In law, the responsibility for fire safety in the shared parts of a residential building falls to whoever has ‘control of the premises’. This is usually the owner (freeholder), a residents’ management company, a Right to Manage company, or a managing agent.
One of the duties of the ‘responsible person’, as they are known in the law, is carrying out a ‘suitable and sufficient’ fire risk assessment. Depending on the circumstances, this may be a review of existing fire safety arrangements or a new assessment.
The freeholder or management company responsible may decide to pass this duty on to a managing agent.
The responsible person or their agent may carry out the fire risk assessment themselves or may employ someone else to do it.
More information you might find useful:
- Who is allowed to carry out a fire risk assessment?
- What is a fire risk assessment and do I need one?
- How do I get a copy of my building’s fire risk assessment?
- How often should a building have a fire risk assessment?
- What are the leaseholder protections in the Building Safety Act 2022?
- More Frequently Asked Questions on Fire safety
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