Starting April 2024, automatic fire alarm responses in select buildings to cease without verification.
East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service (ESFRS) is introducing new measures to reduce the impact of false alarms, marking the second phase of initiatives under their Integrated Risk Management Plan, approved by the Fire Authority following public consultation.
The service responds to approximately 10,000 incidents annually, with Automatic Fire Alarm (AFA) systems contributing to 36% of these calls. Notably, 97% of AFA activations are false alarms, leading to unnecessary deployments classified as Unwanted Fire Signals (UwFS).
Analysis reveals that only 1.3% of AFA calls in non-domestic buildings are actual fires, equating to an average of 20 fires per year, with the majority requiring minimal intervention. This scenario disrupts essential training, fire safety, and community work, and diverts resources from genuine emergencies.
To address this, from 1 April 2024, ESFRS will no longer automatically respond to fire alarms in low-risk commercial buildings without telephonic confirmation of a fire. Low-risk buildings include those without overnight occupants, such as offices, shops, and restaurants. This is a shift from the current practice of responding to after-hours alarms.
Building owners and managers, identified as the ‘responsible persons’ under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, are urged to prepare for these changes by reviewing and possibly updating their Fire Risk Assessments and emergency plans. This may involve ensuring fire wardens or marshals are trained to perform physical checks and communicate effectively in the event of an alarm.
To support these efforts, stakeholders should:
- Update fire risk assessments and emergency plans.
- Train designated fire safety personnel in their enhanced roles.
- Inform staff about the policy change and their potential new responsibilities.
- Coordinate with fire alarm monitoring services to align with the new approach.
- Investigate past false alarms to identify and implement preventative measures.
While reducing Unwanted Fire Signals may not decrease false alarms, awareness and proper response protocols are essential to prevent complacency that could result in unchecked fire spread, illustrated by the example of a gym smoke detector frequently triggered by steam.
Further information on the Integrated Risk Management Plan is available on the ESFRS website. https://www.esfrs.org/community-risk-management-planning
