When the Remedials Are Just Paperwork
I have just finished a run of fire risk assessments across London, and the biggest headache was not the buildings. It was the paperwork.
When I sat down to write up the action plans, a large share of the remedial works had nothing to do with fire doors, compartmentation or blocked escape routes. They were records the client almost certainly had but could not show me on the day: emergency lighting logs, the electrical EICR, HVAC servicing certificates. Every one of those becomes an action on the report, and every time it winds me up.
Why London assessments take longer
London buildings are rarely simple. You get Victorian terraces converted into flats, shops with residential above, and older blocks extended and refitted several times over.
The management is often just as layered. A freeholder, a managing agent, a facilities contractor and a handful of specialist engineers may all hold a piece of the compliance picture. Ask who has the emergency lighting records and you can get three different answers.
Then there is the practical side: parking, congestion charges, keyholders who turn up late, and plant rooms or roof spaces nobody can find the key for. All of that eats into the time you actually have on site.
The real problem: records the client had but could not find
On several jobs I was fairly sure the testing had been done. The emergency lights worked, the distribution boards had recent labels, and the air handling units looked well maintained. But a fire risk assessment is based on evidence, not on what looks fine. The documents I kept asking for were:
Emergency lighting log (EML): monthly function tests and the annual full-duration test, as set out in BS 5266.
Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR): the periodic inspection of the fixed wiring under BS 7671, with any C1 or C2 defects and proof they were fixed.
HVAC servicing records: maintenance of ventilation and air handling plant, including any fire dampers and smoke control interfaces.
Fire alarm records: the weekly test log and the six-monthly service certificate under BS 5839.
In most cases the answer was "the contractor has it" or "it's on someone's email". So instead of signing those items off, I had to raise them as actions.
Why I can't just take their word for it
Under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, the responsible person has to be able to show their fire safety measures are maintained. If I note "emergency lighting tested" without seeing the log, I am putting my name to something I have not verified.
So the item goes on the action plan. On paper, that makes the building look worse than it probably is. The client gets a report full of remedials, the managing agent gets twitchy, and in reality most of them could be closed in five minutes by forwarding a PDF.
It also costs everyone time. I have to chase, re-issue and sometimes revisit, and the client pays for a longer job than they needed.
A simple fix: one compliance folder per building
None of this needs expensive software. A shared folder per building, set up the same way every time, solves most of it:
Create one folder per site in whatever the client already uses: Google Drive, SharePoint or Dropbox.
Add a subfolder for each system: fire alarm, emergency lighting, electrical (EICR and PAT), HVAC and ventilation, fire doors, extinguishers, gas safety, and previous fire risk assessments.
Make contractors upload their own certificates as part of the job. No upload, no invoice paid.
Keep a one-page tracker at the top of the folder listing each test, when it was last done and when it is next due.
Share the folder link with your assessor a week before the visit.
If I have that link before I arrive, I can check the records in advance, spend my site time on the building itself, and send back a report where the actions are real fire safety issues, not missing paperwork.
Final thought
Most clients are not ignoring fire safety. The testing is usually happening. The evidence just is not where anyone can find it when it matters.
Get your records in one place before your next assessment, and you will get a shorter action plan, a quicker visit and a report that reflects how safe your building really is.
If you manage a building in London or the South East and need a fire risk assessment, or help setting up a compliance folder that works, get in touch with Safety First at healthsafetyuk.co.uk or email admin@healthsafetyuk.co.uk.
