How Safe are the Fire Doors in your Block of Flats?

It’s Fire Door Safety Week this week. Whilst yes, it is easy to groan a little at another ‘week’ but actually, fire doors are life saving devices that landlords and some tenants are not using properly.

Research conducted by Fire Door Safety Week, found that 38 per cent of tenants are worried about a lack of fire escape routes displayed in the building they live in. A 47 per cent of tenants do not feel prepared on what to do if there is a fire in their building. Whilst it might seem obvious to leave your flat straight away in a fire, some landlords fire safety advice is to stay put.

Spokesperson for Fire Door Safety Week, Hannah Mansell said that checking fire doors should be part of a regular fire risk assessment. She worries that a change of attitude towards fire safety in rented accommodation is necessary.

“This new research shows that social housing landlords and building owners still have a long way to go to meet their fire safety responsibilities,” Hannah says.

Referring to the Grenville Tower fire, she continues “It is astounding to learn that in the last three months so little has been done to address the concerns of tenants and residents.

“Many people do not realise that the real job of a fire door is to hold back fire, smoke and toxic gases, delaying the spread around a building and keeping the vital means of escape route clear. They only work properly if they are specified, manufactured, installed and maintained correctly, and of course, closed when a fire breaks out.”

Worryingly, research found that 22 per cent of people have seen fire doors in their building propped open and 15 per cent have seen them damaged, affecting their reliability.

“Good fire doors help stop fires from spreading,” says Dany Cotton, London Fire Commissioner. “Fires that spread put more lives at risk and I would urge everyone to check that their fire doors are properly maintained and kept shut. Remember they don’t just protect you, but everybody in the building.”

For more information about Fire Door Safety Week, visit: www.firedoorsafetyweek.co.uk