Fire Sprinkler Maintenance and Home Insurance: Will Your Insurer Require Proof of Servicing?

When you own a property or manage a property that has a fire sprinkler, it’s important that you have the correct maintenance completed on it regularly. Without this, there is no way to be sure that the unit is operating as it should be, and as such could end up becoming a hazard.

When you’re applying for, or renewing your home insurance, your fire sprinkler needs to be mentioned. It may well be the case that your insurer will require proof of servicing, and it’s vital that you can provide this. In this article, we’re going to dive into everything that you should know about when you are asked for this proof, and more information surrounding this. If you’d like to find out more, feel free to continue reading.

What Is Fire Sprinkler Maintenance?

It is mandatory that you have your fire sprinkler system checked regularly, avoiding potential hazards and ensuring that any issues can be faced and sorted as soon as possible. During this process, your fire sprinkler system will be inspected and tested by certified technicians. 

The primary purposes of this are to ensure that your system is compliant with all current regulations and that it will actually turn on in the event of a fire. So, what happens during the visit? Usually, the following will be done to check your system:

• Checking pipes for corrosion

• Inspecting the sprinkler head to see if there are any obstructions

• Verifying the water pressure

• Testing the alarm valves

Each is an important aspect of fire sprinkler maintenance, which is why it’s important that you’re hiring a high-quality company to take care of this for you.

Will Your Home Insurance Require Proof Of Servicing?

Yes. More often than not, your insurer will ask you to provide proof of servicing of your fire sprinkler system. The reason for this is to ensure that you are keeping up to date with your obligations.

In some cases, the fire sprinkler system is a condition of coverage, and as such, your insurer will be checking in to ensure that you are doing what you need to in order to keep your coverage going.

In other cases, the system may have been used to secure a discount on your home insurance, and as such, they are checking that you are complying with the terms of your discount.

Why Is This Necessary?

We touched on some of them briefly above, but there are a number of reasons why insurers are going to ask for proof of servicing. 

As we mentioned, sometimes people are able to get discounts on their insurance if they have a fire sprinkler system in their home. As such, ensuring that you are getting the correct fire sprinkler servicing done regularly is hugely important; your discount will be void. 

As well as this, it also has to do with the validity of your coverage. Many insurers highlight these systems as life safety systems, and as such require you to have them and for them to be properly maintained, in order for your coverage to pay out if there is an issue.

As such, if you cannot prove that they are being serviced and maintained according to British Standards and damage occurs, it’s possible that your insurer can refuse to pay out.

We also want to point out that some insurers will ask for proof as part of their risk assessment protocols.

Proper fire sprinkler servicing will ensure that the system is in working order, which reduces the risk of total loss if a fire breaks out. As such, the insurance company will want to know that this is being done.

What Proof Will Be Required?

It’s important for you to speak to your insurance provider directly to find out what specific proof they would require for your policy. On the most basic level, you need to provide them with documentation that a third-party, quality company has assessed your fire sprinkler system and deemed it in working order.

When you have your fire sprinkler maintenance check, you will receive a certificate of service, which confirms that the system has passed all of its checks. Your insurer will definitely want to see a copy of this, so ensure that you keep it safe when you get it.

On top of that, you’re likely going to need to provide your service logs, which are the more in-depth and detailed reports about the checks that were conducted, how the system reacted, and more. This gives the insurer more information about the system and how it’s working.

Each insurance company has their own rules on what they require from you, so it’s always best to check directly with them. For example, we know some insurers require you to complete a weekly test log and return it once a year to ensure that it has been constantly checked.

What Can Happen If You Don’t Have Your Service Completed?

If you do not take the time to book in your fire sprinkler servicing when you should, or you do not provide evidence to your insurer when required, then a number of things can happen.

• First, you may find that your insurance becomes invalid. Your insurer can cancel your policy due to non-compliance.

• Second, you may find that legal action can be taken against you if you are a landlord or if you’re responsible for maintaining the fire sprinkler of a building.

• Third, if you do claim on your home insurance, it will likely be rejected.

Get In Touch With A Professional

It’s important then that if you haven’t had your fire sprinkler maintenance check lately, or if you feel as though there is something wrong with the system, that you get in touch with a professional asap. 

We are here to provide you with the services that you need, and always provide you with the proof that you need to say that everything has been checked up to date so that you can provide this to your insurer when asked.