Competent Fire Risk Assessments

5th August 2011

The importance of ensuring the person undertaking fire risk assessments on your behalf is competent has again been highlighted following the jailing of an external fire risk assessor and a hotel manager for eight months.

David Liu, who runs The Dial Hotel and Market Inn, both in Mansfield, pleaded guilty to 15 offences under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, while John O'Rourke of Mansfield Fire Protection Services pleaded guilty to two offences under the same legislation.

Officers from Nottingham Fire and Rescue Service visited both hotels as part of a routine inspection. They found that both premises were being used to provide sleeping accommodation on the upper floors and that the fire precautions, which should have been provided to safeguard the occupants in the event of a fire, were inadequate.

Due to the serious risk to life, they issued prohibition notices preventing any further use of both premises for sleeping accommodation until suitable improvements had been made.

Mr O'Rourke was prosecuted because he had prepared an inadequate fire risk assessment for both premises, which failed to identify a number of significant deficiencies, which would have placed the occupants at serious risk in the event of a fire.

The offences common to both hotels to which Mr Liu, as the responsible person, pleaded guilty were:

• A lack of a suitable and sufficient fire risk assessment
• A failure to ensure effective means of escape with doors leading onto corridors not being fire resisting or having self-closers fitted
• A failure to ensure that emergency routes and exits were provided with emergency lighting
• A failure to ensure the premises were equipped with appropriate fire fighting equipment, detectors and alarms in that there was no fire detection within the bedrooms
• A failure to ensure that equipment and devices provided were subject to a suitable system of maintenance in that the fire alarm system, emergency lighting system and fire fighting equipment were not tested

Mr Liu was also ordered to pay costs of £15,000.

John O'Rourke, as a person other than the responsible person who had some control of the premises, pleaded guilty to two counts (one for each hotel) of failing to provide a suitable and sufficient fire risk assessment. He was ordered to pay costs of £5,860.

Should you require assistance with the completion of fire risk assessments, please contact Kelly Ladd on 02920 853748 to discuss your specific needs with our fire safety expert who is Accredited by the Institute of Fire Safety Managers to undertake fire risk assessments.

Disclaimer: This article is designed to keep readers abreast of current developments. It is not intended to be a comprehensive statement of law and specialist legal advice should always be sought in relation to any particular circumstance. Therefore, Thomas, Carroll Management Services is unable to accept liability for any errors or facts or opinion contained within.