What Does the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 Require?

Summary

The RRO came into force on 1 October 2006, consolidating over 70 pieces of previous fire safety legislation into a single framework. It replaced the old fire certificate system — under which businesses had to obtain certificates from the fire authority — with a self-assessed, risk-based approach where the responsible person takes ownership of fire safety management.

The shift to self-assessment placed greater responsibility on building owners, occupiers, and employers. The fire authority's role moved from pre-emptive certification to enforcement of the duty to self-assess and to maintain adequate precautions. Fire authorities can and do carry out inspections, issue enforcement notices, and prosecute where standards are not met — but they do so reactively, without the safety net of pre-cleared fire certificates.

The RRO applies to virtually all non-domestic premises. It does not apply to single private dwellings, but it does apply to the common areas of blocks of flats, HMOs, sheltered housing, and other multi-occupied residential buildings. The Fire Safety Act 2021 extended the RRO to cover the structure, external walls, and flat entrance doors of multi-occupied residential buildings.

Key Facts

• Full title — Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (SI 2005/1541)
• In force — 1 October 2006
• Geographical scope — England and Wales (Scotland has its own Fire (Scotland) Act 2005; Northern Ireland has its own legislation)
• Premises scope — All non-domestic premises; common areas of multi-occupied residential buildings
• Not applicable to — Single private dwellings (sole occupancy houses and flats)
• Responsible person — The employer (in a workplace); the person who has control of the premises; or the owner if no other controller is present
• Multiple occupancy — Where different responsible persons share a building, each must coordinate and cooperate; a single lead responsible person is good practice
• Article 9 — Duty to carry out a fire risk assessment
• Article 11 — Duty to implement general fire precautions
• Article 13 — Fire-fighting and fire detection
• Article 14 — Emergency routes and exits
• Article 15 — Emergency procedures, including the emergency plan
• Article 17 — Maintenance requirements
• Article 19 — Duty to inform employees
• Article 21 — Duty to train employees
• Article 32 — Offences; penalties on conviction
• Enforcement — Local fire and rescue authorities (FRAs)
• Article 45 — Penalties: unlimited fines; up to 2 years imprisonment for most serious breaches

Quick Reference Table

Detailed Guidance

The Responsible Person

The "responsible person" is the person on whom the RRO's duties fall. Article 3 defines this as:

• In a workplace: The employer, to the extent they control the premises
• In other non-domestic premises: The person who has control of the premises in connection with carrying on a trade, business, or other undertaking (whether for profit or not)
• Where neither of the above applies: The person who owns the premises (the freeholder or, in some cases, the head lessee)

In a building with multiple occupants — for example, a commercial office building with several tenant companies — each employer is the responsible person for their own demised area. The building owner or managing agent is the responsible person for common areas. The RRO (Article 22) requires all responsible persons in a building to cooperate and share information relevant to fire safety.

The Building Safety Act 2022 introduced the concept of the "Accountable Person" for higher-risk residential buildings — a more specific designation with more onerous duties than the RRO's responsible person, for buildings over 18m or 7 storeys.

General Fire Precautions (Article 11)

Article 11 requires the responsible person to implement "general fire precautions" to the extent necessary to reduce the risk to relevant persons (employees, and others lawfully on the premises) to as low as reasonably practicable. These precautions are detailed in Articles 13 to 22.

Fire detection and warning (Article 13): The premises must have appropriate fire detection (where the risk assessment identifies a need for automatic detection) and a means of giving warning (manual call points, automatic alarms, or voice alarm systems). The appropriate level of detection depends on the size and nature of the premises, sleeping risk, and the fire risk assessment findings. All detection equipment must be maintained in working order.

In a small single-storey open-plan office with clear sight lines and few people, a manual alarm (air horn) may be sufficient. In a multi-storey building with hidden areas, sleeping risk, or a large number of occupants, automatic detection linked to a central fire alarm panel with appropriate coverage is required.

Fire-fighting equipment (Article 13): Appropriate fire-fighting equipment must be provided — typically portable fire extinguishers, and in some cases hose reels, dry or wet risers, or suppression systems. Extinguishers must be of the correct type for the potential fire classes present (Class A — wood/paper; Class B — flammable liquids; Class C — gas; Class E/electrical; Class F — cooking oils). They must be serviced annually by a competent person.

Emergency routes and exits (Article 14): The number, capacity, and location of emergency exits must be sufficient for the number and nature of occupants. Escape routes must:

• Be of sufficient width for the number of people using them
• Be kept free from obstructions at all times
• Be provided with emergency lighting where there is a risk to people in the dark
• Have fire exit signage to BS 5499 — green pictogram signs indicating escape direction
• Lead to a place of safety

Emergency procedures (Article 15): A written emergency plan must be prepared. It must cover:

• The action to be taken by any person in the event of fire
• The arrangements for calling the fire service
• The arrangements for evacuating the building (including assistance for people with mobility or sensory impairments)
• The identification and duties of fire wardens/marshals

The plan must be shared with employees and, where relevant, with employees of other undertakings on the premises.

Maintenance (Article 17)

Article 17 places a duty to maintain all means of escape, fire-fighting equipment, detection systems, and other fire safety measures in "efficient working order and in good repair." This is not a passive duty — it requires active monitoring and testing.

Key maintenance obligations include:

• Fire alarm systems: Regular testing (weekly call point test, annual service to BS 5839)
• Emergency lighting: Monthly functional test; annual full duration test to BS 5266
• Fire extinguishers: Annual service; replacement at specified intervals
• Fire doors: Regular inspection for damage, correct operation, integrity of seals and self-closers
• Sprinkler systems: Quarterly and annual testing per BS EN 12845 or BS 9251
• Dry risers: Annual wet test; 6-monthly visual inspection
• Fire dampers: Annual drop test (or bi-annual for high-dusting environments)

Records of all maintenance and tests must be kept and made available to the enforcing authority on request.

Staff Information and Training (Articles 19, 21)

The responsible person must ensure that employees are given appropriate fire safety information and training. The RRO specifies that this must be:

• Provided at the time of first employment (induction)
• Adapted to take account of the introduction of new or changed risks
• Given during working hours
• Repeated periodically where appropriate
• Adapted to the capabilities of the employee

Training must cover:

• Fire hazards present in the workplace
• The fire risk assessment findings and precautions in place
• What to do if they detect a fire
• How to raise the alarm
• The emergency plan, including evacuation routes and assembly points
• How to use fire-fighting equipment (at a basic level; not necessarily hands-on extinguisher training for all)

Nominated fire wardens (marshals) require additional training proportionate to their responsibilities — typically including how to search a floor, ensure evacuation is complete, liaise with the fire service, and use extinguishers.

Enforcement and Penalties (Articles 30–32, 45)

Local fire and rescue authorities are the enforcing authority for the RRO. Fire inspectors have powers to:

• Inspect premises — without notice if necessary
• Issue enforcement notices — requiring specific improvements within a stated period
• Issue prohibition notices — prohibiting use of all or part of premises where there is a risk of death or serious injury; takes immediate effect
• Prosecute — in the Magistrates' Court or Crown Court

The RRO creates criminal offences for failure to comply with Articles 8 to 22 and with enforcement notices. Defences include due diligence (taking all reasonably practicable steps) and, in some cases, acting in reliance on incorrect information from another responsible person.

Penalties on conviction:

• Summary conviction (Magistrates' Court): unlimited fine
• Indictment (Crown Court): unlimited fine; up to 2 years imprisonment for offences that put people at serious risk of death or injury
• Personal liability: directors and senior managers can be prosecuted where the offence was committed with their consent, connivance, or due to their neglect

High-profile prosecutions have resulted in fines running into hundreds of thousands of pounds for organisations and custodial sentences for individuals.

Interaction with Other Legislation

The RRO exists alongside, not instead of, other fire safety-related legislation:

• Building Regulations — Apply at design and construction stage; the RRO manages the ongoing occupation
• Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 / Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 — Significant overlap with fire safety duties; the RRO's fire risk assessment is an extension of the general workplace risk assessment
• Housing Act 2004 / Housing Health and Safety Rating System — Applies to residential properties and landlord duties
• Building Safety Act 2022 — Applies specifically to higher-risk residential buildings over 18m/7 storeys

Where the RRO and HSW Act overlap, complying with one does not automatically mean compliance with the other, but carrying out a thorough fire risk assessment under the RRO will generally satisfy the fire-related elements of the HSW Act assessment.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does the RRO apply to my rental property?

The RRO applies to the common parts of a building containing multiple dwellings — so the stairwells, corridors, and shared areas of an HMO or block of flats are within scope. Individual let flats or houses occupied by a single household are outside the RRO's scope, but landlords have duties under the Housing Act 2004, Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (England) Regulations 2015, and other legislation. From 2021, the Fire Safety Act extended the RRO to cover the external walls, structure, and flat entrance doors of multi-occupied residential buildings.

Is a fire certificate still required?

No. The fire certificate system was abolished when the RRO came into force on 1 October 2006. All existing fire certificates became null and void. They may still contain useful information about the building's fire precautions and history, but they carry no legal status and do not exempt anyone from the duties imposed by the RRO.

Who enforces the RRO for care homes and hospitals?

Fire and rescue authorities are the primary enforcing authority. However, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) also considers fire safety as part of its inspection regime for care homes and hospitals — inadequate fire safety can result in CQC enforcement action or conditions on registration. The two enforcement regimes operate independently but often coordinate.

What is a "suitable and sufficient" fire risk assessment?

This is the standard the RRO requires but does not define precisely. Guidance from the Home Office and NFCC suggests that an assessment is suitable and sufficient when it:

• Identifies the fire hazards
• Identifies the people at risk
• Evaluates the existing precautions and whether they adequately address the risk
• Records the significant findings (where there are 5+ employees)
• Is appropriate to the nature and scale of the premises

It is not a question of length or format — a short, focused assessment for a simple low-risk premises is more likely to be suitable and sufficient than a lengthy generic document that does not address the specific conditions.

Regulations & Standards

• Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (SI 2005/1541) — Primary legislation; all articles

• Fire Safety Act 2021 — Extended RRO scope to external walls, structure, and flat entrance doors

• Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 (SI 2022/547) — Additional duties for multi-occupied residential buildings

• Building Safety Act 2022 — Higher-risk building regime, Accountable Person duties

• BS 5839-1:2017 — Fire detection and fire alarm systems for buildings; code of practice for design, installation, commissioning, and maintenance

• BS 5266-1:2016 — Emergency lighting; code of practice for the emergency escape lighting of premises

• BS 9999:2017 — Code of practice for fire safety in design, management and use of buildings

• RRO full text — Legislation.gov.uk

• Fire safety in the workplace — GOV.UK guidance — Overview for responsible persons

• Home Office fire safety guides — Sector-specific guidance documents

• Fire and Rescue Service enforcement guidance — NFCC enforcement approach

• HSE fire safety at work — Interaction with health and safety law

• fire risk assessment — How to conduct a fire risk assessment under Article 9

• emergency evacuation plans — Article 15 emergency procedures in detail

• passive fire protection — Fire precautions and maintenance obligations

• fire door installation — Maintaining fire doors as part of Article 17 duties