A shocking new report has revealed that balcony fires increased by 46% year-on-year, highlighting a significant threat to buildings in cities across the UK and with smoking the leading cause. Richard Izzard from AliDeck, the producer of the report, details their findings
As a manufacturer of aluminium decking and balcony components, we work to find the most cost-effective and future proof solutions. In the context of the ongoing building safety crisis, fire safety is key and non-combustible materials are essential on balconies.
While the challenge is easily overcome within new-build by simply specifying only fire safe construction materials, there are a vast amount of multi-storey, multi-occupancy buildings across the UK that have combustible materials in the external wall system, including on balconies. Much progress has been made to resolve this issue via large-scale remediation programs but there is much more work to do.
To highlight the risk posed by combustible balconies, we produce an annual report on the prevalence and causes of balcony fires, with data gathered through Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests to UK Fire and Rescue Services. These reports outline the shocking truth and underscore the need for urgent interventions.
The Balcony Fires Report 2021-2022
Balcony fires were up 46% year-on-year, with 310 in total compared to 213 in the previous period. London alone accounted for 163 fires on balconies, an increase on the prior year’s tally of 150. With smoking once again by far the leading cause, accounting for 59% of all balcony fires, the immediate conclusion must be that balconies should become a strictly no-smoking area. Doing so would clearly prevent scores of fires each year.
With other causes identified such as arson, candles, fireworks, and barbecues alongside smoking, the report shows that 76% of all fires on balconies were caused by reckless human behaviour. This devastating fact suggests that, even with a firm program of outreach and education, the human factor in balcony fires will be immensely difficult to mitigate.
Flammable materials such as timber or composite decking can be ignited by one carelessly discarded cigarette, stubbed into a plant pot, say, or dropped through a deck. There are even fires each year started by still-ignited cigarettes landing on balconies, flicked from floors above and destroying innocent residents’ homes. The cost of rectifying these fires is often many tens of thousands of pounds, yet the truth is that these are entirely avoidable.
The Way Forward
Following the introduction of PAS 9980 in January 2022, a risk-based format was introduced to fire safety appraisals. Intended to introduce more pragmatic decision making than was possible under the withdrawn Consolidated Advice Note, PAS 9980 has been a positive step forward for the housing sector.
Balconies are classed as “specified attachments” to the external envelope and are considered one and the same with the external wall system for new build construction with regards safety requirements. PAS 9980 also highlights balconies as posing a particular danger for fire spread and guides risk assessors to closely examine their construction and position before reaching conclusions on fire risk.
Remediation of balconies is often still recommended. The removal of combustible material, such as timber or composite decking, and replacement with non-combustible alternatives significantly minimises the risk posed by balconies. Looking again at the stark data in the latest balcony fires report, the conclusion must be that remediation is the most effective way to prevent dangerous fires from taking hold and spreading into or across buildings.
Whether it is by strict implementation of rules on use or by remediation of combustible materials, action must be taken to stop these fires. The large increase in balcony fires year-on-year simply isn’t acceptable.
A minor positive note, though, is the reduction in fires on balconies caused by barbecues, dropping to 15 from 22 in the year prior. During the summer’s heatwave, the London Fire Brigade issued stern warnings to the public on the use of barbecues and several major retailers removed them from sale, so we might conclude that this message began to make an impact.
If so, maybe a similarly zero-tolerance attitude to smoking on balconies could result in a major reduction in these avoidable and dangerous fires? There seems to be little to lose from making such an effort, and we would applaud any landlord or local authority that does so.
The Balcony Fires Report is available in full on the AliDeck website.
Richard Izzard is managing director at AliDeck