How often must a fire safety inspection be carried out?

Fire safety inspection frequencies depend on what's being inspected and which regulation governs it. In the UK, the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 requires a fire risk assessment that is 'regularly' reviewed -- in practice, this means annually for most commercial premises, and immediately after any significant change to the building, occupancy, or use. Fire extinguisher servicing is typically annual under BS 5306. Fire alarm systems are inspected every six months under BS 5839 for most commercial buildings.

In the US, NFPA 72 (fire alarms) and NFPA 25 (sprinklers/standpipes) set inspection intervals ranging from weekly visual checks to annual full inspections depending on the system component. The key point is that different components of a fire safety system have different inspection schedules -- a single premises can have four or five separate due dates running simultaneously. Tracking each one independently is the only reliable approach.