Fire Sprinkler Servicing Costs: What UK Property Owners Should Budget For

Fire sprinklers play an essential part in ensuring the safety of a property. It’s down to the property owner to ensure that the correct fire sprinklers are installed if UK regulations require them to be in the building. 

Your fire sprinkler needs to be in working order 24/7, because you never know when an emergency is going to strike. They’re hardly planned ahead, and as such servicing your fire sprinklers becomes essential. Whether you own a commercial or residential building, the results will be the same if a fire breaks out, causing havoc and potentially worse. 

The best way to ensure the safety of the building and those inside at any given time is to commit to servicing. But how much does this cost, and what should you be budgeting to ensure that you can cover this? That’s an important question, and one we’re going to answer today.

How Much Should Property Owners Budget?

The cost of fire sprinkler servicing can vary considerably depending on several factors, including the size of the property, the type of sprinkler installation, and the complexity of the system. There is no one-size-fits-all figure that we can give you, which is why property owners need to be aware of what can influence the price that they will receive. 

For smaller residential properties with a simple sprinkler system, servicing costs are typically going to be lower as there are only a few components that need to be tested and inspected.

On the other hand, larger commercial buildings, warehouses, and other industrial buildings are going to require more expensive inspections, which will result in a higher servicing cost overall.

Due to this, as a general rule, property owners should be budgeting for at least one professional inspection and service visit per year. Though it’s important to add that this is the bare minimum, and some systems may require more regular checks depending on a number of factors. As a ballpark, you can expect to pay anywhere from a couple of hundred upwards. 

Factors That Influence Fire Sprinkler Servicing Costs

There are a number of key factors that will influence the cost of fire sprinkler servicing costs in the UK.

Property Type

The type of property being protected can have a heavy impact on servicing requirements as we talked about above.

Commercial premises often require a more comprehensive inspection and servicing appointment in order to remain in compliance with insurance obligations. The same can be said for buildings that have a high number of occupants.

Sprinkler Size And Complexity 

A larger system will have more sprinkler heads, more pumps, pipework, control equipment and more. The more components a system has, the longer it’s going to take to service it thoroughly, and therefore the higher the cost is going to be. 

There are some systems that are more complex than others. For example, some have fire pumps, specialist suppression equipment, and more, which may need additional testing. For these, qualified engineers are needed, which adds to the cost. 

Age Of The System 

Older fire sprinkler systems may need more checks and attention than newer ones. Components can deteriorate over time, meaning additional maintenance is going to be necessary.

It’s true that servicing will extend the lifespan of your system, however you should be prepared to budget for occasional repairs. 

The Cost Of Delaying Fire Sprinkler Servicing

While we understand that there can be a temptation to postpone your servicing appointment to reduce your outgoing expenses in the short-term, this can easily lead to greater costs in the long term that you don’t need. 

Minor issues such as damaged sprinkler heads, pressure problems, and faulty valves can often be identified and fixed during these regular visits. However, when they are left unchecked and unresolved, these problems can easily develop into larger faults, ending up with extensive repairs and replacements if you’re not careful.

On top of this, there is the potential cost of non-compliance. This heavily depends on the type of property you own, but failure to maintain a fire sprinkler system through regular servicing and maintenance can quickly result in insurance problems, falling short of regulatory requirements, and increased liability should there be a fire. 

However, the ultimate cost of delaying sprinkler servicing is this - if there is a fire, your sprinkler system may not work as it is intended to during an emergency. This can lead to destruction of property, operational downtime as your business cannot continue to run, disruption of occupants if you own a building with people living in, and so much more.

All of these costs go far beyond the cost of servicing, so while you may think that you’re saving money, you could be setting yourself up for a more expensive and dangerous future.  

Planning Your Annual Fire Protection Budget

When you are creating the maintenance budget for your property, fire sprinkler servicing should be included alongside all of the other essential safety measures. 

Setting aside this money for servicing, inspections, and preventative maintenance helps you to avoid unexpected costs later down the line. It’s also important to work with an experienced fire sprinkler servicing company to establish a maintenance schedule that suits your building, allowing you to stay compliant with the necessary standards. 

What Should You Consider Going Forward?

Ensuring that your fire sprinkler is serviced regularly and well is an essential part of owning a property with one of these systems. The most important thing here is that you work with a team that understands what they are doing, checks and repairs your system thoroughly, and is a qualified provider.

If you need a company to provide these services for you, do not hesitate to get in touch. Schedule a call today via our contact page, and someone will be in touch with you to discuss your needs soon.