Document reference: OEC-TC-FRA-001 · Version: 1.0 · Effective: 19 September 2026 · Next review: 19 September 2027 · Applicable system: OEC Quality Management System / BAFE SP205 Scheme.
These terms apply to Life Safety Fire Risk Assessment services delivered by Oxford Environmental Consultants Ltd trading as Firesurv. Please read them carefully before instructing us. They form the contract between you and us together with our written quotation. Where the quotation and these terms conflict, the quotation takes precedence.
1. Definitions
1.1 "We", "us", "our" means Oxford Environmental Consultants Ltd, trading as Firesurv.
1.2 "You", "your", "Client" means the person, firm or organisation who instructs us, as named in the quotation.
1.3 "Responsible Person" has the meaning given in the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, or the relevant duty holder under the applicable fire safety legislation.
1.4 "Assessment" means the Life Safety Fire Risk Assessment described in the quotation. "Report" means the written fire risk assessment report and action plan we produce.
1.5 "Quotation" means our written quotation or specification describing the premises, scope, assessment type, methodology, exclusions, timescale and charges.
1.6 "Consumer" means an individual acting wholly or mainly outside their trade, business, craft or profession. "Business Client" means any other client.
1.7 "Working day" means Monday to Friday, excluding bank holidays in England.
2. The Contract
2.1 We send you the Quotation and these terms before we accept your instruction. The contract starts when you accept the Quotation in writing (including by email or purchase order) and we confirm acceptance.
2.2 Quotations are valid for 30 days unless they say otherwise, and are based on the information you gave us. If that information is materially incomplete or wrong, we may revise the Quotation before starting work (see clause 8).
2.3 No other terms (including terms on your purchase order) apply unless we agree them in writing.
3. Our Services
3.1 We will carry out a Life Safety Fire Risk Assessment of the premises in the Quotation to identify fire hazards and people at risk, evaluate the risk to life from fire and the adequacy of existing fire precautions, and recommend proportionate, prioritised actions.
3.2 Assessments follow the recognised code of practice stated in the Quotation: PAS 79-1:2020 for premises other than housing, or BS 9792:2025 for housing. For housing, the Quotation states the assessment type (for example Type 1: common parts, non-destructive).
3.3 Assessments are carried out by a competent fire risk assessor authorised for the complexity of your premises. They are independently peer reviewed and validated by our Lead Fire Risk Assessor before the Report is issued. We only accept work within our authorised competence category, and we will tell you if your premises fall outside it.
3.4 Once OEC holds BAFE SP205 registration, a BAFE SP205 Certificate of Compliance will be issued with each qualifying Report.
3.5 Unless the Quotation says otherwise, the Report will be issued electronically within 10 working days of the last site visit and after all information we reasonably asked for has been received.
3.6 If we find a serious and imminent risk to life during the Assessment, we will tell the Responsible Person or site contact before leaving site and confirm it in writing within 24 hours. We will always tell you about urgent life-safety findings, whatever the status of payment.
4. What the Assessment Does Not Include
Unless the Quotation expressly includes them, the Assessment does not include:
- opening up, destructive or intrusive inspection, including lifting floors, removing ceiling tiles or panels, or opening sealed voids. Concealed construction and fire stopping are assessed only as far as can be seen safely without damage;
- appraisal of external wall construction or cladding (PAS 9980 / EWS1), structural assessment, or fire engineering;
- testing, commissioning or certifying fire alarm, emergency lighting, sprinkler, smoke control or other systems, which we assess by visual inspection and review of your records;
- inspecting every flat entrance door or private dwelling — sampling will be as agreed in the Quotation;
- asbestos, electrical, gas, structural or other surveys, or advice on property protection or business continuity;
- carrying out any remedial works, or managing the action plan on your behalf.
Any area we cannot reach, and any limitation or assumption, will be recorded in the Report.
5. Your Responsibilities
5.1 You must give us, or arrange, safe and timely access to all areas in scope at the agreed times, with a knowledgeable site contact available.
5.2 Before or at the visit, you must provide the relevant information we request: previous fire risk assessments, fire strategy, plans, maintenance and test records for fire safety systems, fire door inspection records, training and drill records, evacuation plans and PEEPs, and details of any known defects or changes.
5.3 You must tell us in advance of any hazards on site, including your asbestos register, and of any occupants who may be vulnerable.
5.4 You confirm you are the Responsible Person or are authorised by them to instruct us and to receive the Report.
5.5 The Responsible Person remains responsible for putting the recommended actions in place, and for reviewing the assessment regularly and whenever there is a significant change.
6. Taking Over From Another Provider
If we are asked to take over fire risk assessment services from another provider, we will carry out a full new Assessment. We may read previous assessments for background, but our Assessment and Report will not be based on them.
7. Subcontracting
We carry out Assessments using our own directly employed personnel. We will not subcontract any part of the Assessment to a third party without your prior explicit written consent. If we do, we remain fully responsible for the work.
8. Charges and Payment
8.1 Our charges are set out in the Quotation, together with VAT at the prevailing rate. Unless the Quotation says otherwise, the price includes the site visit, peer review and validation, the Report and one set of clarifications within 30 days of issue.
8.2 The following additional charges apply only where stated in the Quotation or agreed with you in writing before they are incurred:
| Item | Charge |
|---|---|
| Revisit caused by lack of access, no site contact, or areas not ready | As quoted or agreed in writing before attendance |
| Cancellation with less than 2 working days' notice (abortive visit) | As stated in the Quotation |
| Additional areas or dwellings beyond the quoted scope | As quoted or agreed in writing before the additional work |
| Reissue of a Report because of changes to information you supplied after issue | As quoted or agreed in writing before reissue |
| Copies of information for handover to another provider (clause 14.3) | At our normal hourly rate, agreed in advance |
| Ongoing services (for example annual review or reassessment) where requested | As separately quoted |
8.3 Business Clients: invoices are payable within 30 days of the invoice date. We may charge statutory interest and compensation on late payments under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998.
8.4 Consumers: payment is due as stated in the Quotation.
8.5 Corrections made because of our own error are free of charge.
9. Ongoing Services
Unless the Quotation includes an ongoing service, the contract ends when the Report is issued. Where we agree to provide ongoing services (for example periodic reviews or reassessments), the Quotation will state their frequency, charges, duration and how they are renewed or ended. We will remind you before any renewal, and either party may end ongoing services on 30 days' written notice.
10. Consumer Cancellation Rights
10.1 If you are a Consumer and the contract is made at a distance (for example by phone or email) or away from our premises, you may cancel within 14 days of the contract being made without giving a reason, by telling us clearly in writing (a model cancellation form is available on request).
10.2 If you ask us to start the Assessment within the 14-day period and then cancel, you will pay a proportionate amount for the services provided up to the time you cancel. If the services have been fully performed at your express request, and you acknowledged that you would lose your right to cancel, the right to cancel no longer applies.
10.3 We will refund any money due to you within 14 days of cancellation.
11. The Report and Reliance
11.1 The Report reflects the conditions seen and the information available at the date of the Assessment. Fire risk changes over time. The Report should be reviewed regularly, and whenever there are significant changes to the premises, its use, occupancy or fire precautions, in any case by the review date recommended in the Report.
11.2 The Report is prepared for you and for the purposes of fire safety legislation. You may share it with enforcing authorities, insurers, managing agents, residents or leaseholders as required. Other third parties may rely on it only with our written agreement.
11.3 Copyright in the Report stays with us. You have a licence to use it for the premises it covers once our charges have been paid.
12. Liability
12.1 We will carry out the services with the reasonable skill, care and diligence of a competent fire risk assessor. We do not guarantee that every fire hazard or deficiency will be found, particularly in areas that cannot be seen or reached, but any limitation will be recorded.
12.2 Nothing in these terms limits or excludes our liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or for any liability that cannot legally be limited. Nothing affects a Consumer's statutory rights.
12.3 For Business Clients, and subject to clause 12.2, our total aggregate liability arising from or in connection with the contract, whether in contract, tort (including negligence) or otherwise, is limited to £2,000,000. We are not liable for indirect or consequential loss, or for loss of profit, revenue or business.
12.4 We are not liable for loss caused by inaccurate or incomplete information you supplied, by failure to give access, or by failure to put the Report's recommendations in place.
12.5 We hold employers' liability, public liability and professional indemnity insurance that covers Life Safety Fire Risk Assessments. Details are available on request.
13. Certification Body Access and Confidentiality
13.1 We treat all information about you and your premises as confidential, and only disclose it with your consent or where the law requires. Personal data is processed in line with the Data Protection Act 2018, UK GDPR and our privacy notice.
13.2 As a condition of our third-party certification (SSAIB / BAFE SP205, and UKAS where applicable), you agree that we may share Reports and related records confidentially with our certification body and accreditation body. You also agree to consider reasonable requests, arranged in advance, for their auditor to visit the premises with us to verify the Assessment. You will not be charged for any such visit.
14. Termination
14.1 Either party may end the contract by written notice if the other materially breaches these terms and does not remedy the breach within 14 days of being asked to.
14.2 You may otherwise end the contract at any time by written notice, and you will pay for work done and any agreed abortive costs up to the date of termination.
14.3 If the contract or ongoing services end, we will not unreasonably withhold or delay releasing information and documents you reasonably need to hand over to another provider. We may make a reasonable charge for preparing them, no higher than our normal rates and agreed with you beforehand.
14.4 If we choose to end ongoing services, we will give you reasonable notice (at least 30 days) so you can make other arrangements.
15. Complaints
If you are unhappy with our service, please contact us at info@oxford-ec.co.uk or on 03456 868 868. Complaints are handled under our Complaints and Deficiencies Procedure (OEC-CP-001), available on request: we acknowledge within 2 working days and give a full response within 10 working days, with independent Director escalation. Once OEC is registered, unresolved complaints about BAFE SP205 services may be referred to SSAIB and then BAFE.
16. Force Majeure
Neither party is liable for delay or failure caused by events beyond its reasonable control, including severe weather, fire, flood, epidemic, industrial action or government restrictions. We will tell you as soon as reasonably possible and rearrange the Assessment at the earliest opportunity.
17. General
17.1 We may update these terms. The version sent with your Quotation applies to your instruction.
17.2 If any provision is found invalid, the rest remain in force. A failure to enforce a right is not a waiver of it.
17.3 A person who is not a party has no right to enforce these terms under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999.
17.4 These terms and any dispute are governed by the law of England and Wales, and the courts of England and Wales have jurisdiction. Consumers living in Scotland or Northern Ireland may also bring proceedings in their local courts. The parties will try to resolve disputes informally first, and may use mediation before court proceedings.
Oxford Environmental Consultants Ltd t/a Firesurv · Registered in England and Wales, Company No. 11540812 · Suite 1A, Unit 5, Wickham Business Park, Honywood Road, Basildon, Essex SS14 3EQ · 03456 868 868 · info@oxford-ec.co.uk
Version: Reviewed February 2026. Next review February 2027.
This policy is maintained by Oxford Environmental Consultants Limited and forms part of our Integrated Management System certified by ISOQAR.