How Often Should Fire Risk Assessments Be Reviewed in High-Risk Sectors?

Understanding how often fire risk assessments should be reviewed is critical to ensuring ongoing safety and compliance, especially in high-risk environments. While fire risk assessments are a legal requirement for non-domestic premises in the UK, there’s no one-size-fits-all review cycle.

Instead, the fire risk assessment frequency is determined by a range of factors including building use, occupancy, and specific sector risks. In high-risk sectors such as healthcare, hospitality, and facilities management, more frequent reviews aren’t just best practice, they’re essential.

In this blog, we explore how often fire risk assessments should be reviewed for high-risk sectors, along with the legal obligations, risk-based triggers, and sector-specific best practices for reviewing your fire risk assessment.

What are the legal requirements for fire risk assessment reviews?

The foundation of fire safety legislation in England and Wales is the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005. These regulations place a duty on the ‘Responsible Person’ to:

• Carry out a suitable and sufficient fire risk assessment of the premises
• Implement appropriate fire precautions based on the findings
• Keep the assessment up to date and review it regularly

While the law doesn’t specify exact intervals, the key phrase is that assessments must be reviewed regularly, particularly when circumstances change. That means the frequency of fire risk assessments must be determined by how dynamic the risk is within a particular environment.

Failure to conduct a timely fire risk assessment review can result in non-compliance, ultimately putting both lives and businesses at risk.

What determines the frequency of fire risk assessments?

The appropriate fire risk assessment frequency depends on the nature of your premises and how they’re used. Some risk-based factors that will influence review frequency include:

• Building types and complexity – e.g. multi-storey hospitals or open-plan retail spaces
• Occupant vulnerability – such as elderly residents, patients, customers, or new staff unfamiliar with the premises
• Use of hazardous materials – like oxygen or flammable substances
• Fire safety system upgrades – including the installation of new fire alarms, fire extinguishers, or fire suppression systems
• Significant layout or structural changes – e.g. refurbishments or new partitioning
• High staff turnover or changes in operational use
• Fire incidents (including near misses) or false alarms

Typical best practice suggests reviewing your fire risk assessment annually as a minimum. However, any of the above triggers should prompt a reassessment, even if it occurs outside the usual review cycle.

Fire risk assessment review best practices by sector

High-risk sectors will have their own unique considerations when it comes to fire risk assessment reviews. Below are some best practices for the most common high-risk sectors.

Healthcare facilities

In healthcare settings, patient vulnerability, continuous operations, and the presence of oxygen-enriched environments elevate the importance of thorough and frequent fire risk assessment reviews. Healthcare premises should ensure their assessments are reviewed at least annually, and sooner if clinical procedures, fire systems, or layouts change.

As well as that, your fire safety measures must account for non-ambulant patients, complex ward layouts, and essential services that can’t be paused. You should also ensure regular coordination between estate teams, clinical leads, and infection prevention teams to help make sure fire safety remains integrated with operational delivery.

The UK government provides online guidance for completing fire risk assessments for anyone responsible for healthcare facilities, including advice on reviewing your fire risk assessment.

Hospitality and retail premises

High footfall environments such as hotels, restaurants, and retail outlets experience constant changes in occupancy, staffing, and layout – all of which impact fire safety. Best practice is to review your fire risk assessment every 6-12 months, and immediately following any change to premises use or public access.

Temporary displays, seasonal refurbishments, or increased customer volume should also be taken into account as they can influence fire loading and evacuation plans. Staff fire safety training, clear fire signage checks, and egress route assessments should form part of each review cycle to maintain a compliant and responsive fire safety strategy.

Responsible persons of retail premises can use online guidance provided by the UK government for more information on how to conduct a fire risk assessment and how often it should be reviewed.

Facilities management contracts and multi-occupancy buildings

For facilities managers and managing agents, overseeing multiple tenancies within shared buildings presents unique fire safety challenges. The frequency of fire risk assessments should align with lease changes, renovations, or service upgrades. Each tenant introduces new equipment, materials, and behaviours that may affect the building’s risk profile and so should also be accounted for.

It’s essential to coordinate fire safety responsibilities between all parties and to ensure communal areas – such as plant rooms, corridors, and exits – are covered by up-to-date assessments. As well as that, all fire documentation should be centralised and accessible as this demonstrates compliance across your portfolio.

There are numerous online fire risk assessment guidance documents from the UK government for facilities management and multi-occupancy buildings, including for factories and warehouses.

Key signs it’s time to review your fire risk assessment

If you’re unsure whether your assessment is still valid or if you’re due a review, here are some key signs that it’s time for a fire risk assessment review:

• Your fire alarm or emergency lighting systems have been upgraded or modified
• You’ve altered your building structure or layout, including internal partitions, refurbishments, or occupancy
• New guidance or legal updates have been issued – for example revised government guidance
• A fire-related incident, near miss, or spike in false alarms has occurred
• You’ve introduced new hazardous materials or equipment that has changed the risk profile of your premises
• Shared occupancy or facilities have changed
• Construction, maintenance, or third-party works nearby could affect fire escape routes, detection zones, or response access
• Operational shifts or out-of-hours usage – such as extended opening hours or new services have been added

A valid, reviewed fire risk assessment is the cornerstone of any fire safety management system. Ignoring these signs of change puts your people and property at risk and leaves businesses exposed to legal consequences.

Get in touch for your fire risk assessment review

Whether you manage a healthcare facility, a retail portfolio, or multi-occupancy sites under a facilities management contract, ensuring your fire risk assessment is up to date and reviewed regularly is vital.

At TVF, we provide comprehensive fire risk assessment reviews tailored to high-risk sectors. Our team of nationwide assessors are fully qualified, experienced, and fully conversant with current fire safety legislation, meaning we can help you stay compliant, reduce risk, and protect lives wherever you’re based in the UK with the support of the LS Fire Group.

Get in touch with us today to schedule a site review or to speak to one of our fire safety specialists to discuss your sector-specific needs in more detail.