Business Properties & secure fire exits

It is well known that business properties, especially where the public has access, should have  secure fire exit doors, which means that all locked doors should be able to be opened from the inside without a key.

But many people renting out properties for holidays do not realise that these fire exits should have easy escape capabilities. The logic behind this is that if the lock is key operated on the inside, the customers may well lock the door, put the key somewhere safe, and then should the worst happen and a fire break out, in their panic and being away from home, they could well forget where they have put the key and be caught in a tragic accident.

So if your wooden door has a nightlatch (often called a ‘Yale’ lock), and that lock has a British Standard Kite mark, you are fine.

If your wooden door has a mortice (often called a ‘Chubb’ lock), with key operation on both sides, there is a conversion that can be done to use a Euro Cylinder that has a thumb turn on the inside. This means changing the lock and handles but can use the existing space with minimal visible change.

If your door is UPVC or has any mechanism where the handles must be lifted before locking, it is a simple matter of swapping the existing Euro Cylinder for one with a thumb turn on the inside.

This is a key both sides Euro Cylinder:

And this is a standard thumb turn Euro Cylinder:

There is a slight worry with installing these fire escape systems, though and that is I have a tool that can go in through letter boxes and turn the thumb turn allowing me access to the property. We have two solutions. Firstly, certain thumb turns on the very best cylinders are designed to be difficult for tools to turn. They might require a push while turning or just plain difficult for the tool to purchase.

Alternatively, you can buy specially designed sloped guards for your letterbox (although even these can be bypassed with ever more clever locksmith tools).

Or better yet a letter catching cage on the back of your door will stop all tools that I know of at time of writing.

If you own or run holiday lets, you might find your public liability insurance does not pay out if you have not taken the correct measures to ensure the safety of your guests.

I am noticing a lot of village halls are also suddenly finding out from fire inspections that they are not up to scratch. Please check the regulations specific to you if you run any property that is not a private home.

Click here for Government guidance on fire doors/fire safety

Should you have any questions regarding the above information, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Thanks for reading.