Do I need a fire risk assessment?
In England and Wales, a responsible person must carry out and regularly review a fire risk assessment for covered premises. The key questions are who controls the premises, who may be at risk and whether the existing assessment still matches current conditions.
Check my situationApply the responsible-person test
You are likely to hold duties if you are an employer, owner, landlord, occupier, managing agent or another person controlling non-domestic premises. A building can have several responsible persons with different areas and systems.
- Are people employed at or admitted to the premises?
- Do you control maintenance, occupation, shared areas or paying guest accommodation?
- Has use, layout, occupancy, fire precautions or risk changed since the last assessment?
What to do next: Document the people and areas under each party’s control. If responsibility or assessment validity is uncertain, obtain competent advice rather than leaving a gap between landlord, tenant and managing agent.
Premises normally covered
Workplaces, offices, shops, factories, warehouses, hospitality venues, care and education premises, paying guest accommodation and the common parts of blocks of flats fall within the fire-safety regime.
A single private domestic dwelling is treated differently, but business use, paying guests and common areas change the position.
Review triggers
Article 9 requires review when there is reason to suspect the assessment is no longer valid or after a significant change. The Home Office checklist also points to fires, near misses, building alterations, changed stock and dangerous substances.
- New layout or extension
- Changed use or occupancy
- Fire or near miss
- New process or dangerous substance
- Changed escape or alarm arrangements
Simple and complex premises
A competent responsible person can assess the simplest premises using the official guides. Sleeping accommodation, vulnerable occupants, complex buildings, industrial hazards and shared responsibility demand deeper knowledge.
The question is not whether an external assessor is always mandatory. It is whether the people doing the work can produce a suitable and sufficient assessment for this premises.