Fire Safety Audit vs Fire Risk Assessment: What’s the Difference?

When it comes to fire safety, many UK business owners and property managers often confuse two key terms: fire safety audit and fire risk assessment. Although they sound similar, they serve different purposes and come with different legal responsibilities. Understanding the difference between these two is crucial for ensuring compliance with UK fire regulations, protecting your property, and safeguarding the people inside it.

What Is a Fire Safety Audit?

What Does a Fire Safety Audit Involve?

A fire safety audit is a thorough review of your property’s fire safety measures. The purpose is to make sure your fire prevention systems, emergency procedures, and safety protocols meet the required standards. Essentially, it’s like a “fire safety check-up.” Fire safety experts will look at everything - like testing alarms, reviewing escape routes, checking fire drills, and ensuring you have the necessary fire extinguishers.

Who Does a Fire Safety Audit?

Fire safety audits are typically conducted by certified fire safety professionals or local fire authorities. They’ll come to your property, inspect your fire safety systems, and provide you with a report on whether everything is up to code. If improvements are needed, the audit report will outline exactly what needs to be done.

Is a Fire Safety Audit Legally Required?

While a fire safety audit isn’t mandatory for all businesses, it is strongly recommended. If something goes wrong, like a fire incident or if a local authority inspects your building, they may ask for an audit. If you don’t pass, you could face enforcement action or penalties.

What Is a Fire Risk Assessment?

What’s the Purpose of a Fire Risk Assessment?

A fire risk assessment is a detailed evaluation of the fire hazards in your building. It identifies risks, figures out how serious they are, and recommends measures to reduce them. This assessment is a legal requirement for businesses in the UK, so you can’t skip it.

The fire risk assessment is the cornerstone of your fire safety strategy. It helps you address potential dangers before they become a serious issue.

Who Needs to Do a Fire Risk Assessment?

The responsible person - usually the owner, employer, or landlord - must ensure that a fire risk assessment is carried out. If the responsible person isn’t qualified, they can hire a fire risk assessor to do the job. For businesses with five or more employees, the assessment must be documented and kept on file.

Is a Fire Risk Assessment a Legal Requirement?

Yes, under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, a fire risk assessment is required by law for all non-domestic properties in the UK. Failing to carry out this assessment could lead to serious consequences, including fines or even imprisonment.

Key Differences Between Fire Safety Audit and Fire Risk Assessment

Purpose and Scope: The key difference between a fire safety audit and a fire risk assessment is in their purpose and scope. A fire safety audit evaluates your overall fire safety procedures, including your systems, equipment, and policies, to make sure they meet fire safety regulations. It’s a broad review of your entire fire safety setup.

On the other hand, a fire risk assessment focuses specifically on identifying and managing fire risks within your property. It’s about pinpointing hazards, assessing how likely they are to cause harm, and finding ways to reduce those risks.

Timing and Frequency: A fire safety audit is usually done periodically or when something changes on your property, such as renovations or a change in business activities. It’s often triggered by an event like a fire, complaint, or request by the fire authority.

A fire risk assessment, however, is required by law and needs to be updated regularly, at least once a year, or whenever there are significant changes, like a change in building use or the number of people in the building.

Legal Responsibilities: Both a fire safety audit and a fire risk assessment help ensure compliance with fire safety regulations, but a fire risk assessment is the one that is legally mandatory. A fire safety audit is often optional but can be an important part of your fire safety strategy.

When Do You Need a Fire Safety Audit?

Situations That Call for a Fire Safety Audit

A fire safety audit is typically conducted in the following situations:

• After a fire-related incident or a near miss
• If you’ve received a complaint about fire safety in your building
• When requested by your local fire authority
• When significant changes are made to the building, such as new structures or different business activities

Local Authority Inspections

In some cases, your local fire authority may require a fire safety audit, especially if they have concerns about your property’s safety or if you’ve had previous issues. They may also conduct random audits as part of their ongoing inspections.

When Is a Fire Risk Assessment Required?

New Premises or Changes to the Building: If you’re moving into a new building or making significant changes - such as a change of use, adding more floors, or changing the layout - you’ll need to carry out a fire risk assessment.

Regular Reviews: Even if nothing changes, a fire risk assessment should be reviewed regularly, at least once a year. This ensures that your fire safety measures are up-to-date and continue to meet the needs of your property.

Fire Safety Audit: More Than Just Compliance

It Helps Improve Safety: A fire safety audit is more than just about following the rules, it’s also about improving the overall safety of your property. An audit helps you uncover any weaknesses in your fire safety systems that you may have overlooked. Whether it’s faulty equipment or gaps in your emergency plans, fixing these issues can help prevent fires and protect everyone in the building.

Insurance Benefits: Some insurance companies may offer discounts if you can prove that you conduct regular fire safety audits. It shows that you’re proactive about preventing fires, which can lower the risk for insurers.

Business Continuity: A fire safety audit also helps with your business continuity plan. If a fire does occur, having solid fire safety systems and procedures in place will help minimise the damage and get your business up and running again quickly.

Why Fire Risk Assessments Are Essential

Spotting Fire Hazards Early: A fire risk assessment helps you identify potential fire hazards before they become a problem. By finding risks early - like faulty wiring, blocked fire exits, or inadequate alarms - you can take action to reduce the chances of a fire breaking out.

Actionable Plans to Reduce Risk: After completing a fire risk assessment, you’ll receive a report outlining specific risks and the actions needed to reduce them. This allows you to implement a tailored fire safety plan that fits the unique needs of your property.

In summary, both a fire safety audit and a fire risk assessment are essential to maintaining fire safety in your property. While the fire risk assessment is legally required, the fire safety audit is an optional but valuable step in ensuring your fire safety measures are up to par.

Get Your Fire Safety in Check Today

Don't wait for an emergency to highlight gaps in your fire safety measures. Whether it's conducting a fire risk assessment or scheduling a fire safety audit, ensuring your property is safe is crucial for both compliance and protection.

At Fast R Solutions, we specialise in providing expert fire safety audits and comprehensive fire risk assessments tailored to your needs. Our certified professionals are ready to help you keep your property, employees, and customers safe from fire hazards.

Contact us today to book a consultation or schedule your fire safety audit and risk assessment. Let us help you stay compliant and ensure your fire safety systems are up to par!