Give Tenant Fire Evacuation Plan When It Signs Lease

The safety of your tenants and their employees and customers is vital to the success of your business—as well as to your peace of mind. You don't want to wait until you are faced with an emergency, such as a fire, to realize that you haven’t provided an adequate emergency response and evacuation plan to tenants.

Most leases contain a standard provision or an attachment that deals with building evacuation during a fire. Typical lease language states, “Tenant shall comply with all safety, fire protection, and evacuation regulations established by Landlord or any applicable governmental agency.” Like most lease provisions, this provision is meant to protect you as the owner. But it's in everyone’s best interests to comply with the fire evacuation plan for the property.

However, in addition to having the provision in your leases, you have to follow through with a well-organized and effective plan. And if someone gets hurt or killed in a tenant’s space during a fire and you don't have an adequate fire evacuation plan that works in conjunction with tenants’ own plans, both of you could be held responsible.

To put tenants at ease and to avoid overlooking this, provide the fire evacuation plan and schedule of fire and evacuation drills before you and the tenant sign the lease. What should be in your plan? It shouldn’t be simply a generic emergency plan that doesn't specifically address the building's needs. If the plan is designed properly, it should include the following:

• Emergency safety director's name, responsibilities, and contact information;
• Space for fire wardens' names, responsibilities;
• Desired initial response to fire, including instructions to call 911 immediately if tenants encounter a fire. (But make sure the plan also indicates where alarms and fire extinguishers are located and provides a building floor plan);
• Method to alert building occupants;
• Location of fire exits;
• How to operate doors; and
• Alternate plan if unable to exit.

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