Fire Door Asset Registers: Why Every Building Needs One

Fire doors are essential to a building’s passive fire protection system, but despite their importance, many buildings lack a clear and up-to-date record of them. A fire door asset register is a simple yet powerful tool that helps landlords, facilities managers, and responsible persons ensure ongoing compliance with fire safety regulations.

With regulatory changes placing greater scrutiny on inspection regimes and documentation, maintaining a detailed fire door asset register is no longer the best practice—it’s fast becoming a legal necessity. This article explains a fire door asset register, why it matters, and how Capital Fire Doors can help you build and maintain one.

What Is a Fire Door Asset Register?

A fire door asset register is a structured database or document that contains essential information about every fire door in a building. Typically, it includes:

1. Unique identifier for each door (often by location or asset number)
2. Door type and fire resistance rating (e.g. FD30, FD60)
3. Location within the building (flat entrance, stairwell, riser cupboard, etc.)
4. Manufacturer and certification details
5. Date of last inspection and outcome
6. Notes on maintenance, repairs, or replacement history

In short, it’s a central record of all fire door assets, allowing responsible persons to track each door’s compliance status and maintenance history.

Why an Asset Register Matters

There are several reasons why every building with fire doors should maintain a robust asset register:

1. Compliance with Fire Safety Regulations

The Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 require regular inspections of fire doors in multi-occupancy residential buildings:

1. Communal fire doors: inspected every 3 months
2. Flat entrance doors: inspected at least once a year

An asset register helps ensure these inspections are completed systematically and on schedule. It also provides a reliable audit trail for regulators.

2. Improved Maintenance and Planning

Without a register, fire door maintenance becomes reactive and inconsistent. A centralised log helps prioritise repairs, monitor recurring issues, and allocate budget more efficiently. Patterns of wear or failure can also be identified across similar door types or high-traffic areas.

3. Faster Response in Emergencies or Audits

When fire officers, insurers, or other authorities require evidence of compliance, an up-to-date register allows building managers to immediately demonstrate due diligence and maintenance history. This can prevent enforcement notices or delays in approvals.

4. Integration with Broader Safety Strategy

Fire doors don’t operate in isolation. Asset registers can be integrated with building-wide fire risk assessments, compartmentation plans, and life safety systems, making them a valuable part of a comprehensive fire strategy.

Common Issues in Buildings Without Asset Registers

Many landlords and agents discover no consistent record of their fire doors too late. This often leads to:

1. Missed inspections or duplicate visits
2. Forgotten remedial work
3. Poor handover between property managers or contractors
4. Non-compliance during safety audits

The problem is even more pronounced in larger portfolios. It’s challenging to scale fire door management across multiple sites without a digital or structured record.

Building an Effective Asset Register

An asset register doesn’t need to be complex, but it does need to be accurate, accessible, and regularly updated. Best practices include:

1. Assigning each fire door a unique ID or barcode
2. Capturing installation and certification details
3. Logging all inspection outcomes, defects, and remedial work
4. Photographing each door for easy identification
5. Ensuring data is held securely and backed up

Capital Fire Doors helps clients establish digital or paper-based fire door registers tailored to their building type and operational needs.

Who Should Maintain the Register?

Under current legislation, the “responsible person”—usually the landlord, managing agent, or building owner—maintains fire safety documentation. However, third-party contractors or fire safety professionals can assist with creating and updating the register.

Capital Fire Doors offers this as part of its inspection service, ensuring each inspection generates a fully documented report ready for inclusion in your register.

How Capital Fire Doors Support Asset Management

At Capital Fire Doors, compliance isn’t just about inspections—it’s about clarity. The team provides:

1. Comprehensive fire door inspections with detailed reporting
2. Recommendations for repair, replacement, or upgrade
3. Creation and maintenance of asset registers
4. Scheduled reminders for re-inspections and compliance deadlines
5. Integration with long-term fire safety plans

Capital Fire Doors can roll out consistent asset tracking across multiple buildings for larger portfolios, providing landlords with peace of mind and a single point of reference for compliance.

Final Thoughts

As fire safety legislation becomes more detailed and enforcement more active, the need for structured documentation has never been greater. A fire door asset register isn’t just an administrative tool—it’s the foundation of a compliant, proactive fire safety strategy.

Whether you’re overseeing a residential block, commercial property, or public sector building, maintaining a fire door asset register will make inspections more efficient, support legal compliance, and ultimately keep your occupants safe.

To get started with a fully managed fire door inspection and asset register, contact Capital Fire Doors today.