Most businesses do not think about their emergency lighting until something prompts them to: a fire risk assessment, a change of premises, a new tenant moving in or a fitting that suddenly starts flashing a warning light. By that point, it can be hard to know where to begin, what has already been done and what might have been missed.
A clear checklist solves that problem. It breaks emergency lighting compliance down into manageable steps, from confirming who is responsible through to keeping records and reviewing the system after building work. At William Hale, we design, install and maintain emergency lighting for commercial and residential clients, and the businesses that stay on top of their systems are usually the ones with a simple, repeatable checklist in place.
This emergency lighting compliance checklist for businesses is organised into stages. Work through each one, note what is already covered and flag anything that needs attention.
How to Use This Checklist
Each section below covers one area of emergency lighting compliance. Under each heading, you will find the questions to ask and the evidence that should exist if the answer is yes.
The checklist is a framework rather than a substitute for the requirements of your specific installation. The exact arrangements for any building should reflect its system design, the applicable standards, the manufacturer’s instructions and its fire risk assessment.
If you manage several sites, it is worth completing the checklist separately for each building. Arrangements that work well at one site are not always in place at another.
Stage 1: Responsibility and Ownership
Every compliance programme needs a clear owner. In England and Wales, the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 places duties on the responsible person to maintain fire safety measures, including emergency lighting where it is required, in efficient working order and good repair. Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own legislation.
Checklist
- Have you identified the responsible person for the premises?
- Is there a named person who oversees emergency lighting day to day?
- If the building is shared or leased, is it written down who carries out testing and repairs?
- Is there cover for holidays, absence and staff changes?
- Do staff know who to report emergency lighting faults to?
Shared buildings deserve extra care. A lease or maintenance contract may give certain tasks to a landlord, a tenant or a managing agent. Make sure everyone understands the split. Appointing a contractor does not automatically remove your own fire safety duties.
Stage 2: Fire Risk Assessment
The fire risk assessment is where emergency lighting requirements are tied to your actual building. It considers escape routes, occupants and hazards, and that shapes whether emergency lighting is needed and where.
Checklist
- Is there a current fire risk assessment for the premises?
- Does it consider emergency lighting and escape route illumination?
- Has it been reviewed since the last significant change to the building or its use?
- Have any emergency lighting actions it raised been completed?
If you need an assessment, Fire Risk Assessments are among the additional services we provide.
Stage 3: Coverage and Design
Compliance depends on having the right lighting in the right places. Under BS 5266, certain points of emphasis must have a luminaire covering them, and escape routes and open areas each need suitable levels of illumination.
Checklist: Points of Emphasis
- Stair flights and changes of floor level.
- Corridor junctions and changes of direction.
- Each fire alarm call point.
- Each piece of firefighting equipment.
- Final exit doors.
Checklist: Areas to Consider
- Corridors and other escape routes.
- Staircases, landings and ramps.
- Open-plan offices and other large spaces that need anti-panic lighting.
- Areas where people need to stop a dangerous process before leaving.
- Toilets, kitchens, plant rooms and enclosed areas, depending on the risk assessment.
- External escape routes and loading bays where relevant.
Questions to Ask
- Is there a design or drawing showing where every emergency luminaire is?
- Was the system commissioned and certified when it was installed?
- Has the layout changed since the design was produced?
Warehouses need particular attention. Racking casts long shadows, so spacing calculated for an empty floor may not give the required lighting once the building is stocked. Retail units are similar, because display walls, mezzanines and stockrooms all interrupt sightlines and shopfits change often.
Stage 4: Exit Signs and Safety Signage
Safety signs are a vital part of an emergency lighting system. They give employees and the public information on how to evacuate and how to find and use emergency safety equipment correctly.
Checklist
- Are illuminated exit signs fitted where they are needed?
- Do they still point towards the correct exits after any layout changes?
- Are any signs blocked by stock, displays, furniture or partitions?
- Are any signs cracked, faded or damaged?
- Are signs sized and positioned so they are legible to someone who has never used the route before?
Stage 5: Equipment Condition
A system can only be compliant if the equipment itself is in good order. Regular visual checks help spot problems between tests.
Checklist
- Are all emergency fittings present, secure and undamaged?
- Are any covers cracked, loose or missing?
- Are any indicator lights showing a fault or not showing that units are charging?
- If you have a central battery system, are the central indicators checked daily?
- Do test switches and test facilities work correctly?
Faulty test switches are easy to overlook, but they matter. If a test facility does not work, the fittings it controls cannot be properly tested.
Stage 6: Testing Schedule
Regular testing is how you show the system works. For many UK commercial premises, the programme includes monthly functional testing and annual full-duration testing, supported by regular visual checks.
Checklist
- Is a functional test carried out at least monthly?
- Does it cover every relevant fitting and sign, not just a convenient sample?
- Is a full-duration test carried out at least annually?
- Has the correct rated duration been confirmed from the system design? For many installations it is three hours.
- Are annual tests timed to allow for the recharge period afterwards?
- Are staff who carry out monthly tests properly instructed?
- Are repairs and complex fault finding left to competent engineers?
Manual or Self-Test?
Monthly checks are among the most frequently missed, particularly when they depend on someone remembering a key switch in a cupboard. If that is the pattern in your building, self-test fittings or a scheduled service visit can take the reliance on memory out of the process. Self-test results still need reviewing and acting on.
Stage 7: Records and Documentation
Records turn testing into evidence. Without them, it is hard to show that the system has been properly maintained.
Checklist
- Is there an emergency lighting logbook for the premises?
- Are monthly test dates, results and defects recorded?
- Are annual test dates, durations and results recorded?
- Are faults recorded with enough location detail for an engineer to find them?
- Are repairs, replaced components and follow-up tests recorded?
- Is the commissioning certificate on file?
- Are installation drawings and maintenance instructions available?
- Are the records accessible to the people who need them?
Stage 8: Faults and Repairs
Finding faults is the point of testing. Compliance depends on what happens next.
Checklist
- Is every failed test investigated promptly?
- Is each fault assessed for its effect on safe evacuation?
- Are temporary precautions considered where a fault affects an important route?
- Are repairs carried out by competent personnel who address the underlying cause?
- Is each repaired fitting retested and the result recorded?
- Are outstanding defects tracked until they are resolved?
- Are recurring faults investigated rather than repeatedly patched?
A failed fitting on a critical staircase is a more urgent matter than one in an area covered by several other lights. Prioritise accordingly, but do not leave any fault unresolved.
Stage 9: Changes to the Building
Emergency lighting that was suitable when it was installed may not be suitable after the building changes.
Checklist
- Have there been partitions, refurbishments or extensions since the last review?
- Have exits moved, or have new escape routes been created?
- Has the use of any area changed?
- Has occupancy increased, or does the building now host members of the public or vulnerable people?
- Has the emergency lighting been reviewed and updated after these changes?
Care and hospitality premises are a good example of why this matters. Occupants may be asleep, unfamiliar with the building or unable to evacuate quickly, so coverage often needs to go well beyond the minimum.
Stage 10: Inherited and Older Systems
Many businesses move into buildings that already have emergency lighting. Often the issue is not a lack of fittings but a lack of evidence that they work.
Checklist
- Do you have records from the previous occupier or contractor?
- Do you have a drawing showing where existing fittings are?
- Has the inherited system been tested since you took over?
- Are any fittings repeatedly failing or approaching the end of their service life?
Where no drawing exists, we survey the building, plot every existing luminaire, identify gaps against the current standard and issue a schedule showing what needs to be added and what can be retained. Nothing is condemned wholesale.
Stage 11: Maintenance Provider
Many businesses use a specialist for some or all of their emergency lighting work.
Checklist
- Is it clear which inspections and tests the provider carries out?
- Do you receive clear records after each visit?
- Is it clear how faults are reported and prioritised?
- Can the provider investigate recurring problems and carry out repairs?
- Is there an out-of-hours route for urgent faults?
- Does the arrangement cover every building on the site?
Quick-Reference Compliance Table
| Area | What good looks like |
|---|---|
| Responsibility | Named owner, written split of duties in shared buildings |
| Risk assessment | Current, covers emergency lighting, reviewed after changes |
| Coverage | Points of emphasis covered, design drawing available |
| Signage | Illuminated, visible, pointing to correct exits |
| Condition | No damage, no fault indicators, test facilities working |
| Testing | Monthly functional and annual full-duration tests completed |
| Records | Complete logbook, commissioning certificate on file |
| Faults | Investigated, repaired, retested and recorded |
| Changes | System reviewed after alterations or change of use |
How William Hale Can Help
Our emergency lighting service covers design, installation and maintenance, using up-to-date technology and products from industry-leading manufacturers. New systems are commissioned with a full three-hour discharge, a recharge check and an emergency lighting certificate, and the testing regime is agreed at handover.
Our service maintenance packages include our Emergency 24/7 Call Out Service as standard for emergency lighting systems we install, and we can take over the service maintenance of existing systems. Our out of hours call out service offers a dedicated manned telephone line and a four-hour response time.
Where work could disrupt your business, it can be phased and carried out in evenings, weekends or agreed windows. We are an SSAIB certified company based in Swindon, working across areas including Wiltshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, Bristol, Bath, the Cotswolds and West London.
Frequently Asked Questions
What should an emergency lighting compliance checklist include?
It should cover responsibility, the fire risk assessment, coverage and design, signage, equipment condition, testing, records, fault repairs, building changes and your maintenance provider.
How often should we work through the checklist?
Routine items such as monthly tests follow their own schedule. It is sensible to review the full checklist periodically and whenever the building, its use or its responsibilities change.
Is a monthly test enough to stay compliant?
No. Monthly functional tests should be supported by an annual full-duration test, regular visual checks, prompt repairs and complete records.
We have taken over a building with no records. What should we do first?
Arrange a survey and test of the existing installation so you know what is there, what works and where the gaps are before setting up a regular schedule.
Do we need a specialist to complete the checklist?
Many routine checks can be done by instructed staff. Design, duration testing, repairs and fault finding are best handled by a competent emergency lighting specialist.
Make Compliance Routine
Emergency lighting compliance is much easier to manage when it becomes a routine rather than a reaction. A named owner, a current risk assessment, the right coverage, regular testing, complete records and prompt repairs together give you confidence that escape routes will stay lit when the normal lighting fails.
If your checklist has highlighted gaps, or you would like a specialist to review your system, contact William Hale Fire & Security to speak with our surveyor or arrange a consultation and site survey.