Typically Fire Risk Assessments fall to the Health & Safety manager to perform, but often these individuals do not have the time or expertise to do so.  They also do not feel comfortable with the huge responsibility that comes from carrying them out themselves. They, therefore, instead rely on help from a professional.

There are many benefits of a professional risk assessment; the main being reducing the likelihood of a fire. However, they also ensure that, if there is a fire, everyone knows their responsibilities, there is minimal damage to property and no staff injuries.  Additionally, a professional assessment can even help minimise insurance costs or help companies achieve certificated health and safety management systems.

Failure to undertake a sufficient FRA can increase the risk of injuries or fatalities to staff and the monetary fines that can be incurred when a fire does occur.

To avoid producing a weak FRA, you should consider the following: 

• Ensure all staff are trained to the appropriate level
• Don’t just focus on the ‘fire triangle’
• Investigate your building structure, including fire doors, travel distances to emergency exits etc
• Look into any past ‘near misses’. Look into times where a fire almost occurred or did and almost spread to become a larger problem. From this, you can identify opportunities for preventing this, or worse, reoccurring
• Fire safety doesn’t have an approved code of practise. Understanding the related standards that should be referred to is key

FRA’s should always be as up-to-date as possible. This particularly applies when there are building works, such as an expansion or renovation that could affect building materials and risks.