Compliance

Compliance built around your building

The legal testing schedules every commercial building owner needs to know — and the programmed maintenance we put in place to keep you ahead of them.

The Schedules

What Compliance Actually Requires

Fire alarms, emergency lighting, fixed wire testing and PAT testing — the standards, the intervals and what we deliver against each.

BS 5839-1

Fire alarm maintenance — the schedule

Fire alarm systems don't look after themselves. BS 5839-1 — the British Standard governing fire detection and alarm systems in commercial premises — sets out a clear routine of checks across the year. Miss them, and you're not just non-compliant: your insurance can be invalidated and the Responsible Person under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 can be held personally liable. Here's what a compliant system actually requires.

Daily

By the Responsible Person (you or your team)

Check the panel shows normal status with no faults or warnings displayed. Takes seconds. Any fault investigated and logged.

Weekly

By the Responsible Person

Test one manual call point, rotating to a different one each week so every call point is tested over time. Confirm the alarm sounds and the panel registers the activation. Record it in the fire logbook. This is a legal requirement and one of the first things a fire officer or insurer will ask to see.

Monthly

By the Responsible Person

Test any standby generator or back-up power supply where fitted, and check batteries on systems that require it.

Every six months

By a competent engineer (us)

A professional inspection and test of the system. Roughly half the devices are tested at each visit, so across two visits a year every detector and device is checked. The engineer inspects the panel, batteries, cause-and-effect programming and all field devices, then issues a certificate.

Annually

By a competent engineer (us)

A full inspection and test of the entire system — every detector, call point, sounder and interface — verifying the system performs exactly as designed. Full certification issued for your compliance records and insurers.

The bottom line

A commercial fire alarm system needs a minimum of two professional service visits per year, on top of the in-house weekly testing. Most buildings we survey are either overdue or have no documented testing regime at all — which is exactly the gap we close.

BS 5266-1

Emergency lighting maintenance — the schedule

Emergency lighting is what guides people out of a building when the power fails during a fire. BS 5266-1 governs how it must be tested and maintained. Like fire alarms, the obligation sits with the Responsible Person — and the testing routine is non-negotiable.

Monthly

Short function test

A brief test where the mains supply to each emergency light is interrupted and every fitting is checked to confirm it illuminates. Faults logged and rectified. Quick, but legally required every month.

Annually

Full duration test (by a competent engineer)

The critical one. Every emergency light is tested for its full rated duration — typically three hours — to confirm it stays lit for the entire period it would need to in a real emergency. Batteries that don't hold the full duration are identified and replaced. The system is fully inspected, tested and certified.

The bottom line

Emergency lighting needs a monthly function check and a full annual duration test with certification. A light that comes on for ten seconds but dies after twenty minutes passes a casual glance and fails the moment it's actually needed — which is why the annual duration test matters and why so many systems quietly fail it.

BS 7671 / EAWR 1989

EICRs / Fixed Wire Testing — the schedule

An Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) is the formal inspection of a building's fixed wiring — the distribution boards, circuits, cabling and connections behind the walls. It's carried out to BS 7671, the UK wiring regulations, and it's how you prove the electrical installation is safe to continue in use. For commercial premises it isn't just good practice — it's a requirement under the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989, and landlords of commercial and residential property carry specific legal duties.

Every 5 years

Standard commercial interval

Most commercial premises require a full EICR at least every five years, or at change of occupancy. Some higher-risk environments require more frequent inspection.

Every 3 years

Industrial / heavy use

Industrial units and installations subject to heavy use or harsh conditions are typically tested every three years.

Annually

Higher-risk environments

Properties with swimming pools, or certain leisure and high-risk environments — tested annually.

Every 3 months

Construction sites

Construction sites and temporary installations require inspection every three months.

Every 5 years

Rented residential (incl. HMOs and blocks)

Required by law every five years, or sooner if the previous report specifies.

What it involves

By a competent engineer (us)

The installation is tested circuit by circuit. Any issues are coded — C1 (danger present, immediate action required), C2 (potentially dangerous, urgent remedial work needed), or C3 (improvement recommended). The report is only "satisfactory" if there are no C1 or C2 codes. We issue the full EICR with a clear schedule of any remedial works required.

The bottom line

A commercial EICR is needed at least every five years, more often in demanding environments. An installation with C1 or C2 codes is legally unsatisfactory until the remedials are done — and we handle both the inspection and the remedial works in-house, so you're not left chasing a separate contractor to close out the findings.

IET Code of Practice / EAWR 1989

PAT Testing — the schedule

Portable Appliance Testing (PAT) is the inspection and testing of moveable electrical equipment — anything that plugs into a socket. There's no single legally fixed frequency; instead the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 require equipment to be maintained in a safe condition, and the IET Code of Practice sets out risk-based intervals depending on the equipment and environment. The right interval is driven by how the equipment is used, not a one-size-fits-all rule.

Every 3 months

Construction sites and harsh environments

High-risk environments demand the shortest intervals.

6 to 12 months

Industrial and high-use equipment

Heavily used equipment in industrial settings.

1 to 2 years

Offices and low-risk commercial environments

Most equipment in typical office settings.

2 to 4 years

IT and stationary equipment in low-risk settings

Stationary, low-handling equipment can sit on longer intervals.

What it involves

By a competent engineer (us)

A combination of visual inspection — checking for damage to plugs, leads and casings — and electrical testing using PAT equipment. Each item is labelled with a pass and a test date, and you receive a full asset register and certificate listing every item tested, its result, and its next due date.

The bottom line

Compliance challenge

Block managers and housing providers must meet evolving fire safety and EICR obligations.

How we support

Resident-friendly engineers, flexible appointments and clear certification.

Compliance Review

Not sure where your portfolio stands?

Most building owners and managing agents don't know whether their fire alarm and emergency lighting testing is fully up to date — until something goes wrong or an audit lands. We'll carry out a compliance review across your portfolio, tell you exactly where the gaps are, and put a programmed schedule in place so nothing lapses again.

Book a Compliance Review

Portfolio-wide gap analysis
Programmed annual schedule
Digital certification & reporting
In-house remedials — no chasing