A generally asked query by landlords, building owners and those responsible for managing fire safety is– can I do my own fire risk evaluation?

In this article, we’re going to reveal why it is feasible– but may not actually be the proper choice to make. Who are we? -

The short answer is ‘Certainly – you can conduct your own fire risk evaluation’, there is virtually nothing stopping you from Googling an online design template for a fire risk evaluation and filling out the areas to define your structure, what you do, and any risks you can identify from the limited knowledge you have. If in doubt get in touch -

You could possibly even do your own analysis, perhaps even go to a fire safety program. This may have been appropriate prior to 2005, as the fire service used to visit your property and carry out an audit to provide you with a fire certificate. However, since then, the requirements and law for fire safety became much more stringent and things changed considerably.

The law for fire safety – The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, which was really introduced in 2006– was developed to remodel fire safety in England & Wales, to introduce the requirement 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 interpretation has since been made very obvious:
A suitable and sufficient fire risk evaluation can only be carried out by a competent expert.

‘Competent’ can be defined as somebody with adequate training, certifications, experience and attitude. A competent person must have acquired 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 correct approach 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 assessors.

Find out More about our Fire risk assessments -