A fire alarm that has not been tested is an assumption, not a safety system. Detectors drift, batteries age, sounders get painted over and rooms get partitioned without anyone thinking about the detection. Testing is how you find out before a fire does.
There are three layers of testing. The user carries out a weekly test from a different manual call point each week. A competent engineer inspects and services the system at intervals of no more than six months. Every detector, call point and sounder should be functionally tested over the course of each year. We handle the engineer visits and set you up to run the weekly test properly.
If you have taken on a building and nobody can tell you when the alarm was last serviced, start with a one-off full test and condition survey. You get a clear report of what works, what does not, and what the priorities are, without signing up to anything.
What is included
- One-off full system test and condition survey
- Functional testing of detectors with test gas, heat and smoke
- Manual call point and sounder or beacon tests
- Sound level checks in bedrooms and occupied areas
- Battery capacity and charger tests
- Cause and effect verification (door holders, AOVs, lifts, plant)
- Weekly test training and test rota for your staff
- Written test report with pass, fault and variation notes
Who it is for
- New building owners
- Managing agents taking on a block
- Landlords
- Schools
- Offices
- Warehouses
The rules in each UK nation
England
Rented homes in England must have a smoke alarm on each storey used as living accommodation and a carbon monoxide alarm in any room with a fixed combustion appliance, other than a gas cooker. HMO licence conditions set by the local council often go further and call for a mains-wired, interlinked system to BS 5839-6.
Wales
Under the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016 and its fitness for human habitation regulations, landlords must fit a working, mains-powered smoke alarm on each storey of a rented home, interlinked with each other, and a carbon monoxide alarm where there is a combustion appliance.
Scotland
Since February 2022, every home in Scotland must have interlinked fire alarms: a smoke alarm in the living room, a smoke alarm in every circulation space such as hallways and landings, and a heat alarm in the kitchen, plus a carbon monoxide alarm where there is a fixed combustion appliance or flue.
Northern Ireland
Private tenancies in Northern Ireland must meet the fitness standards set by the Department for Communities, including working smoke, heat and carbon monoxide alarms. HMOs are licensed by councils under the Houses in Multiple Occupation Act (Northern Ireland) 2016, which sets fire detection standards as licence conditions.