Holiday Let Fire Risk Assessments
If you accept paying guests, your property is treated as a commercial premises under fire safety law. Whether you own a single countryside cottage or a portfolio of serviced apartments, you have a strict legal duty to ensure your property is "suitable and sufficient" in its fire safety measures.
I carry out on-site Fire Risk Assessments (FRAs) for holiday cottages, Airbnbs and serviced apartments, using the appropriate Home Office guidance for your type of property. The aim is simple: a clear, practical document that reflects your property, your guests and how you use the building.
What Is a Fire Risk Assessment?
A fire risk assessment is a structured look at your holiday let from a fire safety point of view. It considers how a fire could start, how it might spread, who could be affected, and what needs to be in place so people can raise the alarm and escape safely, especially at night, in an unfamiliar property.
If you let your property to paying guests in England, you are required to have a written FRA and to keep it up to date. As the owner or operator, you count as the "Responsible Person" under the Fire Safety Order and are accountable for how fire safety is managed.
For small holiday lets with simple layouts, I work to the Home Office guide Making your small paying-guest-accommodation safe from fire. Where the building is larger or more complex, I use the Sleeping Accommodation guidance and relevant fire service notes as the benchmark.
In practical terms, a suitable and sufficient FRA should tell you what you already have in place, where it falls short, and what needs to change so you can satisfy both the law and your insurers and keep guests safe.
Why Do Holiday Lets Need FRAs?
It's the law. You have a statutory duty to carry out and keep a documented, suitable and sufficient FRA under the Fire Safety Order.
Moral duty. Your primary responsibility is ensuring guests can detect and escape a fire in an unfamiliar environment, especially at night.
Insurance protection. Insurers require you to have met these legal obligations when underwriting holiday-let policies; gaps in your FRA can leave you exposed if you ever need to make a claim.
Beyond domestic standards. Your original building sign-off was likely for domestic use. A formal FRA addresses the unique risks introduced by commercial holiday letting, such as varying occupancy, higher guest turnover and unfamiliar escape routes.
Holiday Let Fire Risk Assessment Process
I follow a straightforward, nine-step process to ensure your assessment is thorough, practical, and tailored to your holiday let.
Collect Information About the Property
Before any visit, I gather information about the building - its age, construction, how it is laid out, its occupancy, and ask for copies of any emergency plans or drawings and any safety certificates. Reviewing existing fire documentation or drawings on the day saves time and keeps costs down.
Identify Potential Sources of Fire
During the site visit, I identify any potential sources of ignition, fuel or oxygen that could start a fire or make it worse. In a holiday let this includes cooking, heating appliances, soft furnishings and any stored combustibles that guests or cleaners may move or misuse during everyday use.
Evaluate the Likelihood of a Fire (Based on Identified Risks)
Once those risks are identified, I consider the likelihood of a fire starting and the severity of the consequences. I look at the inherent risks of each factor and how guest use, maintenance, and check regimes could affect the risk level.
Consider Existing Fire Protection Measures
I then consider the fire protection measures you already have in place - detection and alarm systems, escape routes, doors, emergency lighting and compartmentation. I look at how these are provided, what standard they are provided to, and whether they are sufficient for short-stay guests and the layout of the property.
Review Fire Safety Management & Records
Fire safety is not just hardware. I review how you manage testing, maintenance and upgrades - alarm checks, extinguisher servicing, record keeping, guest information and any internal procedures you use for changeovers or night-time routines. This shows whether good intentions are being backed up with regular checks and updates.
Consider the Consequences if a Fire Occurs
For each area of the property, I assess what the consequences would be if a fire did occur - for people, the building and your ability to keep trading. In a holiday let this includes guests who may be asleep or unfamiliar with the layout, who may have mobility needs, and how quickly they can be alerted and escape from the property.
Decide the Overall Risk Level
By combining the likelihood and the consequences, I decide an overall risk level for each key area of the property and for the building as a whole. This risk rating then drives the strength and urgency of the recommendations in your FRA.
Draw Up a Prioritised Action Plan
After the visit, I write up the findings in a sensible FRA report and turn them into a clear action plan. Recommendations are set out in plain English, with suggested completion dates and priorities, so you can see what needs attention first and what can sensibly be planned over time.
Review & Update the FRA
Your FRA is a living document. I advise on review dates and on when a reassessment is needed - usually annually for a review, or sooner if anything significant changes or if there has been a fire or near miss. Fallen behind? I can help bring an existing FRA back up to date as part of a follow-up visit.
Book a Free Fire Risk Assessment Consultation
If you're unsure what you need or you'd simply like to talk things through, you can book a free 15-minute telephone consultation by phone or video. In most cases this can be arranged the same day.
I'll look at how you use your property, what documentation you have, and ask about an on-site FRA or remote consultancy that right for you.
Frequently Asked Questions
Personalised Compliance Support
Hi, I'm Ian Robinson, founder of Holiday Let Compliance. I've worked in the self-catering industry since 2008. I provide straightforward, professional safety and compliance support tailored for holiday let owners.
I'm here to make the process simple, practical and stress-free. If you aren't quite ready to book a specific service, or if you just have a general query about your holiday let, please feel free to get in touch.