Fire risk assessment cost

Floor area sets the starting point. Sleeping risk, the number of storeys and how complicated the building is move it up or down, and doors or flats add to it. The calculator puts those together from published UK fees, checked November 2026. It is a budget, not a quote.

Small premises: From £200Up to 100 m²
Council fee, 500 m²: £510April 2026, plus VAT
Flats, Type 1: £350 to £1,000
Fire doors: £10 to £65 a door

Excluding VAT unless you choose otherwise. A guide, not a quote.Sources read November 2026

Estimate your fee

Fees by floor area

Typical market bands, with Adur and Worthing Councils’ commercial fire safety fees (from 1 April 2026, plus VAT) as a public benchmark. The same team’s 2024 list was about 7 to 8% lower.

Excluding VAT. The council lists split at 1,000 m²; we split the larger premises further from published guides.
Floor area	Typical	Council 2026	Council 2024
Up to 100 m²	£200 to £450	£415	£385
100 to 500 m²	£350 to £650	£510	£475
500 to 1,000 m²	£500 to £950	£709	£660
1,000 to 2,500 m²	£800 to £1,500	From £830	From £770
Over 2,500 m²	£1,300 to £3,000	Quoted	Quoted

Flats, HMOs and fire doors

Residential buildings are priced by type of assessment and by how many flats or rooms the assessor has to enter. Fire doors are priced per door.

Item	Typical	Source
Flats or HMO, Type 1 (common parts)	£515	Council fee, 3+ storeys, 2026
Flats or HMO, Type 3	£620 + £63 a flat	Council fee, 2026
Residential blocks	£350 to £1,000	Published price guides
HMO	£250 to £600	Published price guides
Fire door inspection	£10 to £65 a door	Published price guides, 2026
Fire safety advice	£110 an hour	Council fee, 2026

What moves the fee, and by how much in the calculator

These factors are our own reading of how assessors price, not published rates. They are here so you can see exactly what the calculator does.

Storeys: One storey as published; two or three +5%; four or five +15%; six or more +35%. More stairs, more compartments, more doors.
Sleeping risk: Staff only +10%; residents or guests +25%; people who need help to escape +45%. Sleeping is the biggest single risk factor.
Complexity: Simple −10%; complex +25%. Processes, high storage, kitchens, mixed use and several occupiers take longer.
Fire doors: £25 to £65 a door for an inspection with a report.
Flats or lettings: £63 for each flat entered, from the council’s Type 3 fee.
Not included: Travel to islands or remote sites, out-of-hours visits, intrusive (destructive) surveys and any remedial work.

Where our information comes from

All read November 2026. The market bands are our own reading of published UK assessor and landlord price guides from 2021 to 2026, which we do not name; the council fee lists and public contracts below are the benchmarks we check them against.

Adur and Worthing Councils, fire safety price guide, from 1 April 2026: £415, £510, £709, from £830; Type 1 £515; Type 3 £620 plus £63 a flat; advice £110 an hour; all plus VAT.
The same team’s April 2024 list, including re-inspection at 50% of the fee.
Rugby Borough Council tender, Find a Tender, September 2025: fire risk assessments for housing and corporate buildings, estimated £200,000 ex VAT over three years.
Wolverhampton City Council FOI reply, November 2017: 42 assessments for £18,629.34.
GOV.UK: Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022, for the fire door check intervals.

Questions about fees

How much does a fire risk assessment cost?

Typical UK fees run from about £200 for a small shop or office to £1,300 or more for large premises, excluding VAT. One council fire safety team charges £415 up to 100 m², £510 up to 500 m² and £709 up to 1,000 m².

Why do quotes for the same building differ so much?

Because scope differs. One quote may cover the common parts only, another every room and every fire door; one may be a short checklist, another a full PAS 79 report with an action plan. Send every assessor the same scope.

Is VAT charged?

Usually, at 20%, unless the assessor is a sole trader below the VAT threshold. Most published fees are quoted plus VAT.

Is the cheapest fixed price worth it?

Be careful with a single low price for any premises. A fixed fee cannot reflect your building, and a quick visit tends to produce a thin report. Ask what the visit involves and see a sample report.

What does a review cost compared with a new assessment?

Less, if the building has not changed. One council team charged re-inspections at 50% of the full fee in its 2024 list. A fresh assessment is better after building work or a change of use.

What do councils and housing providers pay?

Public contracts give a sense of scale: Rugby Borough Council put an estimated £200,000 (ex VAT) on three years of fire risk assessments for its housing and corporate buildings in 2025, and a 2017 Wolverhampton freedom of information reply shows 42 assessments for £18,629, about £444 each.

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