Fire Doors Video Guide: 3 Things Every Responsible Flat Owner MUST Know
If you own a flat managed by AM Surveying & Block Management it's likely you own a fire door - your front door! However there is more than meets the eye when it comes to fire doors and further, front doors to flats are not the only fire doors - some blocks have many hundreds of fire doors. In addition to the front doors to flats it's often the case fire doors are located throughout communal areas of a building such as those that serve communal service cupboards housing electrical meters and others that divide hallways, staircases and lobby areas.
Our Communications AI Jake Explains: Fire Doors - 3 things you MUST know
Many things go into keeping a block of flats safe for all residents; maintaining the fire alarm, keeping back-up emergency lighting in good working order, keeping escape routes clear and ensuring correct signage is on display - however no fire safety strategy is complete without carefully considering fire doors.
Fire doors are to be maintained to good and proper condition. Many doors are in constant use and condition can deteriate even after only a matter of weeks and so to ensure good standards of repair are sustained - they require regular inspection to capture and action defects that arrise.
In this guide, and also via our Communications AI Jake in the above video - we detail the 3 things you MUST know as an owner of a flat with fire doors.
But First - Fire Doors: the Law
Following the introduction of additional legislation in recent years - lights shine brightly on matters of health & safety at blocks of flats and it's essential your building achieves compliance and keeps residents safe.
The most applicable legislation relating to fire doors in blocks of flats are:
The Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022
The Fire Safety Act 2021
Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005
The Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 made it a legal requirement from January 2023 that all buildings over 11 meter in height undertake quarterly inspections of all fire doors in communal areas and annual inspection of all entrance doors to flats (those that open onto an internal communal area).
Further, The Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 stipulates a requirement that self-closing devices to fire doors are checked to be in working order and that all fire doors - including flat entrance doors - are checked to be in overall good repair.
The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 states it is a legal requirement all blocks of flats obtain a Fire Risk Assessment including small blocks of flats of only 2 properties.
The Fire Safety Act 2021 clarified that flat entrance doors to any and all multi-occupancy residential buildings (i.e. any block of 2 flats or more) - MUST be included in periodic Fire Risk Assessments as mandated by the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005. Further, The Fire Safety Act 2021 sets out that even small buildings of 2 flats or more must ensure adequate fire safety is in place including the presence of fire doors to communal areas and entrances to flats.
A non-compliance with these legal requirements can amount to a criminal offence.
1) What is a fire door?
A fire door is a door specifically designed to prevent the spread of fire and smoke for at least 30 minutes. A fire door has been manufactured to strict regulations to achive fire door certification using materials and build-methods that have undergone fire testing such to enable the door to recieve certification. A fire door certified as "FD30" means it will contain fire for a minimum of 30 minutes.
Fire doors are located in communal areas and are the doors serving communal service cupboards such as where electrical meters are located along with the doors dividing hallways, staircases and various lobby spaces of the common parts.
In addition to communal areas - any flat that opens onto an internal communal area, of which is the means of escape for occupiers of the building, MUST have a front door that is a fire door.
Hence, fire doors are those in communal areas AND private doors being the entrance doors to flats.
2) What are the common maintenance issues with fire doors?
As a MINIMUM practice to ensure compliance with the law, as a matter of strict policy AM Surveying & Block Management, on behalf of its clients - conduct fire door inspections on the following basis:
Blocks of flats below 11m: flat entrance doors and communal doors are inspected annually.
Block of flats above 11m: flat entrance doors inspected annually. Communal doors inspected quarterly.
Common maintenance issues arrising from Fire Door Inspections includes:
Doors not made of fire resisting materials (i.e. doors that are not fire doors).
Door hinges that are not fire rated.
Gaps around doors that are too large (larger than 4mm where the door abuts with frame)
Smoke seals failed or missing.
Self closing device failed or missing.
Door furniture - such as a mailbox - installed in such a way that breaches what otherwise would have been a fire door.
AM Surveying & Block Management employ trained Fire Door Property Inspectors to conduct Fire Door Inspections. Inspections include a 10-point check of every fire door in every block of flats with records meticulously maintained.
As to flat entrance doors - it's essential information arrising from Fire Door Inspection gets in the hands of the correct persons - the owner of the doors, private Leaseholders. For this reason, results of Fire Door Inspection are sent to each respective leaseholder for their attention and action of repairs arising.
Together with AM Surveying & Block Management as the Managing Agent maintaining communal doors and private leaseholders maintaining their flat entrance doors - ALL fire doors in a block of flats can remain effective, compliant with the law and save lives of residents.
3) Who are responsible for fire doors?
Repairs to communal doors are funded via leaseholder service charges, as with all communal areas to a block of flats.
However - important to note - doors to entrances of flats i.e. the flat entrance doors - are not common parts*. Flat entrance doors are part of the private demise of the flat to which the door relates and as such are owned privately by the leaseholder of the flat. For this reason, it is not appropiate service charges are used for repairs of flat entrance doors because service charges are not for the use of repairs to privately demised areas of a block of flats.
*Terms of Leases prescribe in the vast majority of cases a flat entrance door is private. In some cases - perhaps 1 in 100 blocks - front doors may be prescribed by lease terms as being communal areas.
Communal doors = maintained using service charges.
Private doors = maintained by private leaseholders.
Leaseholders recieve notification from AM Surveying & Block Management concerning any repairs necessary - and the steps to follow - after each Fire Door Inspection.
NEW FOR 2025! AM Surveying & Block Management Fire Door Repair Service for Leaseholders
New for 2025, AM Surveying & Block Management's Fire Door Repair service is designed to make compliance EASY for leaseholders within the Block Management portfoilo.
Personalised fire door repair Quotations sent to leaseholders after routine annual Fire Door Inspections, enabling leaseholders to engage competent Fire Door Operatives to conduct compliance repairs.