I am helping a friend who is a responsible person for a vertical block of three flats, and we have come up against an unclear situation with regard to the external door.

The block consists of three flats one above the other, each of which leads via a front door into a communal stairwell. At the bottom there is one door leading to the outside. Obviously the regulations applicable to each flats front door are clear, but the bottom door, I feel, does not need to obey the same fire regulations as it leads to the outside.

Would this be a correct supposition: I have read so much from every angle on the internet, but no one says anything on this specific point. 

After 19 hours I was hoping that a moderator would approve my topic, as it’s still marked as needing approval.

The final exit (door to the outside) does not normally require to be a fire resisting door set so would not need checking beyond that to see it opens freely and the internal opening mechanism works (which if everyday use would be quickly identified by residents.)

The general public use the term 'fire door' in a colloquial way to describe the final exit doors from a building (often not fire resistant unless an external stair or similar passes by) rather than the fire resisting door-sets inside buildings protecting stairs, corridors and enclosing high fire risk areas

Thanks for your reply, which is very reassuring.

My friend has come back with another question, due to my lack of knowledge.

Does the door material (hardwood in this case) have to be fire rated? I didn’t realise the difference between fire resistance and fire rated in technical terms.

 

Having the requisite fire resistance should suffice.

Thank you for making that clear.