By law, someone is responsible.
It’s probably you.
Article 9 of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 requires a suitable and sufficient fire risk assessment for virtually every non-domestic building in England and Wales, and the responsible person carries the liability personally. Gemini AMPM recommends independent PAS 79 assessors we have worked with for years, then closes the findings, so you end up with actions done rather than a document you file.
PAS 79.
A method, not a template.
PAS 79 is the publicly available specification for fire risk assessment methodology: PAS 79-1 for non-domestic premises, PAS 79-2 for housing, including the common parts of blocks of flats. It sets a structured sequence: identify fire hazards, identify the people at risk, evaluate the existing fire protection measures, judge likelihood and consequence, then record the significant findings and rate the risk.
Why should a buyer care about methodology? Because the alternative is a template with your address pasted in. Article 9 demands an assessment that is suitable and sufficient for your building: the courts, not the assessor, decide what that means after a fire. A PAS 79 assessment gives your document a defensible spine: every conclusion traceable to something the assessor actually looked at. Whoever writes yours, expect plain English, with the risk rating explained rather than asserted.
Scoped, delivered,
evidenced.
- Assessor introductions: independent fire risk assessors from our supply chain, known to us and worked with for years.
- PAS 79-1 and PAS 79-2: non-domestic premises and the common parts of blocks of flats, aligned with your Fire Safety (England) Regulations duties.
- Prioritised action plans: significant findings ranked by risk with realistic timescales, not an undifferentiated wall of recommendations.
- Free second-opinion review: send us the assessment you hold and we will tell you plainly whether it needs a targeted update or a full redo.
- Full written record: every assessment recorded in full, as the amended Fire Safety Order has required since October 2023.
- Remedial delivery: one accredited contractor to close the findings, from doorsets to detection.
Findings with owners.
Reviews with triggers.
The report ends with a prioritised action plan: each significant finding ranked by risk, with a realistic timescale and a plain statement of what good looks like. Gemini AMPM does not write the assessment itself, and we think that is the right way round: the person judging your building should not be the company paid to fix it. We recommend independent assessors from our supply chain, known to us and worked with for years, and we will read the assessment you already hold with a free second-opinion review. Because we survey, install and maintain fire systems, fire doors, fire stopping and signage, you can then have one contractor close the findings instead of chairing five.
An assessment is a snapshot, so reviews need triggers, not just anniversaries. Review after material alterations, a change of use or occupancy, a fire or near miss, or new information about the building, and at a sensible routine interval in between, typically annually. Since October 2023, the amended Fire Safety Order also requires the assessment to be recorded in full, whatever the size of your business. Check that yours is.
Common questions on
fire risk assessments.
Does Gemini AMPM carry out fire risk assessments itself?
No. We recommend independent fire risk assessors from our supply chain who we have worked with for years, and we will review an assessment you already hold free of charge. Keeping the assessment separate from the remedial work means the person judging your building is not the one paid to fix it. Once the assessment is done, we can close its findings across fire alarms, fire doors, fire stopping and signage.
How often should a fire risk assessment be reviewed?
The Fire Safety Order requires review whenever there is reason to suspect the assessment is no longer valid or the building has significantly changed: alterations, a change of use, higher occupancy, a fire or near miss. Alongside those triggers, an annual review is widely regarded as good practice, with a full reassessment every few years or sooner in higher-risk premises. If your assessment predates a refurbishment, a new tenant or October 2023, it is due a look.
Who is the responsible person?
Under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, the responsible person is whoever has control of the premises: usually the employer in a workplace, and the owner or managing agent elsewhere, including the common parts of residential blocks. It is a legal role, not a job title, and it cannot be delegated away by hiring a consultant. You can, and should, get competent help with the assessment itself; the duty to have one that is suitable and sufficient stays with you.
What does Article 9 actually require?
Article 9 of the Fire Safety Order requires the responsible person to make a suitable and sufficient assessment of the fire risks, for the purpose of deciding what precautions the premises need. Since October 2023 it must be recorded in full (hazards, findings, measures) regardless of how many people you employ. Suitable and sufficient is the phrase enforcement turns on: the assessment must reflect your actual building and occupants, which is why methodology matters more than page count.
Tell us about
the building.
A named engineer comes back within 24 hours, not a call centre. Site surveys are free for commercial premises, no obligation.
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Talk to us about
fire risk assessments.
A named engineer, not a call centre, comes back within 24 hours. Tell us the building and what you’re dealing with, and we’ll scope it properly.