FRA FAQ
No. Selling a flat does not put a fire risk assessment duty on you as the leaseholder; the duty sits with the responsible person for the block. In practice, though, the buyer's solicitor and lender will usually expect to see the current FRA for the common parts, so request a copy early through your managing agent.
Conveyancing reality
The standard leasehold enquiries answered by the landlord or managing agent include fire safety questions, and the management pack normally contains the current FRA for the common parts, evidence that its actions are being progressed, and related records such as fire door checks in buildings over 11 metres under the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022. For taller or cladding-affected buildings, external wall documentation runs alongside, and the Building Safety Act 2022 expects responsible persons to share relevant fire safety information with residents.
Lenders care because the FRA speaks to the building's insurability and the flat's value. An assessment with open high-priority actions, or one predating the 2021 widening of scope, invites further enquiries. None of this means the document must be spotless: solicitors are generally looking for a current assessment, dated within a sensible review cycle, with an action plan someone is visibly managing rather than a perfectly clean sheet.
If it is missing or stale
As the seller, request the FRA from the managing agent or freeholder as soon as you decide to market, because management packs take time to assemble and usually carry a fee set by the agent. If the assessment looks old, ask when the next review is due; the expectations are covered under how often do you need a fire risk assessment UK. You cannot discharge the duty yourself, but a written request creates useful pressure and a paper trail.
If no FRA exists at all, the responsible person is likely in breach and should commission one promptly; the process is described under how to obtain a fire risk assessment, and for a typical block it means a Type 1 assessment of the common parts. Turnaround matters when a chain is waiting, and how long does it take to get a fire risk assessment gives honest expectations for lead times and reporting.
FAQ
Not usefully. The duty attaches to whoever controls the common parts, and an assessment commissioned by a leaseholder without access or authority will not satisfy the buyer's solicitor. Press the responsible person instead, and note that the cost normally flows through the service charge, as explained under who pays for a fire risk assessment.
Not automatically. Solicitors flag age and open actions rather than veto sales, and lender appetite varies. A dated assessment with evidence of an annual review and progressed actions reads far better than a newer one nobody has acted on. Serious unresolved issues, such as unremediated cladding, are the cases that genuinely stall transactions.
No. A private dwelling is outside the Fire Safety Order, so there is no assessment duty inside your flat itself. The legal line between the dwelling and the shared parts of a building is drawn under do I need a fire risk assessment if there are no common parts.
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