How to hire
Match the firm to the job before you compare quotes. A fire-alarm practice designs, installs, commissions and maintains detection systems; a general electrician fits domestic alarms alongside wiring; sprinkler firms and safety consultancies do different work again. If you run a business, the law names you — or your owner, landlord or manager — as the responsible person for fire safety in the building, with duties you cannot hand to the installer [2]. Say which building and system in your first enquiry.
No single licence is required to fit fire alarms, so scheme membership is how you read competence. For non-domestic systems look for BAFE SP203-1 registration, and for domestic alarms BAFE DS301, each verified on the BAFE Fire Safety Register [1]. SSAIB certification covers fire detection alongside intruder alarms and CCTV, with a directory of certificated firms [3], and NSI certifies fire work through the BAFE schemes [4]. Ask for the firm's Registered Organisation ID and type it into the register yourself — a logo on a van proves nothing.
For workplaces, start with the fire risk assessment the responsible person must carry out and review regularly, covering risks, measures, emergency plans and staff training [2]. The assessment decides the grade and category of system the building needs — interlinked domestic alarms for a small let, a panel-based addressable system for an office or shop — so ask each quoting firm to name the grade and device positions in writing. Systems for non-domestic buildings follow BS 5839, which sets how servicing, testing and records are handled [5].
Get two or three itemised written quotes on the same written scope, separating labour, materials and VAT so you compare like with like [8]. Each quote should list every detector, sounder, call point and panel, the cable routes, how making-good is handled, the start date and payment stages — a deposit for equipment is normal, while full payment before completion is not. Treat an outlier as a question rather than a bargain.
Agree maintenance at the point of install, not after. The industry standard allows no more than six months between servicing visits — miss it and the system is no longer considered compliant — with weekly user tests and every visit recorded in the log book [5]. Ask for the service certificate after each visit and keep it with the log book. For homes, test alarms weekly and clear dust from the casing, following the maker's instructions [9].
At handover, collect the design, installation and commissioning certificates, the as-fitted zone chart, the log book and the operating instructions, with named staff shown how to use and silence the panel. The responsible person must pass fire information and training to staff, so book that session before the engineers leave [2]. File everything with the building papers — you will need it at sale, re-let or inspection. If anything feels rushed or uncertified, pause and ask for the paperwork before you pay.
In Telford, most of the ranked firms sit on Halesfield, Hadley and Stafford Park and travel across Telford, Shrewsbury and Newport, so confirm call-out and travel charges for your postcode. Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service offers free Safe and Well visits covering smoke alarms and escape plans [7].
Pricing
As of autumn 2026, a Checkatrade cost guide updated in May 2024 gives rough fitted figures: battery-powered alarms £25–£75 each; wired alarms £150–£250 each; app-enabled alarms £175–£300 each; a Grade A panel system £1,750–£3,000; commercial systems around £18–£27 per square metre; and electrician labour near £45 an hour [6]. Treat every figure as a guide and confirm it against written quotes.
Device count moves the price most: every detector, sounder and call point is hardware plus a cable run, and a panel system is a different job from interlinked alarms rather than an upgrade of one. Wiring complexity, access to awkward areas, finishing work such as plastering, the time the install takes and your location all add or subtract [6]. Working around tenants or trading hours costs more than an empty building.
Ask whether VAT sits on top of every figure and whether a call-out fee applies, since published ranges do not always say [6]. Firms in this round publish almost no example rates — only one publishes an hourly schedule — so treat any single fixed price for a large system with no breakdown as a question, not an answer.
Get the scope in writing before work starts — exactly which devices, cable routes and making-good are included, which certificates and log book you will receive, and what changes the price if the engineers find worse wiring than expected. Agree payment stages and keep every quote, invoice and certificate together [8].
Red flags
Quotes a panel system without visiting the building or asking for plans and device positions.
Cannot give a BAFE Registered Organisation ID or SSAIB detail you can check yourself on the scheme register [1] [3].
Hands over a workplace system with no commissioning certificate, log book or service schedule [5].
Asks for full payment in cash before starting, with no written quote or terms [8].
Prices a maintenance contract with no visit frequency or response time in writing [5].
Treats six-monthly servicing on a workplace system as optional [5].
Gives one fixed price for a large system with no breakdown of labour, materials and VAT [6] [8].
Will not put the scope, price and start date in writing before lifting a tool.