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While investigations into this summer’s fatal hotel fires in Newquay and Blackpool continue, the UK hotel industry and some fire authorities are reviewing their own procedures.
The British Hospitality Association has called on hoteliers to make sure their fire precautions are up to date, and that their fire risk assessments meet the requirements of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005. “We are concerned that many hoteliers and other operators may not yet have caught up with all the requirements of the Order” said a spokesperson. “In the light of the Newquay fire, there will no doubt be questions raised about how the new system is working.”
The Bed & Breakfast Association also urged proprietors to familiarise themselves with their duties. The association was intending to petition the government for a relaxation of the regulations for smaller B&Bs, but has postponed this in the light of the fires. Speaking to Caterer & Hotelkeeper magazine, David Weston, chairman of the BBA, said while he does not minimise the importance of fire regulations, he is asking for moderation. “Everybody in the industry will hope [the recent fires] will not lead to calls for a tightening of the laws. They do not need tightening – they need to be properly administered.”
In the meantime, an undercover investigation has revealed that many hotels in one of the UK’s top tourist regions are ignoring basic fire precautions. In 13 out of 14 three star hotels randomly picked by an undercover team for BBC’s Inside Out programme in the South West, conditions were deemed unsatisfactory by fire safety consultant, Alan Cox. Shortcomings included wedged-open fire doors, obstructed fire exits and a potentially useless fire escape.
Meanwhile a report that hundreds of hotels in south Devon are failing to comply with new fire regulations have been played down. Roger Barr, group fire safety manager at Devon and Somerset Fire & Rescue, told FSE that the brigade is working with some 390 hotels to upgrade their alarm systems to L2 under BS 5839, considered the minimum requirement under the RRO. “Although all hotels and guesthouses had fire certificates under the old legislation, some of these went back to the early Seventies, so we were hamstrung in insisting on modern improvements. Now we have an audit programme in place and around 100 of the establishments have completed this.”
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