

Good to know

Review yearly; redo in full every three years, or after material changes
Required for HMO licensing — see our HMO fire assessments
Written report with actions ranked by priority and cost

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Fire Alarm Certificate

Fire alarm systems must be installed, serviced and tested to BS 5839, with certification to prove it. We test detection, sounders, call points and panel functions, fix what fails, and issue the inspection and servicing certificate your insurer, licensing officer or fire authority will ask to see.

Periodic inspection and servicing to BS 5839
Grade and category advice for HMOs (e.g. mixed Grade A / Grade D systems)
Certificates issued for licensing, insurance and audit files

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Emergency Light Certificate

When the power fails, escape routes must stay lit. Emergency lighting is tested to BS 5266 — regular functional checks plus an annual full-duration (3-hour) test — and certificated. We test, replace failed fittings and batteries, and keep your logbook audit-ready.

Monthly function and annual 3-hour duration testing regimes
Failed luminaires and batteries replaced on the spot where possible
Certificates and logbook entries for the Responsible Person's records

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Fire Panel Installation

New addressable or conventional fire alarm panels designed, installed and commissioned for HMOs, blocks and commercial units — sized to the building's risk category, with zoning that makes real-world sense to whoever answers the alarm at 3am.

System design to the category your fire risk assessment specifies
Panel, detection and sounder installation with minimal disruption
Commissioning certificate and staff/landlord handover included

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Common questions

Fire safety questions, answered

Does a normal buy-to-let house need a fire risk assessment?

A single household letting generally doesn't — the Fire Safety Order applies to buildings with shared or common areas, HMOs and commercial premises. But smoke alarm rules still apply to every rental: see smoke alarms.

Who is the "Responsible Person"?

Whoever has control of the premises: the employer in a workplace, and otherwise the owner, landlord, occupier, facilities or building manager, or managing agent. The Responsible Person must ensure a competent fire risk assessment is done and its actions carried out — the duty can't be delegated away by ignoring it.

What fire precautions does an HMO need?

Typically interlinked detection appropriate to the building's grade and category, protected escape routes, fire doors, emergency lighting in larger buildings, and a current fire risk assessment — with exact requirements set by the licensing council. Our HMO service handles the whole package.