PATs and Fire Prevention

Two recent pieces of news further underlined the role of portable appliance testing and its role in fire prevention. The latest annual Fire Statistics Great Britain, 2010/2011 further reinforced the role of faulty appliances and leads as the main cause of accidental fires in other buildings (non dwellings). The report showed that, In 20010/11, faulty appliances and leads were the cause of 4,400 accidental fires in non-residential buildings, a figure that represents 25% of all such fires. Over the period 2000 and 2011 (excluding 2010 for which no breakdown is available), each year faulty appliances and leads were identified as the cause of between 25% and 32% of accidental fires in non dwelling type buildings. To help overcome such problems in domestic premises, the Electrical Safety Council (ESC) has recently run a workshop on electrical fire safety for the Fire and Rescue Services (FRS). The London-based event attracted 38 delegates from 25 FRS – representing over half of the entire FRS in England – with officials from the Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG) ‘Fire Kills’ campaign also in attendance. Phil Buckle, Director General of the ESC, said: “The FRS undertake a range of fire prevention activities, often with the focus on the vulnerable groups – such as pensioners, children and people on low income – who are also our priority audiences. “By enabling the Fire and Rescue Services to extend their understanding of electrical fires, we help them develop key electrical safety messages to communicate to householders and, hopefully, improve the accuracy of fire reporting. This in turn will enhance statistical data on electrical-related fires and assist us in determining how best to reduce them.”