If you own or manage a flat, HMO or converted house in Bromley, a fire door survey isn't just a box-ticking exercise, it's the difference between a door that holds back smoke for 30 minutes and one that doesn't close properly at all. Here's what actually happens when a surveyor turns up, and what you should expect to get out of it.
Bromley has a huge stock of converted Victorian and Edwardian houses, particularly around Shortlands, Penge and Beckenham, where a single family home has been split into two or three flats. These conversions often have fire doors fitted decades ago that have been painted over, had locks changed, or had the self-closer disconnected because it kept slamming. None of that is obvious from a quick look, which is exactly why a proper survey exists.
There's also a legal angle. Since the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 came into force, responsible persons for buildings with communal areas, including blocks and converted flats, must inspect flat entrance doors annually and check communal fire doors quarterly where the building is over 11 metres. Bromley Council's own housing stock, along with local housing associations managing estates in Orpington and Mottingham, now routinely commission these checks.
A competent survey isn't just eyeballing the door from the hallway. It's a methodical check of the leaf, frame, and every piece of ironmongery, usually taking 10 to 20 minutes per door depending on access and how much needs noting down.
On converted houses, the most common fault is a missing or disconnected self-closer, usually because a tenant found it awkward. Second most common is thick gloss paint clogging the intumescent seal so it can't expand in a fire, which we see a lot on doors in older Penge and Beckenham conversions that have been redecorated over the years without anyone touching the seals.
In HMOs specifically, wedged-open fire doors are a recurring issue, often because residents prop them open for ventilation or to carry shopping through. On larger blocks, it's more often communal doors with worn-out hinges or closers that have slowed down so much the door doesn't latch before smoke would get through.
You should get a written report listing every door surveyed, its current condition, and a clear pass, remedial, or replace outcome for each one. Keep this on file, it's the document you'll need to show if Bromley Council's fire safety team or an insurer ever asks for evidence.
Costs vary a lot depending on the size of the job. A survey of a small conversion with three or four doors might sit around £120-£250, while a block with 20+ communal and flat entrance doors is more likely £400-£800 for the full survey. Minor remedial work, replacing a seal or adjusting a closer, is often £40-£90 per door, while a full FD30 door replacement including frame and ironmongery typically runs £350-£650 supplied and fitted, more if it's a fire-rated glazed door or a wider communal set.
If you're the responsible person for a building with communal areas shared by more than one household, yes, the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 require regular checks of flat entrance and communal fire doors. A single self-contained house isn't covered in the same way, though it's still good practice if you've converted it into flats.
A small converted house with three or four doors usually takes under an hour. A block of flats with communal corridors and 15-20 doors is more likely half a day once access, note-taking and photographs are factored in.
Most issues, like a failed self-closer, damaged seal, or worn hinges, can be repaired without replacing the whole door. Replacement is usually only needed if the leaf itself is damaged, warped, or was never a certified fire door in the first place.
Tell us what you've got, whether a single door, a block of flats or a commercial building, and we'll arrange a survey and give you a straight, written quote.
Tell us about the doors or the building and we'll come back to you with a straight answer.