Holiday Let Fire Risk Assessments

Does my holiday let need a fire risk assessment?

Yes. The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 applies to all premises let to paying guests — including self-catering holiday lets, Airbnb properties and short-term rentals, regardless of size. As the owner, you are the Responsible Person, legally required to ensure a suitable and sufficient fire risk assessment is carried out and kept up to date.

The Home Office guidance published in October 2023 — "Make your small paying-guest accommodation safe from fire" — set clearer expectations than ever before, and Welsh fire and rescue services actively enforce these requirements. Larger properties (more than four bedrooms, or sleeping more than ten) attract more demanding expectations, and a professionally conducted assessment is effectively essential for these premises.

What we assess

• Means of escape — including whether final exits can be opened without a key, and escape provision from upper-floor sleeping accommodation
• Fire detection — the grade, category and coverage of smoke and heat alarms against BS 5839-6
• Carbon monoxide detection — essential where woodburners, open fires or other combustion appliances are present
• Fire doors and compartmentation protecting the escape route
• Emergency lighting, or proportionate alternatives for smaller premises
• Firefighting equipment — appropriate extinguishers and kitchen fire blanket
• Guest information — fire action notices and welcome pack content
• Specialist features — woodburning stoves, hot tubs, biomass systems, outbuildings, EV charging

Proportionate findings that keep you trading

Where we identify deficiencies, we distinguish clearly between what must be addressed immediately and what can be programmed over a sensible timescale — and where appropriate, we identify interim measures that allow you to continue letting safely while permanent works are completed. Our reports are designed to satisfy enforcing authorities, insurers and booking platforms alike.

Pricing

Holiday let assessments start from £325, with larger or more complex properties quoted individually. Every quote is fixed before we attend.