Fire Door Inspections

Why are Fire Doors Important?

Fire doors are an essential part of a building's fire safety equipment as they can prevent the spread of fire, smoke and toxic fumes, as well as protect escape routes. They are specifically designed to withstand fire for a certain period of time, giving occupants more time to evacuate and emergency services more time to arrive. Without fire doors, fires could spread more rapidly and escape routes could become inaccessible, resulting in greater risk to life and property damage. Therefore, having properly installed and maintained fire doors that are regularly inspected by competent persons is crucial to ensuring the safety of building occupants in the event of a fire.

The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (RRO or FSO) is a set of UK fire safety regulations that require building owners and managers to ensure that fire doors are properly installed, regularly maintained, and inspected by competent persons. The regulations also require fire safety signage to be compliant with existing regulations. The BS 9999 code of practice for fire safety recommends that fire door inspections be carried out by professionals every six months, or more frequently for heavily used doors. Additionally, fire doors fitted in new build premises should be assessed more regularly during the first year of use. Property managers should also carry out weekly inspections of the building's fire doors themselves and should call out an inspector immediately or a professional who can remedy any issues.