The majority of Londoners are not able to access fire risk assessments for their homes, a new study has found.
Of the 32 London boroughs, 22 do not publish fire risk assessments, which are the only legal requirement for assessing fire safety risks in multiple occupancy buildings such as high-rise blocks.
Shockingly, the study also revealed that 79 per cent of the publicly available fire risk assessments in London were expired, with some high-rise buildings not inspected since before the Grenfell Tower fire.
The study was carried out by the Building Safety Register, a group of technologists and risk managers who have been campaigning for the creation of safety logbooks for all buildings.
Matt Hodges-Long, co-founder of the Building Safety Register, said: “We were shocked but not surprised by the findings of this research. Despite being nearly four years beyond the Grenfell tragedy, the basics of fire safety and importance of fire risk assessment is still not being taken seriously by Government, regulators and landlords.”
Though there is no legal requirement to carry out fire risk assessments at a specific frequency, it is required that the assessments are “suitable and sufficient”.
Dame Judith Hackitt, the Government’s adviser on building safety regulation, recommended that fire risk assessments be carried out annually following the Grenfell tragedy and urged the property industry not to wait for the law to change.
The Building Safety Register study was conducted earlier this month following calls from London Assembly Member Caroline Pidgeon to introduce a public register of fire risk assessments in the capital to allow would-be renters and owners to check the fire safety status of their potential new home.
Reacting to the study, she said: “I was shocked to learn that under current legislation leaseholders have no legal right to see the fire risk assessment for the building in which they live.
“This report powerfully highlights that 44 months since Grenfell so little progress has been made to improve fire safety in the capital.
“Since Grenfell, the Government has failed to act comprehensively on fire safety, so in the absence of swift and comprehensive national action London must lead the way.
“I believe we need to be looking at a London-wide public register of fire safety risk assessments so that prospective buyers or renters can see the fire safety rating of any potential home, something I have repeatedly pushed the Mayor of London to work with the London Fire Brigade to trial in our city.”
When the issue was raised at a meeting of the London Assembly last month, Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said that he would “continue to explore” the idea of trialling a public register of fire risk assessments.
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