How Often Should a Fire Risk Assessment Be Reviewed?

One of the most common questions businesses ask about fire safety is: how often does a fire risk assessment need to be reviewed?

There is a widespread assumption that every business must complete a new fire risk assessment once a year. In practice, there is no single universal annual reassessment interval that applies to every premises.

Instead, a fire risk assessment needs to be kept under review and updated when necessary so that it continues to reflect the premises, activities and risks.

If you're unfamiliar with what an assessment involves, our guide to what a fire risk assessment is and the five key steps involved provides a useful starting point.

Is a Fire Risk Assessment Required Every Year?

Not necessarily.

An annual review may form part of an organisation's fire-safety management arrangements, and a particular assessor may recommend a review period based on the premises and its risks.

However, businesses should not interpret this as meaning that fire-safety legislation establishes one universal 12-month expiry date for every fire risk assessment.

The appropriate review frequency will depend on factors including the nature, complexity and risk profile of the premises.

More importantly, certain changes or events may mean the assessment needs reviewing before a planned review date arrives.

When Should a Fire Risk Assssment Be Reviewed?

A review should be considered whenever there is reason to believe that the existing assessment may no longer accurately represent the premises or its fire risks.

Common triggers include the following.

Changes to the Building or Layout

Alterations can change how a fire might develop or how people would escape.

Examples include:

• Building extensions
• Internal partitions
• Changes to doors or corridors
• Relocation of work areas
• Changes to storage areas
• Changes affecting emergency exits
• Alterations to fire protection measures

Even apparently minor modifications can affect evacuation routes, occupancy or fire precautions.

New Machinery or Equipment

Introducing new machinery can create new ignition sources, heat-generating processes or electrical loads.

In manufacturing and engineering environments, equipment changes may also alter the materials or substances being used.

A fire risk assessment completed before a significant production change may therefore no longer provide an accurate picture of the risks.

This is particularly important in industrial environments. Our guide to fire risk assessments for factories and warehouses explains some of the machinery, storage and process hazards that may need to be considered.

New Processes or Work Activities

Changes to the way work is carried out can be just as important as physical alterations.

For example, introducing welding, cutting, grinding, spraying or other activities involving heat, sparks or flammable materials may significantly change the fire-risk profile.

Temporary work and contractors can also introduce hazards that need to be considered.

Changes to Flammable or Dangerous Substances

Businesses should pay particular attention when introducing or increasing quantities of flammable liquids, gases, aerosols, combustible dusts or other dangerous substances.

These changes may affect the fire risk assessment and could also introduce separate duties under DSEAR.

The fire risk assessment and DSEAR assessment have related but distinct purposes. Where dangerous substances create a significant fire or explosion risk, specialist assessment may therefore be necessary.

Where hazardous substances can affect people's health through exposure, businesses may also need to consider their COSHH assessment requirements.

Changes in Occupancy

The number and characteristics of people using a building can affect fire risk and evacuation arrangements.

A review may be appropriate where there has been a significant change in staff numbers, working patterns or visitors.

The presence of people who may require additional assistance during an evacuation should also be considered.

A Fire or Near Miss

An actual fire provides an obvious reason to reconsider the existing assessment.

Near misses can be equally valuable warning signs.

An overheating machine, electrical incident, uncontrolled release of a flammable substance or ignition event that did not develop into a significant fire may reveal weaknesses in existing controls.

The important question is whether the event indicates that assumptions within the current assessment are no longer valid.

Failure or Changes to Fire Precautions

Changes to fire alarms, emergency lighting, firefighting equipment or other fire precautions may affect the conclusions of an existing assessment.

The same applies where equipment fails or evidence suggests that existing precautions are not performing as expected.

Does a Fire Risk Assessment Expire?

It is generally more useful to think about whether an assessment remains current and suitable rather than treating it like a certificate with a universal expiry date.

A document could be relatively recent but already require review if significant changes have taken place.

Conversely, the appropriate approach for stable premises will depend upon their circumstances, complexity and risks.

This is why businesses should establish an effective review process rather than relying solely on the date printed on the front of the assessment.

What Should a Fire Risk Assessment Review Consider?

Reviewing an assessment does not mean simply changing the date.

The person undertaking the review should consider whether the information, assumptions, hazards and precautions recorded remain accurate.

Questions might include:

• Have the premises changed?
• Has new machinery been installed?
• Have processes or materials changed?
• Are different dangerous substances being stored or used?
• Has occupancy changed significantly?
• Have escape arrangements changed?
• Have there been fires or near misses?
• Have any fire precautions failed?
• Are previously identified actions complete?
• Is there any reason to believe the existing assessment is no longer valid?

The scale of the review should reflect what has changed.

Managing Reviews Across Multiple Sites

Reviewing fire risk assessments can become more complicated for organisations operating numerous locations.

Different sites may have different assessment dates, risk profiles, processes and recommended review periods.

A useful multi-site management system should therefore record more than the date of the last assessment.

Organisations should consider tracking actions, significant changes, incidents and planned review dates at site level.

This makes it easier to identify which premises require attention rather than simply commissioning reassessments according to an arbitrary company-wide anniversary date.

Keep Your Fire Risk Assessment Current

The key principle is straightforward: a fire risk assessment should reflect the premises as they actually operate today.

Businesses should therefore keep assessments under review and respond when buildings, people, processes, substances or fire precautions change.

Spiers Engineering Safety coordinates fire risk assessment services for industrial, commercial and multi-site organisations across the UK.

Whether you need an assessment for a single factory or support coordinating requirements across multiple locations, we can help scope the requirement and arrange appropriately experienced fire-safety support.