Fire Regulations – your business and the law

From 1 October 2006 new fire Safety Laws came into force which make all businesses directly responsible for the safety of premises users. The old fire certificates have been abolished in favour of risk assessments which need to be completed by a designated ‘responsible person’ and staff must be trained in overall fire safety awareness. A risk assessment is an organised appraisal of work activities and the workplace to enable the identification of potential fire hazards, and to decide who (including employees and visitors) might be in danger in the event of fire. The assessment evaluates the risks arising from the hazards and enables you to decide whether the existing fire precautions are adequate, or whether more needs to be done. A written record of assessment is required by law if you employ 5 or more people, however, we do recommend that all businesses, whatever their size, keep a written record.

The new regulation will be enforced by the Fire Authority who will carry out an inspection programme on premises based on risk. If you are responsible for a business premises, an employer or self-employed person with business
premises, a charity or voluntary organisation, or a contractor with a degree of control over any premises and you have not got a fire risk assessment in place then you should act now. Smaller businesses or those with an employee
who feels confident to carry out the assessment themselves should find compiling the assessment is a fairly simple task.  Alternatively we can provide you with a no nonsense, cost effective service. We can also help you to meet your obligation to train your staff in overall fire safety awareness and offer bespoke courses in fire marshal training and fire extinguishing training.