Advice re Grade A LD2 Fire Alarm System in Freehold Building

[kt6345]

HI,

I'm a director of a freehold building which is 4 stories (one flat per storey), with a basement flat with its own separate entrance down some stairs outside the entrance to the main building. In our latest fire health and safety report we have been advised that our freehold building needs to be retrofitted with a Grade A LD2 fire alarm system, with interlinked alarms in each flat in the builidng, despite the same company never advising this previously.

Currently we have two interlinked mains powered fire alarms within the communal area of the building (one hallway and then a staircase upto the 1st and 2nd floors. The 3rd floor flat is accessible from the landing on the 2nd floor, and then has its own stairs up behind its own fire door. The 2023 report said we have a "mains powered LD2 system" and the 2024 report by the same company said we have a "interlinked mains powered L4 Grade D1" alarm system despite there being no changes to the system at all... All flats are fitted with fire doors, and have their own fire alarms inside (none are interlinked to the mains powered ones in the communal hallways).

I am not sure why the need for this major upgrade has come out of nowhere, and given a number of the flats in the building have been refurbished recently, we don't want to start having to rip apart the building to retrofit something which might not even be needed given this was never raised as an issue before and there haven't been any sudden changes in the regs as far as I'm aware to warrant this.

Could someone please advise whether we are being led up the garden path? I've attached a couple of pics of the system we have at the moment.

Thank you in advance

 

[ahhaah]

I challenged a council on having the same system installed in an HMO. One consideration is if the flats/escape route were made to The Building Regulations 1991. You should ask the assessor what factors causes it to be upgraded from grade D to A, if not stated in the report. I am currently looking for an installer for a grade A system if you want to search together! I'm in London.