Registration Notice for BSIP

Please read this notice carefully and tick the Accept box before continuing with your registration.

The EWS-1 forms enable five different options to be selected comprising A1, A2 and A3 and B1 and B2. Based on advice from RICS, the competency requirements of the assessor differ depending on whether the building is designated as A1-3 or B1-2.

The EWS-1 form states that for A1-3 forms, 'the signatory would need the expertise to identify the relevant materials within the external wall and attachments and whether fire resisting cavity barriers and fire stopping have been installed correctly. However, this would not necessarily include the need for expertise in fire engineering.'

For B1-2 forms, 'the signatory would need a higher level of expertise in the assessment of the fire risk presented by external wall materials.

i) For Institution of Fire Engineers (IFE) members, this should be a Chartered or Incorporated Engineer with full membership of the Institution.

ii) For non-IFE members, the signatory should be a qualified member of a relevant professional body that deals with fire safety and construction products including EWS in the built environment. with either actual or equivalence to the Chartered or Incorporated Engineer status.

iii) For buildings where the finished floor level of the top floor of the building (excluding stories consisting exclusively of plant rooms) is less than 18m above the lowest adjacent ground level, if not qualified as per sub-clauses i. or ii. above, the signatory should be a qualified member of an eligible professional body who has successfully completed the RICS EWS Assessment Training Programme.'

For the submission of forms featuring buildings designated A1-3, the assessor must be a member of at least one of the professional bodies under Option A and applicants must provide evidence of this.

For the submission of forms featuring buildings designated B1-2, the assessor must be a Chartered Engineer [CEng] with the IFE or equivalent* and applicants must provide evidence of this under Option B.

*As noted above, equivalence would refer to membership of a relevant professional body that deals with fire safety in the built environment. We strongly recommend that any equivalent memberships on which your application depend should be made known to portal@fia.uk.com before proceeding with your application. Please note that if you complete and pay for your registration without meeting the membership/qualifications criteria as listed, your registration will not be approved and you will not be entitled to reimbursement.

In order to submit EWS-1 forms on this portal you must be registered and confirm that you have the appropriate professional indemnity insurance in place. Registration costs £200 + VAT and the upload fee for an EWS-1 form is £100 + VAT for an online form, or £150 + VAT for a PDF copy. Checks will be carried out annually to establish that all of your registration details are valid and hence a nominal fee of £25 + VAT will be applied for annual renewal of your registration. Those registering successfully under Option A would be entitled to submit only those forms featuring buildings designated A1-3; any B1-2 forms submitted by these assessors would not be accepted. Those registering successfully under Option B would be entitled to submit both A1-3 and B1-2 forms. Please note that any EWS-1 forms that you submit will, upon approval, enter the public domain and the signatory must gain approval from the building owner that public access to the form is permitted.

If any of the details of your registration change, you must make this change immediately by updating your details under My Account on the portal's home page. The information you have entered will be held for the sole purpose of maintaining your registration as an EWS-1 form signatory and will not be shared with a third party.

If you are in any doubt concerning this, please write to us at portal@fia.uk.com before proceeding with your registration.

ACCEPT THE TERMS ABOVE AND CONTINUE