Fire Risk: Understanding the risk to unoccupied property 

A fire becomes more difficult to extinguish the longer it is left to burn. The longer a fire burns the more damage it will cause as the fire consumes all combustible material that it comes into contact with, or that reaches a temperature where the material will combust.

Fire alarm activations require a quick response to prevent fire escalating. A property that is fully occupied, both day and night, has a dramatically improved chance of a quick response

Automatic fire detection such as laser smoke detectors and temperature-based heat detectors enable early warnings through a fire alarm system. Fire alarm sounders alert people within earshot of the alarm that there is a fire on the premises. Fire alarm activations require a quick response to prevent fire escalating. A property that is fully occupied, both day and night, has a dramatically improved chance of a quick response.

Will the neighbours or members of the public recognise that the alarm is a fire alarm rather than a burglar alarm or an alarm for an external door that has been left open? It is common to hear an alarm go off in the street continuously without a quick response. In this time a fire unattended can grow to threaten the fabric of a building.

It is advisable that if a property is unoccupied the fire alarm is linked to the fire brigade so that if there is a fire alarm activation the nearest fire station is notified automatically and there will be a response from professionals with fire-fighting equipment.

However, a very small fire could become a big fire in the time it takes for the fire brigade to arrive. If there are people on-site within the premises, they are immediately alerted by the fire alarm and if it is safe to do so fire extinguishers can be used before the fire grows and causes more serious damage.

We install additional fire equipment in every building we manage to increase the standard of fire protection, and all of our live-in guardians receive instruction on fire safety.

Our guardians are trained in the use of fire extinguishers and fire blankets, are provided a copy of the FRA and are kept up to date with the fire strategy in the properties they protect.

Our guardians are on-site to be able to observe fires and report them to the Fire Brigade immediately. If there is a fire in an adjacent commercial property that is unoccupied during the night our guardians are present to report the fire before it gets out of hand.