Fire Door Inspections: The Risks of Unqualified Inspectors

Earlier this year, I highlighted the difference between certified Fire Door Inspectors and Fire Door Maintainers. Since then, I’ve noticed a worrying trend: fire door inspections being carried out by individuals with no 3rd party certification, no formal training, no insurance and, as a result, a serious question mark over their Skills, Knowledge, Experience, and Behaviours (SKEB).

At first glance, they may appear competent: producing polished PDF reports full of coloured tick boxes and glossy photographs and highlighting obvious defects (usually relating to operating gaps). But behind the polished report, there’s often no verifiable evidence of training, no guidance as to how the issues can be remedied, no certification and no insurance to protect the client if the findings are inaccurate.

The consequences can be therefore serious with unnecessary and costly remedial work being carried out with the objective of achieving compliance, but all based on incorrect advice.

For example, earlier this month LFDC reviewed a report for a client covering a large number of FD30S Apartment Entrance Doors installed in 2003. The report advised upgrading all intumescent strips to 15mm x 4mm, replacement of all hinges, locks, and closers because they were not CE Marked and stated that all threshold gaps should be remediated such that they do not exceed 10mm.

Seeking a second opinion, the client invited LFDC to attend site. Our inspection confirmed that the doors were well-maintained and, aside from a few minor adjustments to address operational/threshold gaps and the addition of drop threshold seals (as the doors opened onto a protected staircase serving as the principal means of escape), they were capable of performing their intended function and were therefore compliant with the RR(FS)O 2005.

LFDC reassured the client that 10mm x 4mm combined intumescent strips were standard for FD30S doors at the time, the hinges—high-quality Grade 14—were fully suitable for fire-resistant doors, and the absence of CE Marking wasn’t an issue since it only became mandatory in 2013.

This is exactly why LFDC always recommends that Responsible Persons make sure their fire door inspectors are 3rd party certified, can demonstrate the right SKEB and carry proper insurance. Certification bodies such as FDIS, Blue Sky, and ABBE verify competence, require ongoing CPD, and carry out regular audits. This ensures accountability, improves safety, and gives RPs confidence that the advice they’re receiving is reliable.

Engaging unqualified, uninsured individuals might seem like a cost-saving measure upfront, but it can easily lead to bigger problems—and much higher costs—further down the line.