Do fire alarms have to be linked to fire brigade?

[Guest SaraP]

On Saturday the fire alarm for the building in which I work went off. It was the general alarm for the whole buiding and therefore not looked after from our company. The alarm went off for a long time and I noticed that it was not linked to anyone, is that normal? Should it not be linked to either the fire brigade or an appointed person? Otherwise it would just ring without anyone taking care of it. The landlord said that it does not have to link to anyone but I just would like to double check with you.

Thank you.

[green-foam]

Fire alarms are also known as life safety systems, they are designed to give warning (audible / visual) that a building is on fire and that upon activation of the alarm everyone should vacate the building immediately. It is not a requirement for every fire alarm to "call the fire brigade"

Ideally In the event of a fire alarm activating as well as everyone vacating the building to a designated area, pre determined people (aka fire wardens / marshals) should check that everyone is out safely (and check the visitors book) Also, should they be required, one of the fire wardens will call the fire brigade. At least one responsible person / fire warden should have a working knowledge of how to use the fire alarm, by that I mean, know how to read what the panel is indicating and determine is it a false alarm, and if it is a false alarm they should know the procedure to reset the alarm panel.

[Tom Sutton]

Your landlord is correct and I am surprised if there were signs of a fire the fire and rescue service should have been called or at least the keeper of the keys called to silence the fire alarm.

[Guest MatthewPie]

Good afternoon.

I am an Estate Agent and we are in the process of selling a property. The insurers are saying they would like the smoke detectors to be connected to the local fire brigade.

Is this something that can be done, or are there other systems that the insurer will be happy with.

Kind regards,

Matthew

[green-foam]

I think you need to clarify what is there.

If the property has "domestic smoke alarms" these can not be "connected to the fire brigade"

If the property has a "Fire alarm" Then this can be "connected to the fire brigade"

However, I should point out that no alarm is connected directly to the fire brigade, instead it calls an Alarm Receiving Centre who will if appropriate call the fire brigade. In order to have this, the fire alarm must be up to the relevant standards and have a maintenance contract.

Would it not be up to the new owners which insurance company they have and therefore up to the new insurance company what the fire alarm does or doesn't do.