UK-Fire Risk Assessments Ltd
UK Fire Risk Assessments carry out Fire risk Assessments and Surveys for all types of business and commercial premises. Our fire risk assessors have may years of experience in carrying out fire risk assessments nationwide on office blocks, flats, houses of multiple occupancy, student accommodation, churches, mosques, shops, bars, pubs and restaurants, garages, meeting rooms, doctors surgeries and dental practices, and almost any other type commercial or business premises. We offer fixed price fire risk assessments on a nationwide basis, with the end report using an easy to follow traffic light system.
Your Fire Risk Assessment: Why Choose UK-Fire Risk Assessments? The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 was brought in by the government to improve fire safety in virtually all buildings other than domestic premises occupied by a single-family.
It affects shops and offices, pubs, clubs, warehouses, factories, transport premises, restaurants, care homes, entertainment facilities, hotels, houses in multiple occupations, and even outdoor venues and open-air events. What You Need To Know About Your Fire Risk Responsibilities. If you are an employer in the UK these days, there are many rules and regulations which you have to abide by which simply did not exist 30 or 40 years ago.
Most of these have been brought in by the government with the best of intentions, but unfortunately, they have the effect of piling more and more responsibilities on to employers, property owners and managers, landlords, building occupiers, guest house owners, and more. All of this takes up valuable time and the big problem is that in a lot of instances they require you to do things for which you have no training or no knowledge. Worse, there can be big penalties if you don’t carry out these requirements – including prison sentences! Some Of The Things To Consider For Fire Safety In HMOs. If you are thinking of becoming a landlord of HMO’s (Houses in Multiple Occupation) by buying one, or by refurbishing a property and converting it into an HMO, there are a number of things to take into consideration.
The rules and regulations surrounding fire safety are more detailed than they are on a straightforward buy-to-let, and there is more to do in order to get the property up to the required standard. One of the reasons that the rules are more strict than in a buy-to-let or a single-family home is that where you have multiple tenants in a property they may not get on very well, and in some instances, they may not even like others or talk to each other. In addition to that, in a single-family home you don’t often have locked doors, whereas, in an HMO which might contain just three or four families or could be a block of flats, locked doors are the order of the day. Another issue is thumb turn locks. You also need to consider the windows. A Fire Risk Assessment Is A Legal Requirement But Can Be Complicated.
When you are an employer, landlord, building owner, occupier, or anyone else in control of non-domestic premises, the government places certain responsibilities upon you with regard to fire safety, among other things.
Not the least of these is that you are required by law to undertake a building fire risk assessment, and, if you are an employer with five or more employees, retain a written record of that assessment and any action taken as a result. This is rather like telling the man in the street that he must write software for an online game. Easy Solutions to Safeguard Your Rental Property. As a property owner or manager, there are a few strategies you can employ to keep your property safe.
This includes protecting it from things like fires, as well as break-ins and deterioration. We’ve collected a few of our favourite methods that any landlord or property owner can use to give them more peace of mind. Use Borders You can ensure good practices on your property are maintained, but it’s impossible to guarantee that your neighbour’s (or your neighbour’s tenants) do the same.
Sometimes, having an effective border in place will discourage foot traffic into your property through other people’s gardens or properties. This is especially helpful in keeping areas from turning into muddy pits during the rainy season, or from clutter and rubbish that belongs to other people accumulating in your space.
The Top Most Common Causes of Accidental House Fires. A house can easily catch fire from things like the misuse of appliances and heating equipment.
Even just with the UK’s hot summer months, a drier climate and higher temperatures can lead to conditions that are ideal for fires to break out. However, to take measures to avoid a fire in the home and ensure the safety of your rental property or family home, below are some of the most common causes of accidental house fires you can keep in mind when creating an effective fire mitigation strategy. 1. Electrical Equipment. The Most Common Causes of Office Fires and How to Reduce Them. Whether your team is working mostly remotely or not, the last thing anyone wants to deal with is a fire.
And despite the precautions businesses put in place to protect their equipment and staff, the number of fires that do take place in the UK is still staggeringly high. A small outbreak can quickly lead to very serious and dangerous situations that can destroy a business and potentially take human lives. Accountability and prevention are absolutely critical when dealing with the issue of fire safety. The truth is, there are many practices you can put in place to lessen the risk of fires, which includes finding ways to stop them from happening in the first place as well as policies that prepare people for what to do if a fire does happen. 1. You wouldn’t let combustible materials simply lie around in your home, so why is it any different in the workplace? 2. 3. Electrical faults can happen quite regularly. Arranging Your Next Fire Risk Assessment? 5 Tips to Improve Compliance. Fire Safety Measures To Consider As A Result Olf Covid-19. Business owners and employers have been required to meet new rules and regulations in the workplace as a result of Covid-19.
Some of the new measures that have been required by the government in order for businesses to be able to reopen, even though they may have been shut down again, have unfortunately had some side effects, with new fire safety risks emerging. Undertaking A Fire Risk Assessment Is A Complex Business. As you probably know, or certainly should know, if you are an employer you have certain responsibilities regarding fire safety in your premises.
Among these is the requirement to carry out a fire safety assessment of your premises and, if you employ five or more people, you must also keep a written record of your assessment and any actions taken as a result. The problem that many people have with undertaking a fire risk assessment is that they simply do not have the required knowledge. The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 states that the Responsible Person in a business is as follows:
A Fire Risk Assessment Is Essential For HMO’s. If you are a landlord or an investor you need to understand the legislation that surrounds Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO’s) regarding fire safety.
They can be more complicated than a straightforward buy to let for a number of reasons. Not the least of these is that in HMO’s the tenants may not get on very well together and might not even talk to each other. Why You Must Undertake A Fire Risk Assessment Of Your Business. Why should you undertake a fire risk assessment of your business? Well, there are two answers to that question, the first of which is that fire is an ever-present danger in our lives for many different reasons. Fire can be caused by an employee dropping a lit cigarette end after having a crafty smoke during working hours and failing to see that it is fully stubbed out.
It can be caused by electrical faults – and we all use electricity. It can be caused by overloaded power sockets. It can be caused by faulty electrical equipment that we all use every day such as laptops, printers, copiers, and so on. Fire can be caused by flammable substances that may be routinely used in the manufacture of the products that you sell. Now Is The Time To Carry Out An Office Fire Safety Check. As we continue to struggle with Covid-19, it is safe to say that things have changed considerably in the workplace. Most of the country is in Tier 2 and Tier 3: indeed, the only places that are not are the Isle of Wight (population 141,538, Cornwall (population 565,968), and the Scilly Isles (population 2,224). The population of England is 55.98 million, so the vast majority of us are still in virtual lockdown. However, we can at least go to the shops, and offices are beginning to open again, but things have changed a lot in the way that we work.
We have barriers and screens where we didn’t have them before, and in many offices, desks and chairs have been moved, people have been put into different rooms, workplace time schedules have been rearranged, and all sorts of things are very different from the way that they were a few months ago. You also need to check your fire alarms systems. The Possible Fire Risks In Houses Of Multiple Occupation. When you are the landlord of a number of flats or houses in multiple occupations, as they are known, you have some serious responsibilities when it comes down to fire safety. A house in multiple occupations can be something as small as one house converted into two flats, one on the ground floor and one on the upper floor. If more than one family lives in a domestic property, it still counts as multiple occupations.
However, your liabilities only extend as far as the communal areas of the building – corridors, stairs, lifts, shared basement areas, communal lounge areas, and so on – together with the front doors of each individual flat. It is a fact that the majority of fires in HMO’s begin in the individual flats themselves, and chief of the culprits is electrical faults caused by overloaded electrical sockets. Chip pans and frying pans also cause issues when people forget to turn off the hob. Ideally, all your alarms should be integrated so that if one goes off, they all go off. The Importance of Fire Safety Assessments In The Workplace. The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 was brought in by the government for the purpose of improving fire safety in pretty well all buildings, and even open spaces, such as offices and shops; warehouses and factories; transport premises and facilities; entertainment, pubs, clubs, and restaurants; open-air events and venues; residential, hotels and hostels (including common areas of houses in multiple occupations); premises that provide residential care and health care; educational premises; places of worship; community halls; tents and marquees; and so on.
In fact, about the only places that are not covered are private domestic residences occupied by only one family. If you own or operate any of the above, then the Fire Safety Order applies to you and it places certain obligations upon you. Not the least of these is the requirement to carry out fire safety assessments on a regular basis. Furthermore, the local fire and rescue service enforces the legislation.
Some Of Your Responsibilities Regarding Fire Safety In Your Business. The Reasons Why You Need A Qualified Fire Risk Assessor. If You Own An HMO, Carrying Out A Fire Risk Assessment Is Critical. If you are a landlord, or an investor who is looking to buy an HMO (House in Multiple Occupation), the rules are very much more complicated than a straightforward buy-to-let. An HMO is any property that is shared by three or more people who are not members of the same family. HMO landlords need to have a licence from the Local Council Housing Department.
This will be valid for up to three years and will then need to be renewed. Fire Alarm Systems Are A Major Consideration For An Employer. Fire Risk Assessments Can Be Complicated But Are A Legal Requirement. When you are an employer in the 21st century there are a lot of rules and regulations which you have to follow which simply did not exist perhaps 30 or 40 years ago. A lot of these are connected with the safety of your staff in the workplace and the safety of anyone else who may come on to the premises, such as customers, sales people who are trying to sell you something, contractors carrying out work in the building, and so on. What Does a Fire Risk Assessment Report Look Like? You may at some point receive a report following a fire risk assessment for your premises, to ensure it meets the required safety standards necessary according to UK regulations. Whether you are responsible for a commercial shopping facility, residential flats or a larger portfolio of premises such as warehouses and factories, it’s important to understand what this report should look like and how to act on the information it contains.
A standard report carried out by a competent assessor may vary depending on who you have commissioned to perform it, but some of the basic components are as follows. Summary of findingsOverview of premisesFire hazard reviewFire protection reviewIdentified risk (sources, people and locations)Means of escapeKey fire risk assessment findingsOverall risk summarySupporting documents What Will the Report Highlight? Choosing the Correct Type of Fire Safety Risk Assessment for Your Building. Carrying Out A Fire Risk Assessment Can Be Very Complicated.
There Is A Lot To Consider When Undertaking A Fire Risk Assessment. Fire Safety Advice For Landlords Of Unoccupied Buildings. The Fire Safety Bill (Bill 121 of 2019-21): What You Need to Know - UK Fire Risk Assessments. Reasons Why You Need An Expert For Your Fire Risk Assessment. FAQs About Fire Risk Assessments. The Many Problems That Can Occur When Undertaking A Fire Risk Assessment. Why You Need To Appoint A Professionally Trained Fire Risk Assessor. There Are A Lot Of Things To Allow For In A Fire Risk Assessment. There Are A Lot Of Things To Allow For In A lFire Risk Assessment. There Are Many Ramifications Of A Fire Safety Assessment Of Your Business. Some Of The Things To Consider Regarding Fire Safety In An HMO. Failing To Comply With The Law On Fire Safety Could Land You In Prison. What Is a Fire Risk Assessment Report? And Why Is It Important? How Should HMOs Carry Out Fire Risk Assessments?