Fire Door Inspection Report

Regulation 10 of the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 applies the routine-check duties to multi-occupied residential buildings in England whose top storey is above 11 m (typically more than four storeys). Fire doors in the common parts must be checked at least every 3 months, and flat entrance doors at least every 12 months on a best-endeavours basis. Fire door checks in lower-rise blocks remain good practice under the responsible person’s general duties.

The Home Office guidance lists the items a routine check should cover: the door has not been replaced with a non-fire-resisting door; letterboxes close firmly; no damage to the door, frame or surrounding wall; glazing intact; hinges and ironmongery free of obvious defects; intumescent strips and smoke seals (where fitted) undamaged and making contact; gaps between door and frame not exceeding 4 mm; and an effective self-closing device that closes the door from any opening angle.

The regulations do not prescribe a qualification for routine quarterly and annual checks — they are checks, not certified surveys — but the responsible person must ensure whoever performs them is competent. Third-party certification schemes such as FDIS exist for professional fire door inspectors, and more detailed periodic inspections are often specified in the building’s fire risk assessment.

The guidance requires a record of the steps taken to check flat entrance doors over each 12-month period, including any cases where access to a flat was not granted. Keeping a door-by-door record of all checks, defects and remedial actions is the practical way to evidence compliance to the fire and rescue authority.