Over the lifetime of a door, regular planned and preventative servicing and maintenance is key to keeping doors functioning and operating safely. Safety is part of the legal obligation of all owners/managers of premises as a duty of care to persons who may be affected by doors and gates on their premises. The frequency of the maintenance is dependent on the door type and usage. Fire-resisting and emergency escape doors have additional dedicated legislation.
If there is an incident with a door and you have failed to properly maintain your doors, it can result a civil court damages, a criminal prosecution under the health and safety law, negligence charges, or all three. Significant damages, fines or imprisonment are all potential outcomes.
This article uses information and guidance provided by the DHF – The Door Hardware Federation. We have referenced their content on Maintenance of Doors, Law Relating To Maintenance and Requirements For Maintenance Of Fire Doors.
What maintenance is required?
The prime objective of maintenance is to ensure the door is safe. Other qualities such as efficiency or convenience are secondary. But what does safe mean? Safe means that the door complies with the current safety regulations, not just the safety regulations at the time the door was installed. Fire-resisting and emergency escape doors are subject to further, very specific legal requirements.
Who’s responsible for ensuring maintenance is carried out?
The general duty of ensuring servicing and maintenance of doors is carried out is the responsibility of the owners/managers of the premises/buildings. In a workplace, this is usually the employer.
What maintenance do fire and escape doors require?
It’s important to note that virtually all buildings, places and structures other than private dwellings are covered by the UK’s Fire Safety Law, so business owners, building/facilities managers and employers must be aware of what maintenance is expected by law. Fire and escape door maintenance negligence is a crime.
To comply with UK regulations, the responsible person(s) must carry out and implement the findings of a fire safety risk assessment and keep doors maintained and in a safe condition. The law clearly states that regular maintenance of fire and escape doors is necessary to comply with current safety standards. There are different regulations for parts of the UK:
To ensure you meet all the legal requirements and comply with current health and safety standards, you need an experienced and knowledgeable partner you can rely on. ABC is your servicing and maintenance specialist, offering the total package - a hassle free one-stop solution to your installation, maintenance, and repair needs.
Experienced across all sectors, ABC has been providing industry leading service and maintenance packages to companies big and small across the UK for many years. We can help you navigate the regulations required at your business and offer sound advice to help you achieve the compliance you need.
Following strict health and safety regulations, ABC can manage door safety, quality and maintenance through comprehensive asset registers to keep your doors functioning, compliant and safe. Working closely with you, we can identify your door requirements, problematic sites/assets for maintenance and carry out maintenance and repairs professionally and efficiently.
ABC will guide you to the optimum solution for your product and service package needs.
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