Alex MacArthur, director at North West Fire Solutions, answers the most commonly asked questions about fire risks in unoccupied buildings.
In this article
Why are unoccupied buildings a fire hazard?
What fire safety risks exist in unoccupied buildings?
How can these specific fire safety risks be managed?
Does an unoccupied building need a fire risk assessment?
What does a fire risk assessment for an unoccupied building look at?
How frequently should unoccupied buildings be inspected?
What mistakes do Responsible Persons make regarding fire safety?
How do insurance requirements impact fire safety duties?
How we can make your unoccupied building more fire-safe
Why are unoccupied buildings a fire hazard?
It’s quite common for empty sites not to have anyone monitoring them. This can lead to various undetected issues, such as electrical or plant faults.
If there is a fire in an unoccupied building, there may be a delay in detecting it. Therefore, the ramifications could be much worse, particularly in the absence of well-maintained detection systems.
Unoccupied buildings have a higher exposure to vandalism, squatters, and arson.
They’re also more vulnerable to degradation due to lack of usage. The building fabric isn’t maintained as frequently as it would be if the building were occupied.
A lot can change in a building if you’re not monitoring or looking after it, and these changes could present a series of risks further down the road.
What fire safety risks exist in unoccupied buildings?
Arson is perhaps the greatest fire safety risk in an unoccupied building. As we know, empty buildings are a place to play for delinquents, and they’re a prime target for deliberate ignition.
If people are sleeping rough in larger buildings, they might light a fire to keep themselves warm, and this fire could spiral out of control.
Then there’s accidental ignition. As touched on, if a building contains unattended electrical systems, and these systems start to degrade, this can cause a fire to start.
Vacant sites can also be used as storage sites in certain instances. They could be used for general storage or fly-tipping, or they could simply accumulate unmonitored waste. These are all potential fuel sources for ignition.
A delayed response—or lack of response—to what’s happening in a building, combined with faulty alarm and detection systems, creates a perfect storm of fire risk.
Everything adds up. That’s why you need a fresh pair of eyes to look at your building, assess where gaps are, and outline where improvements can be made.
How can these risks be managed effectively?
There are several ways in which you can mitigate fire risk on your site.
Firstly, by implementing some kind of robust physical security presence, such as CCTV. As long as someone is monitoring your site at all times, this could make a massive difference.
If you’re responsible for the site, you must ensure anything that could potentially become a source of ignition is either controlled or removed from the site.
If multiple people regularly visit your site, maybe you could implement some kind of policy or procedure to ensure things aren’t being left unattended.
For example, if you’ve got systems that can be just completely isolated, then maybe do this and switch things off.
If you have people who have to work on-site, you may want to limit hot work permits to reduce fire risk.
Keeping on top of essential maintenance is essential, as I’ve covered. Automatic fire detection systems, emergency lighting, and water hydrants all play vital roles in the event of a fire, so they must be properly maintained.
As bizarre as it may seem, compartmentation is very important for unoccupied buildings. If your vacant building has fire doors and other compartmentation measures, they still need to work. The doors must be operable and in good condition, particularly if you’re looking to use the site again and it’s only vacant for a short period of time.
Keeping on top of and logging all of your inspections will allow you to see where you’re falling short.
Essentially, managing an unoccupied building is not too far removed from managing an occupied site. You still need the right policies and procedures in place and get the basics right to ensure you’re managing fire safety correctly.
Does an unoccupied building need a fire risk assessment?
Yes.
If you’re the responsible person for a building, vacant or otherwise, you have a duty of care to whoever may be in that building at any point.
This includes visitors, trespassers, contractors, or any members of the public who wander into the building.
Of course, the fire risk assessment will reflect that it’s an unoccupied site, and it would be assessed in this context.
But the short answer is, yes—you absolutely need one.
What would a fire risk assessment for an unoccupied building look at?
A fire risk assessment is generally the same whatever type of premises it’s for. You’re still going to ask the same questions and look for the same risks, albeit some risks are more prevalent in certain sites than others.
In terms of scope, a fire risk assessment will look at the whole site, both inside and outside—for example, outbuildings, roof voids, CCTV, and signage.
It’ll also look at the services and how well they’re maintained, as well as any passive fire systems that have been installed, be that sprinkler systems, risers or hydrants.
A risk assessor must review fire loading, the presence of any combustibles, and general housekeeping.
If contractors visit every now and again to help maintain systems, it’s vital that adequate records are kept. You must also have processes in place to ensure that they’re working safely and know what to do in the event of a fire.
This applies to the Responsible Person as well.
Whoever’s on site must know what to do in the event of a fire. They must know who to call, who’s got the plans, and who’s got the keys. You might need a secure information box in the front of the premises for something like this.
As with any fire risk assessment, there’d be an overall risk rating and an action plan detailing any actions that the Responsible Person(s) may need to take.
How frequently should unoccupied buildings be inspected, and what should those inspections involve?
The exact frequency depends on the type of premises, its condition, and the relevant risks that are identified in your fire risk assessment.
That said, a weekly inspection is usually a good baseline frequency.
Buildings may be inspected less frequently in certain circumstances, but once weekly is a good starting point.
- You may need to carry out daily inspections if:
- Your building is in an area with high arson rates.
- You’ve had recent intrusions.
- You’ve got ongoing remedial works taking place in your building.
- Your building contains high-value or highly combustible items.
Each inspection should involve a full walk around your site. You should be looking to see if anything’s there that shouldn’t be there, if there are signs of a break-in, if anything has been fly-tipped, and so on. Essentially, you’re looking for anything that’s out of place.
If you’re unsure of what to do or want information on what to look for, speak to your fire risk assessor. They’ll steer you in the right direction.
What mistakes do Responsible Persons make when managing fire safety in unoccupied buildings?
It’s easy for anyone who looks after a vacant site to assume they don’t need a fire risk assessment. On the face of things, they’ve got nothing to do.
They also assume they’ll save money by switching everything off. But this can prove disastrous, as you may need sprinklers, alarms, or emergency lights at some stage.
You need to think about what’s happening on-site and keep records of this. If you’re not doing that, you’re not managing your site effectively.
Another mistake is storing combustible materials and waste in the building. Again, this is because they assume that a site being vacant means it’s safe.
Not keeping on top of things like key holding is a big mistake, particularly if you’ve got a site that’s been vacant for a long period. People can forget who’s got keys to the building and how to get into it, which could be a major problem if the fire service needed to gain access.
Finally, failing to communicate with the relevant stakeholders is a major oversight we’ve seen building owners make. If you have people such as contractors attending your site from time to time, they need to know what they’re doing and what’s going on in the building. But they won’t unless you keep in regular contact with them.
How do insurance requirements link with fire safety duties for unoccupied properties?
Insurers often incorporate specific unoccupied property conditions into their building insurance policies.
So, if your building is vacant for a reasonable length of time, you should notify your insurer at the earliest opportunity.
This may increase your excess. The insurer may impose certain conditions and may mandate things like weekly logged inspections.
If they do impose these mandatory duties upon you, it’s essential you follow them. If you breach them, you could risk voiding your cover completely.
It’s worth talking to your broker or insurance company directly. This way, you can ensure that you’re both on the same page as to what you’re doing or what you should be doing and act accordingly.
How we’ll help you manage the fire risks in your unoccupied property
We carry out fire risk assessments every single day. This is our bread and butter, and we’ve been doing it for over 15 years, so we know what we’re talking about.
We’ve worked on many vacant sites across the UK, and we can help you keep your building as fire-safe as possible.
If you have a vacant site, feel free to call us on 0151 665 0124 or email info@nwfiresolutions.co.uk.