Loss analysis Main category: Retail Sub category: Laundrettes Jan 2009 to Dec 2018: During this period, large loss fires in retail premises accounted for 10.2% of all large loss fires


The numbers: There were 575 large loss fires involving dwellings, 23 of which occurred in laundrettes. Fires in laundrettes accounted for 0.4% of all large loss fires and 4.0% of fires in retail premises


Cause


Retail premises Laundrettes


Time of day


Retail premises Laundrettes


Impedances Retail premises Laundrettes


Accidental 49.0% 70.0%


8.4% 5.0%


Deliberate 27.5% 7.5%


9.4% 5.0%


Unknown/unassigned 23.5% 22.5%


00:00 - 06:00 06:00 - 12:00 12:00 - 18:00 18:00 - 00:00 Unknown 21.0% 17.5%


18.2% 12.5%


Total 71 1


Access 48 1


11 0


42.8% 60.0%


Acetylene Inadequate water Resources 4 0


8 0


The cost: Fires in retail premises account for 10.1% of estimated financial losses in all large loss fires, with an average of £747,822 per fire. Fires in laundrettes account for 1.5% of the estimated large losses in retail premises, with an average cost of £244,991


Insurance component


Retail premises Laundrettes


Material damage


47.6% 40.9%


Business


interruption Contents Loss of rent 29.2% 23.9%


6.3% 22.3% Fires in laundrettes cost on average £1,306 m2


2010 2


2011 1


2012 3


Number of large loss fires in laundrettes by year 2009 2


4.1% 2.7%


Machine and plant


2.4% 0.0%


Stock Other 7.2% 3.2% 1.8% 8.3%


; whereas those in retail premises as a whole cost £1,351 m2


2013 0


Table 1: Number of large loss fires in laundrettes by year


for retail premises. Curiously, the losses for machine and plant are recorded as zero for laundrettes, which is counter intuitive as the losses associated with washers and driers would be expected to be significant and a major loss in this case. The causes of the fires are less of a concern; 70%


were accidental, with just 7.5% being recorded as being started deliberately. The remainder (22.5%) were of unknown origin. Many laundrettes are unmanned or have visiting staff to solve customers’ problems; this was the case with the public facilities and is still the norm for facilities in universities and sheltered accommodation. This low staffing could be expected to lead


to deliberate fire raising, but it does not seem to be the case. Published statistics indicate that the most common causes of fires in washing machines are associated with the control module, motor, motor capacitor and the mains interference filter. Human factors are, however, also a significant contributory factor, especially where washers and driers are being used in a domestic environment. It is reassuring that fire and rescue services


encounter few problems on their arrival at fires in laundrettes. Just one case of difficulties with access was recorded, which is in marked contrast to their experience in other forms of retail properties. In addition to fires associated with washing and drying


equipment, the incidence of spontaneous ignition of cloths is well documented in laundries in prisons, hotels and hospitals where high volumes of linen are laundered. The large loads can result in heat being retained in piles of hot folded cloths. If not thoroughly laundered, oily or fatty residues can self heat in this environment, leading to ignition of the fabrics. The problem is not, however, one expected to be a major influence on this survey, as most laundry will be removed from a laundrette once washed. Like all equipment, washers and driers must be


properly maintained, especially as they may be abused or incorrectly used. In particular: • keep proof of purchase and registration for reference by insurers


• • • •


ensure the equipment is serviced and maintained by competent engineers


provide instructions for the users to prevent overloading and to prevent drying cycles being interrupted by the user


ensure that lint filters are cleaned regularly and this is recorded


protect the laundrette with a suitable automatic fire detection and alarm system


Adair Lewis is technical consultant at the Fire Protection Association


These statistics are based on information supplied by loss adjusters to the FPA on a voluntary basis and not all insurers conducting business in the UK contribute to this dataset. They represent only sums paid out where the total loss is in excess of £100k and are deficient of losses under £100K, deductibles, underinsurance, uninsured, self insured and captively insured components, which may be significant. In a year, total losses captured typically account for 50% of the ABI declared annual fire loss figure – which is similarly deficient of the same components (except the £100k threshold).


www.frmjournal.com MARCH 2019 53


2014 2


2015 1


2016 4


2017 3


2018 5


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