Someone in your building must take legal charge of fire safety. Often that person is you, even when nobody has told you. The responsible person for fire safety carries real legal duties. Get it wrong today, and you risk an unlimited fine.
This guide explains who the responsible person is, in plain English. You will learn what the role demands under current law. We also cover recent changes and the first steps to take.
Who is the responsible person for fire safety?
The responsible person is the individual or organisation legally accountable for fire safety in a building. In a workplace, it is usually the employer who controls that workplace. In other premises, it is whoever controls the building for business, or the owner. This duty sits in Article 3 of the Fire Safety Order 2005.
A responsible person can be a company, not just one named individual. According to GOV.UK, in most businesses the duty falls to the employer.
Many people assume the role applies only to offices. It actually covers almost all non-domestic premises. That includes shops, factories, care homes, schools and warehouses.
It also covers the communal parts of residential buildings. Shared hallways, stairwells and landings all count. Even car parks, estate roads and loading bays fall within scope.
Responsible person, competent person and relevant person: what is the difference?
These three terms get mixed up often. Here is what each one means in practice.
| Term | Who they are | What they must do |
| Responsible person | The duty-holder | Holds the legal duty for fire safety |
| Competent person | A trained helper | Assists the responsible person, often by doing the fire risk assessment |
| Relevant person | Anyone at risk from fire | The people your duties exist to protect |
You can appoint a competent person to do the work. You cannot hand over the legal accountability. That responsibility stays with you.
What are the duties of the responsible person?
Your core duty is to protect everyone who could be harmed by a fire. The law breaks this down into clear, practical steps.
- Carry out a fire risk assessment, and keep it up to date.
- Record that assessment and your fire safety arrangements in writing.
- Provide and maintain fire precautions, such as alarms, signage and escape routes.
- Appoint one or more competent people to assist you.
- Give staff clear information, instruction and training.
- Cooperate and share information with any other responsible persons present.
- Keep all fire safety equipment in good working order.
Together, these duties run across Articles 8 to 22 of the order. A professional fire risk assessment is the foundation for all of them.
Can there be more than one responsible person?
Yes. A single building can have several responsible persons at once.
In a multi-occupied building, each business controls its own unit. The landlord usually controls the shared parts. Each one is a responsible person for their own area.
By law, these duty-holders must cooperate. They have to coordinate their fire safety measures and share information with each other.
Responsible person vs accountable person
Do not confuse these two roles. The responsible person holds duties under the Fire Safety Order. The accountable person holds duties under the Building Safety Act 2022. They must cooperate, and they can be the same body or different ones.
How recent law has changed the responsible person’s duties
One change matters above the rest. As of 2023, every responsible person must record their fire risk assessment in writing. This applies even to small premises.
Fire Safety Act 2021
Passed in 2021, this act clarified the order’s reach. It confirmed cover for a building’s structure and external walls. That includes windows, balconies and flat entrance doors in residential blocks.
Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022
Effective from 23 January 2023, these regulations added new residential duties. The requirements scale with a building’s height.
Over 11 metres, you must check fire doors regularly. In high-rise blocks of 18 metres or seven storeys, you must do more. That includes secure information boxes, wayfinding signage and monthly checks of firefighting lifts.
Section 156 of the Building Safety Act 2022
Section 156 came into force on 1 October 2023. It made the written fire risk assessment a duty for all regulated premises. You can read the GOV.UK guidance on Section 156 in full. Before this, only premises with five or more staff needed one in writing.
Record-keeping rules also got stronger. You must now share fire safety records with any incoming responsible person.
What happens if you do not comply?
Enforcement sits with your local Fire and Rescue Authority. It can issue improvement and prohibition notices. It can also prosecute serious breaches in court.
Penalties are serious. As of 1 October 2023, fines for certain offences are unlimited. They were once capped at 1,000 pounds. Serious breaches can also lead to prison.
There is reassurance here too. Most enforcement starts with advice, not a courtroom. A documented, current fire risk assessment is your strongest defence.
How to meet your duties as a responsible person
Start with these five steps.
- Confirm who the responsible person is for your premises.
- Book a professional fire risk assessment, and make sure it is written down.
- Act on the findings, and fix the hazards it identifies.
- Put training, checks and maintenance on a regular schedule.
- Set up a cooperation arrangement if you share the building.
We see the same gap again and again, a missing written record. On a recent assessment of a multi-let unit in Medway, the fire risk assessment had never been documented. That gap became a legal breach the moment the 2023 rules took effect.
As a BAFE-registered company, our in-house assessors find hazards others miss. We handle everything from remedial works to ongoing service agreements. You stay compliant without juggling multiple contractors.
Frequently asked questions
Is the responsible person an actual person or a company?
Either. The responsible person can be a named individual or an organisation. In most businesses, it is the employer as a company.
Who is the responsible person in a rented building?
That depends on control. A landlord is usually responsible for the shared parts. Each tenant business is responsible for its own unit.
Can I delegate the responsible person role?
Not the accountability. You can appoint a competent person to do the work. The legal responsibility still rests with you.
Do I need a written fire risk assessment?
Now you do. Since October 2023, every regulated premises needs a written record. The old five-employee threshold no longer applies.
The bottom line
Knowing whether the duty falls to you is the first win. The responsible person role is manageable, but it is a legal obligation. Recent changes have raised the stakes, so act now.
Unsure if your fire risk assessment is current, or even written down? Book a fire risk assessment with our in-house assessors, and remove the doubt.
Still unsure who the responsible person is in your building? Tell us about your premises, and we will help you work it out.
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