Fire Safety Risk Assessment Quotes – Are They All the Same?

Alan DuncanFire Safety

A cheap quotation for a fire risk assessment may seem to be a good deal, but is it?

A proper quotation should be researched, considered and reflect your requirements (stating the exact location and the output of the assessment (i.e. hard copy or soft copy)).

The legal requirement, under the Fire Safety Order (2005), is as per the following text from the website…

Any person who has some level of control in premises must take reasonable steps to reduce the risk from fire and make sure people can safely escape if there is a fire.
A fire risk assessment is a process involving the systematic evaluation of the factors that determine the hazard from fire, the likelihood that there will be a fire and the consequences if one were to occur.

All businesses MUST have a written record of the fire safety risk assessment if the business has 5 or more employees.

You are responsible for fire safety if you are…

  • An employer
  • The owner
  • The landlord
  • An occupier
  • Anyone else with control of the premises (Facilities Manager, Building Manager, Managing Agent or risk assessor)
  • paying guests (eg/ B&B, guesthouse or let self-catering property)

The assessment must…

  • Identify the fire hazards
  • Identify people at risk
  • Evaluate, remove or reduce the risks
  • Record the findings, prepare an emergency plan and provide training
  • Reviewed and updated regularly (and when physical alterations to the location have been carried out).

You could be fined or go to prison if you do not follow fire safety regulations.

There are many fire risk assessment companies within the market place, some are large organisations, others are small 1-man bands.

The key requirement is to ensure that they are…

  • Competent
  • Correctly insured; with an appropriate level of Professional Indemnity
  • Ideally, members of a third party accredited scheme or national register which confirms they are competent.

A fire risk assessment is a vital tool in managing fire safety. The completion of the fire risk assessment must not be seen as a pass / fail or ‘job done’. It should be a working document – once carried out, there will be actions that will require addressing to ensure that the location has the risk of fire mitigated as far as is practicably possible – this means that the recommendations of the assessor should be addressed within the time parameters suggested.

For the large business spread over several locations, how are these issues managed? Is there a simple easy to use tool that can help manage all locations centrally at the press of a button?

At DDS, we take our professional responsibilities seriously, which is why we are…

  • fully accredited to BAFE SP205 for Fire Safety Risk Assessing
  • fully insured (and able to provide details upon request)
  • ISO 9001 (Management Systems), ISO 14001 (Environmental), ISO 45001 (Health & Safety Excellence) accredited
  • HABC approved training centre
  • Our assessors are DBS checked

The assessment report is produced in a format that can be easily understood and any actions requiring attention are clearly highlighted once the report has been received.

The PYRAMID™ on-line risk management system is suited to not only enable locations to update the assessment with any remedial actions that they have carried out, but should the suggested timelines for these actions pass, PYRAMID™ will begin to e-Mail the location that they need to take action.

Most importantly, the reports that DDS produce are able to stand up to scrutiny (Fire Brigade inspection / Court appearance) should the worst-case scenario happen.

Contact DDS for a free, no-obligation quotation for Fire Safety Risk Assessment and Fire Safety Training.