Choosing the Right Fire Inspection Company the First Time

If you are a Property Manager, you have probably wondered what variables you should be considering when choosing which fire inspection company will best serve your building(s) fire suppression needs.

At CertiPro Fire and Life Safety, we understand that this can be an overwhelming task ( especially with everything already piled on a property manager’s plate), so we’ve taken the initiative to outline 3 key variables for you, giving you the confidence to make the best choice possible, the first time around.

Variable #1: Company Agility

The speed at which a fire system inspection company is able to respond to your emergency call should be one of the first deciding variables on your check list. As one Property Manager points out, “ You do not want to deal with a company that has too much red tape such that before a simple job is carried out, many signatures/ approvals must be secured. I want a company that responds in the shortest possible time from the time I call them.”

In order to ensure that the company you choose is able to respond quickly and without many signatures and approvals, you’ll want to stick with local fire inspection company rather than national operated one. Locally owned and operated fire inspection companies are quick to respond and will help you avoid jumping through hoops for one small task or emergency call.

You will be able to tell whether or not a fire inspection company is locally owned , or not, by quickly glancing at their About Page. For example, CertiPro Fire and Life Safety is a locally owned business with a track record of being at the scene of an emergency call within the hour and all you need to do is give them a quick call.

Variable #2: Legislative Compliance

As a responsible Property Manager, you’ll want to ensure that the company you are choosing references the NFPA’s most up-to-date fire protection codes and is familiar with the ever-changing of jurisdictional regulations.

The NFPA sets national standards for every commercial and residential building within the United States. Each individual jurisdiction within a State has its own way of enforcing these standards and some are more strict than others. This often creates a lot of gray areas for Property Managers and Property Owners , as local (jurisdictional) codes and standards are enforced in different ways and at different capacities. For more information about navigating legislative gray areas, visit our most recent blog post about fire sprinkler code requirements in Arizona.

Insurance companies and cities are the two main entities that enforce NFPA standards, most often.

When things go wrong ( an inevitable reality if your building is not in compliance with NFPA codes and standards), you may find yourself wondering how to avoid compromising your insurance claims.

The best way to ensure that your insurance claims are not compromised is to choose a fire inspection company that is able to inspect your current system and make the proper recommendations to get it up to code with NFPA standards.

You will also want to ensure that the building owner knows to carry out any necessary repairs , certifications, and replacements necessary to actually get the building up to code- if found that It is needed, and based off the initial inspection.

If your building is inspected and not up to code, it is the property managers job to inform the building owner of the actions needed to get it up to code. If this final step is not carried out, the building is subject to liability.

When inspection requirements have been reviewed and any necessary work has been completed, the liability for any damages incurred will fall on the fire inspection company – not you!

Variable #3: Dedicated Service Technician

Fire inspections and certifications can frustrating if you are not assigned a designated service technician for your specific property needs. This technician does a comprehensive inspection of the property and understands what is needed for optimal safety. In many cases, especially with larger corporations, Property Managers may speak to multiple service technicians, which may cause confusion and mistakes.

With local companies such as CertiPro Fire and Life Safety, each property is assigned a senior technician to oversee the properties services current and future service needs, as well as the history of the property. This mitigates the risk of having several technicians and will allow you a specific point of contact for any questions that may arise.