1. About these terms
These terms apply to all services provided by Empyrean Fire Consultancy Ltd ("Empyrean", "we", "us"), a company registered in England and Wales under company number 17131618, with its registered office at Dennett House, 11 Middle Street, Taunton, TA1 1SH.
They form the contract between us and the client named in our quotation ("you"), together with the quotation itself and any written scope agreed for the job. If anything in a quotation or agreed scope conflicts with these terms, the quotation or scope takes priority for that job. Any terms you send us, for example on a purchase order, do not apply unless we agree to them in writing.
Our services are provided to businesses and organisations. If you are instructing us as a private individual rather than in the course of a business, your statutory rights as a consumer are not affected by anything in these terms.
2. Definitions
- Services means the fire safety services set out in our quotation, such as fire risk assessments, fire door inspections, fire strategies, technical audits, building safety case support or expert witness work.
- Premises means the building or site the Services relate to.
- Report means any report, assessment, strategy, certificate, plan or other written output we provide as part of the Services.
- Responsible Person has the meaning given in the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, and Accountable Person has the meaning given in the Building Safety Act 2022.
3. Quotations and instructions
Our quotations are valid for 30 days from the date of issue unless they say otherwise. They are based on the information you give us about the Premises, such as size, use, number of floors and number of doors. If that information turns out to be materially different on site, we will tell you and agree any change to the fee before carrying out the extra work.
The contract starts when you accept our quotation in writing (including by email or purchase order) or ask us to start work, whichever comes first.
4. Our services
We will carry out the Services with the reasonable skill and care expected of a competent fire safety consultant, using suitably qualified and experienced people. Fire risk assessments are carried out in line with BS 9792:2025, and fire door inspections in line with relevant British Standards and guidance, unless the quotation specifies a different approach.
We may use carefully selected associate consultants to deliver some work. Anyone working on our behalf meets our competence requirements, is bound by our confidentiality and information security obligations, and works under our quality procedures. We remain responsible for their work.
We will try to meet any dates we agree with you, but timescales are estimates unless we have expressly agreed a fixed deadline in writing.
5. Your responsibilities
To let us do the job properly, you agree to:
- give us safe and timely access to all areas of the Premises included in the scope, including plant rooms, roof spaces, risers and individual flats where required;
- arrange keys, escorts and notice to occupants or residents where needed;
- provide relevant information we reasonably ask for, such as previous fire risk assessments, fire strategies, plans, maintenance and testing records, and details of any known defects or incidents;
- tell us about any hazards on site we should know about, including asbestos, unsafe structures and restricted areas; and
- make sure the information you give us is accurate and complete.
Instructing us does not transfer your legal duties to us. The Responsible Person or Accountable Person remains responsible for fire safety at the Premises, for acting on our recommendations, and for reviewing the assessment at appropriate intervals.
6. Site visits and safety
The health and safety of our people, your staff and occupants comes first. Our consultants follow our ISO 45001 safe working procedures and carry appropriate identification and personal protective equipment.
We may stop or postpone a site visit if we reasonably believe it is unsafe to continue, for example because of uncontrolled hazards, aggressive behaviour or lack of safe access. Where this happens, we will tell you why and agree a way forward. If areas cannot be accessed, we will record this in the Report.
7. Reports and their limitations
Unless the quotation says otherwise, our inspections are visual and non-destructive. This means:
- we do not open up walls, floors, ceilings or other parts of the building fabric, so we cannot confirm the presence, condition or performance of hidden construction such as fire stopping or cavity barriers unless they are visible;
- we do not test fire alarm, emergency lighting, sprinkler or other fire safety systems, but we will review the records you provide;
- we sample flats or areas in larger buildings where agreed, and our findings for those areas are representative rather than exhaustive; and
- our findings reflect the condition of the Premises and the information available on the day of our visit.
A Report does not certify that a building is safe or fully compliant, and it is not a structural survey, an asbestos survey or a design approval. Our recommendations are prioritised by risk to help you plan remedial work, and the timescales we suggest are our professional opinion.
If you think a Report contains a factual error, please tell us within 30 days of receiving it and we will review and, where appropriate, correct it at no extra cost.
8. Quality and peer review
As part of our ISO 9001 certified quality management system, every Report is reviewed by a second senior consultant before it is issued. We monitor the quality of our work through internal audits, client feedback and management review, and use what we learn to improve our services.
9. Fees and payment
Our fees are set out in the quotation and are exclusive of VAT, which will be added at the current rate. Travel and expenses are included unless the quotation says otherwise.
Unless we agree different terms in writing, invoices are payable within 30 days of the invoice date. For new clients, large instructions or where our credit checks indicate it is appropriate, we may ask for a deposit or full payment before work starts.
If an invoice is not paid on time, we may charge interest and compensation under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998, and we may suspend further work, including releasing Reports, until the account is up to date.
If you dispute part of an invoice, please tell us within 14 days and pay the undisputed amount by the due date while we resolve it.
10. Cancellation and rescheduling
You can cancel or rearrange a booked site visit free of charge if you give us at least 48 hours' notice (excluding weekends and bank holidays).
Because we reserve consultant time and plan travel around each booking, late cancellations are charged as follows:
- Less than 48 hours' notice: 50% of the fee for that visit.
- Less than 24 hours' notice: 100% of the fee for that visit.
If our consultant attends at the agreed time but cannot carry out the work because access is not available, this is treated as a cancellation with less than 24 hours' notice.
If you cancel an instruction after work has started, you will pay for the work done and costs incurred up to the point of cancellation.
11. Ownership and use of reports
We own the copyright and other intellectual property in our Reports, templates and methodologies. Once our invoice has been paid in full, you have a non-exclusive, perpetual licence to use and copy the Report for the purposes of managing fire safety at the Premises, including sharing it with your insurers, the Fire and Rescue Service, the Building Safety Regulator, managing agents, contractors and residents.
Reports are prepared for you and for the purpose set out in the quotation. Other people may not rely on them without our written agreement, and we accept no responsibility to anyone else who chooses to rely on them. The Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 does not apply to this contract.
A Report must not be altered or presented as relating to a different building, or to the same building at a later date, without our agreement.
12. Confidentiality and data protection
We treat everything you share with us, and everything we learn about the Premises, as confidential. We will only disclose it to people who need it to deliver the Services, or where the law requires it. Where we find a risk to life that is serious and imminent, we may need to share information with the Fire and Rescue Service or other authorities, and we will tell you when we do this unless we are prevented from doing so.
We manage information under our ISO/IEC 27001 certified information security management system. Where we process personal data on your behalf, for example information about residents with evacuation needs, we act as your data processor and handle it in line with UK GDPR and your documented instructions. How we use personal data as a controller is explained in our Privacy Policy.
13. Liability
We hold professional indemnity and public liability insurance appropriate to our work, and will provide details on request.
Nothing in these terms limits our liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or for anything else that cannot be limited by law.
Subject to that, we are not liable for any loss of profit, revenue, business, rent or goodwill, or for any indirect or consequential loss. Our total liability arising from or in connection with each instruction, whether in contract, negligence or otherwise, is limited to the amount stated in the quotation or, if none is stated, to ten times the fees paid or payable for that instruction.
We are not responsible for losses that result from information you provided being inaccurate or incomplete, from areas we were not able to access, or from recommendations not being acted on.
14. Complaints
If you are unhappy with any part of our service, please contact us at info@empyreanfire.co.uk or call 020 3633 9078. We will acknowledge your complaint within 5 working days, investigate it under our quality procedures, and aim to give you a full response within 20 working days. A director will review any complaint that is not resolved to your satisfaction.
15. Environment
In line with our ISO 14001 certified environmental management system, we issue Reports electronically by default, plan site visits to reduce unnecessary travel, and expect our suppliers to share our commitment to reducing environmental impact. Printed copies are available on request.
16. Ending the contract
Either of us may end the contract by written notice if the other seriously breaches these terms and does not put it right within 14 days of being asked to, or if the other becomes insolvent. If the contract ends, you will pay for the work done and costs incurred up to that point, and sections 11 to 13 and 17 will continue to apply.
17. General
- Events outside our control: we are not liable for delays or failures caused by events beyond our reasonable control, such as severe weather, transport disruption, illness or restrictions on access. We will tell you as soon as possible and agree a new date.
- Non-solicitation: while we are working together and for 12 months afterwards, you agree not to directly engage any of our consultants or associates who worked on your instruction without our agreement.
- Changes to these terms: we may update these terms from time to time. The version in force when you accept our quotation applies to that instruction.
- Entire agreement: the quotation, any agreed scope and these terms make up the whole agreement between us for each instruction.
- Law and jurisdiction: these terms are governed by the law of England and Wales, and the courts of England and Wales have exclusive jurisdiction.
18. Using this website
The content on this website, including our knowledge base and blog, is general information about UK fire safety. It is not professional advice for any particular building, and you should not rely on it as a substitute for a suitable and sufficient fire risk assessment or advice from a competent person. Legislation and guidance change, and while we work to keep content accurate, we cannot guarantee it is complete or up to date.
The text, logos, images and design of this website belong to Empyrean or our licensors and may not be copied or reused without our permission, except for personal reference. Links to other websites are provided for convenience, and we are not responsible for their content.
We aim to keep the website available and secure, but we do not guarantee it will always be available or free from errors.
Document reference: EFC-IMS-POL-TCS · Version: 1.0 · Last updated: 14 October 2026 · Next review: October 2027
See also our Privacy Policy.