This section provides some information on the current legislation and responsibilities together with intersting news snippets as they come to our attention. It is not intended as an exhaustive document, and cannot replace our consultants advice following a survey of the premises.
In October 2006 the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 came into force. This codified the existing fire safety legislation. The effect of this legislation is that building owners or tenants must take responsibility for the fire and safety protection equipment and procedures. They may nominate a person as the “responsible person” for the building, though this does not allow the overall responsibilities to be abdicated.
Fire certificates can no longer be relied upon as an excuse why steps to improve fire safety have not been taken and penalties are quite stringent. As an example companies and landlords have received fines of £5,000 for not keeping a fire escape route clear and far greater fines have been issued where fire safety has been compromised and where landlords or responsible persons have failed to take fire protection seriously or comply with enforcement orders.
Please call us for any information required on current legislation.