A Landlord
was given a 24-week prison sentence (suspended for 18 months) and ordered to
pay £12,000 fine for failing to comply with Fire regulation and placing a
person at risk of death or serious injury.
The Landlords building included a children’s
nursery, a women’s centre and three residential flats. His premise caught fire
in April 2017, resulting from an electricity meter placed at the bottom of a
communal stairway. This blocked residents’ only exit and entry to their
accommodation.
The Court revealed that the building had no
Fire Safety Risk Assessment to ‘address’ the multiple uses of the property,
‘despite assurances by the Landlord to planning chiefs that there would be
sufficient Fire Doors and adequate detectors’. Firefighters also later found,
after tackling the Fire, that Fire alarms were not working, as ‘no power was
supplied to the system’.
The Landlord admitted failing to comply with
Fire regulations in relation to Fire doors, locks on emergency doors, provision
of emergency exit routes and ‘failing to ensure that the premises and
facilities were subject to suitable systems of maintenance’.
London
Fire Risk Assessments advice to Landlords: Fire
Safety Management is the responsibility of the appointed ‘Responsible Person’
of the premise. And as outlined above if you do not fulfil your responsibility
it can easily result in serious, life threatening consequences.
Having a building with multi use occupancy is
complicated and that is why you should consider using a Fire Protection
Consultant – someone who is ‘qualified’ to carryout a thorough Fire Safety Risk
Assessment.
Once a thorough Fire Safety Inspection of the
building is carried out a Fire Safety Risk Assessment will be compiled. These
are the ‘parts’ of a Fire Safety Risk Assessment:
- Fire Safety Inspection
- Fire Risk Assessment
- Fire Safety Management Plan – Significant Findings
- Fire Safety Policy
- Fire Safety Emergency Plan
If you wish to discuss any Fire Safety issues
with a Fire Protection Consultant please contact London Fire Risk Assessments
friendly team – 01689 89087.
