Business fire alarm systems are designed to protect your business and employees from fire and smoke, but you can’t count on them if they’re not tested and inspected on a routine basis. Having your fire alarm system regularly serviced is critical to the safety of your building’s occupants.

The best way to discover whether your system is in need of maintenance is to have it professionally tested. Inspection and maintenance by licensed technicians can also help you cut down on expenses by preventing emergency repairs and costly false alarms that you haven’t included in your budget.

Testing your business fire alarm system on a regular basis ensures that it’s in compliance with National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 72 standards, as well as the local fire safety requirements and your insurance company’s fire alarm requirements.

Here are six reasons you should regularly test and inspect your commercial fire alarm system, courtesy of the NFPA.

1. Save Lives: Your fire alarm system won’t operate properly if it’s not maintained. Inspection and testing is the only way you’ll find out if it’s not working the way it should.
2. Insurance Requirements: Your insurance carrier most likely won’t pay your fire-damage claim if you can’t show proof that you’ve had you system regularly tested and inspected.
3. Save Money: Your property insurance company might offer discounts if you can show proof of at least annual inspections.
4. State/Local Laws: Check with your local building department as well as fire inspectors to determine the legal requirements.
5. Lower Legal Costs: If your business fire alarm system stops working and you have a fire, you could be liable for huge lawsuits because of injuries suffered by tenants, employees, or visitors to your facility.
6. Stop Nuisance Alarms: Regular inspection and testing can help ensure that your system doesn’t create nuisance alarms that waste Fire Department time and resources. You could also be fined for numerous nuisance alarms.

Here’s another important tip: It’s the law and it’s required by the National Fire Alarm Code.

As a building owner/business owner, it is important for you to take all the necessary – and mandated – steps to protect people’s lives. To do that you should designate building maintenance workers or other trained employees who can recognize when the system is impaired, know how to reset it, and know when they should call for service, according to the NFPA. However, extensive annual testing must be done by a qualified state licensed professional.

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