Fire Door Inspections in North London: Meet the 11 Metre Rules With a Photo Report
By Sebastian Grabowski, DC Fire & Security, Luton. Updated October 2026.
How often do fire doors in a North London block of flats need checking?
In a building over 11 metres with two or more sets of domestic premises, regulation 10 of the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 requires checks on communal fire doors at least every 3 months. Flat entrance doors must be checked at least every 12 months, using best endeavours. Our inspections start from £250 + VAT for a small building.
What regulation 10 asks of you
Two frequencies, one record, and a test that the door actually closes.
| Doors | Minimum check | What the Regulations say |
|---|---|---|
| Fire doors in communal areas | Every 3 months | The responsible person must undertake checks |
| Flat entrance fire doors | Every 12 months | Best endeavours, and a record of the steps taken, including where access was refused |
| Both | Each check | Must include that the self-closing devices are working |
The height is measured to the top storey. Roughly, a block of four or five storeys can be over 11 metres, so a lot of North London purpose-built and mixed-use blocks are caught. If you are not sure, measure before you assume you are outside it.
The Regulations set the minimum. A quick quarterly walk by the caretaker or a managing agent's site team can meet the 3-month check if the person is trained. A full inspection by someone who measures gaps and reads the labels is a different level of work. We do the second kind, and it gives your quarterly checks something to be measured against. The fire door regulations for flats page covers the wider law.
The leasehold and managing agent problem
The hard part of a flat door check is often access, not the door.
In a leasehold block, the freeholder or the managing agent is the responsible person for the common parts, and since the Fire Safety Act 2021 that includes the entrance doors to flats. But the flat door is physically in the leaseholder's hands, and some leaseholders have replaced it with a door that is not fire rated. Others will not answer the letter.
The Regulations accept that. The test is best endeavours, and a written record. So the useful thing is a clear process: a letter, a second letter, a fixed day for the inspection, a log of who let us in and who did not. We keep that log in the report so you can show an inspector the steps you took. If you need the legal position on who pays for a flat door replacement, see who is responsible for fire doors in flats and flat entrance fire door replacement.
What we do on the day
A repeatable inspection, door by door.
- 1Number and plan. Each door gets a reference matched to a floor plan. If you have none, we mark one up.
- 2Check the certification. Label, plug or paperwork to see what the door is rated for. A door with no way to tell its rating is flagged.
- 3Measure and test. Gaps around the leaf, leaf and frame condition, hinges, closer, latch and smoke seals, glazing and any fixings added later.
- 4Photograph. A photo of each defect and a wider shot of the door in place, uploaded to the report.
- 5Report. Pass, repair or replace for each door, with a priority order, so the cheap fixes go first.
The same method runs through all our work. Across 724 door inspections in 10 itemised surveys, the pattern is clear. On a first inspection 72% of doors needed at least one repair (339 of 470 doors in 8 surveys), and 42% had a gap over 4mm (156 of 371 measured). A failed door is not a replaced door. Repairs are usually £150 to £900 a door, so most of the cost sits in replacing doors that cannot be saved. See fire door inspection statistics.
Cost, and what changes it
From £250 + VAT for a small building.
The price depends on how many doors there are, how many floors, and how easy access is. A block with a managing agent who sends a key and a schedule is cheaper than a block where every flat needs a call. We give one fixed price including travel, and London parking and congestion are already in it. We do not publish a table of prices by door count.
We usually come back with a fixed price the same day. Send the number of flats, the number of floors, and whether the entrance doors are all the same type.
Separate from your fire risk assessment
The two sit side by side.
A fire risk assessment looks at fire safety across the whole building. It will note the state of doors it sees. It does not replace a door-by-door inspection, and the inspection does not replace the assessment. Most blocks need both. If the Brigade has queried your doors, start with this page. If it queried your whole fire strategy, start with the assessment. Other pages worth a look are how often fire doors need inspecting, the fire door inspection checklist, fire door remedials, and the North London hub. For the national service, see fire door inspections.
Sources
- Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 (legislation.gov.uk)
- Regulation 10, Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022
- Fire Safety Act 2021 (legislation.gov.uk)
- Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (legislation.gov.uk)
Updated October 2026 by Sebastian Grabowski, DC Fire & Security, 2 Winsdon Court, Luton LU1 5LZ.
Repairs and new doorsets by certificated contractors
Where an inspection leads to repairs or replacement, the work is done by our BM TRADA Q-Mark / FIRAS-certificated contractors. A new FD30S doorset is typically £2,500 to £4,500 fitted. We give a fixed price once the list exists.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does my block need to be over 11 metres for door checks?
What if a leaseholder will not let you in?
Can you inspect only the communal doors?
What does the photo report show?
Do you also do fire risk assessments in London?
Do you cover Barnet, Enfield and Haringey?
Send us the flat count and floor count
Email the address, number of floors, number of flats and any previous fire door report to info@dcsecurity.co.uk. We usually come back with a fixed price the same day.
Request a free quote
Send photos for a fixed price · No obligation · Response within 24 hours