Third Party Certification

What is Third Party Certification?

Third Party Certification is the best assurance of quality when looking for a provider to help meet your fire safety requirements. It offers independent verification and evidence that a company is competent and working to the appropriate standards and best practice for the specific service you require. Post Grenfell and following the Independent Review of Building Regulations and Fire Safety by Dame Judith Hackitt DBE FREng, there has been an increased focus on fire safety responsibilities. This emphasises the responsibilities of the person appointed for fire safety within a building* and actions they can take to mitigate fire risk to the best of their ability following national fire safety legislation.

The use of Third Party Certificated providers is strongly recommended by Government in guidance documents:

“Third-party certification schemes for fire protection products and related services are an effective means of providing the fullest possible assurances, offering a level of quality, reliability and safety that non-certificated products may lack... Third-party quality assurance can offer comfort both as a means of satisfying you that goods and services you have purchased are fit for purpose, and as a means of demonstrating that you have complied with the law.”

- GOV.UK Fire Safety Guidance Documents (Quality assurance of fire protection equipment and installation)

How is Third Party Certification different to other types of endorsement?

First party referral is simply a self-endorsement. This is when a provider tells you directly that they are good enough to fulfil your requirements with no evidence of their competency.

Second party referral involves someone else, such as another customer, contractor register or trade association (without third party certification criteria for joining) stating that a provider can fulfil their requirements. However, there still may be little or no credible and independent evidence to prove their competency.

UKAS Accredited Third Party Certification takes this to another level completely to ensure provider competence. This is when an independent Certification Body which is accredited by UKAS** (the national accreditation body for the UK appointed by Government) sends trained assessors out to assess the provider. They confirm the provider is working to the latest appropriate standards and best practice for the specific service they deliver. They check and verify these required competencies and management systems to ensure that the provider can do what they say - and are checked annually.

BAFE SP205

This scheme has been developed by a group of industry experts to help the building’s Responsible Person (or Duty Holder in Scotland) meet the requirements for Fire Risk Assessments under the Regulatory Reform Order (Fire Safety) 2005, the Fire (Scotland) Act 2005 and the Fire and Rescue Services (Northern Ireland) Order 2006.

This Scheme was launched in May 2012 and has been developed for organisations (including in-house departments and sole traders) who provide Life Safety Fire Risk Assessment services for others. It is designed to give assurance to those commissioning Fire Risk Assessments and provide confidence in the quality and relevance of the services being provided.

It is essential that the fire risk assessor is a competent person, and the fire risk assessor has a duty of care to the organisation on which legislation imposes a requirement for the fire risk assessment.

However, the ultimate responsibility for the adequacy of the fire risk assessment under the Regulatory Reform Order (Fire Safety) 2005, the Fire (Scotland) Act 2005 and the Fire and Rescue Services (Northern Ireland) Order 2006, rests with the responsible person or duty holder (which is normally a company), rather than with the fire risk assessor. However, there has been enforcement action taken against Fire Risk Assessors if the responsible person has been considered to have taken all reasonable steps when appointing an assessor, but the assessor has been proved not to be competent. This scheme recognises the importance of providing fire risk assessments that comply with an acceptable set of criteria.

Life Safety Fire Risk Assessment SP205 specifies that organisations (including in-house departments and sole traders) have the required technical and quality management capabilities and risk assessment staff meet appropriate criteria. The scheme has been designed to meet the requirements of fire risk assessment providers large and small, recognising that there are many individuals working as assessors.