Fire Safety Checks Before Buying a Strata Apartment in NSW

Buying a strata apartment means taking on more than the apartment itself. You also become a member of an owners corporation responsible for maintaining the building's common property, including its fire safety systems.

That responsibility can involve substantial costs.

A fire panel nearing replacement, an unresolved sprinkler defect or a council fire safety order may eventually require additional contributions from owners. Some of these issues can be identified before purchase, provided you know which records to request.

The NSW Government recommends obtaining a strata search report and building inspection report before buying. Both are valuable, but neither necessarily provides a detailed assessment of the building's fire safety compliance.

The most useful starting point is to distinguish between three types of evidence:

Document	What it tells you
Annual Fire Safety Statement (AFSS)	Whether applicable essential fire safety measures were assessed as capable of meeting their required standards at the time of assessment
AS 1851-2012 servicing records	Whether covered systems have been routinely inspected, tested and maintained, and what the results were
Defect reports and strata meeting minutes	What problems have been identified, whether repairs are progressing and what costs may be outstanding

A current AFSS is important, but it cannot replace the other records.

Before exchanging contracts, or bidding at auction, there are five areas worth investigating.

1. Check the Annual Fire Safety Statement and Fire Safety Schedule

The Annual Fire Safety Statement (AFSS) is one of the first documents to request when reviewing an established apartment building.

It confirms that the applicable essential fire safety measures have been assessed by appropriately qualified and, where required, accredited practitioners against the relevant performance standards.

The Fire Safety Schedule identifies those measures and the standards they must satisfy.

Both documents should be prominently displayed in the building, making the entrance lobby or another designated display area a useful place to start.

Check that:

• The AFSS is current and identifies the relevant building.

• The Fire Safety Schedule is available.

• The statement covers the applicable essential fire safety measures.

• The practitioners responsible for the assessments are identified, with appropriate accreditation details.

Under NSW requirements, assessments and building inspections supporting an AFSS must be carried out within the three months preceding the statement's issue.

As explained in the NSW Government's fire safety certification guidance, the assessment process relies on Accredited Practitioners (Fire Safety), subject to the applicable accreditation arrangements.

An overdue statement warrants further investigation. Apart from the underlying compliance concerns, councils can issue escalating weekly penalties. The City of Sydney's AFSS guidance identifies penalties beginning at $1,000 for the first week and increasing to $4,000 for the fourth week.

However, an AFSS is not a comprehensive report on the building's condition. It does not give buyers a complete servicing history, identify every future replacement requirement or separately certify the safety of the external façade.

For a detailed explanation of the statement and the regulatory changes affecting building owners, see our guide to AFSS compliance in NSW for 2026–2027.

2. Request the AS 1851-2012 servicing records

A building may hold a current AFSS and still have questions to answer about its ongoing maintenance arrangements.

Since 13 February 2026, NSW has required applicable essential fire safety measures in new and existing Class 1b and Class 2–9 buildings to be routinely serviced in accordance with AS 1851-2012, unless a relevant performance solution specifies another standard. This includes residential apartment buildings classified as Class 2.

AS 1851-2012 addresses routine servicing of fire protection systems and equipment. It does not cover every possible fire safety measure or replace other maintenance obligations.

The Building Commission NSW guidance on AS 1851-2012 confirms that building owners must retain the required servicing records for at least seven years.

The standard also requires a hard-copy logbook to be left on site. Electronic reporting can supplement that record, but does not currently replace the physical logbook requirement.

What should you look for in the records?

Ask the strata manager or building manager for the latest service reports and access to the logbook.

Review whether the documentation includes regular servicing entries, inspection dates, test results, recorded defects and subsequent repair work.

Pay particular attention to systems that may involve costly maintenance or replacement, including:

• Fire detection and alarm systems

• Sprinkler and fire hydrant systems

• Fire pumpsets

• Emergency and exit lighting

• Fire doors and other applicable passive fire protection measures

Where the standard requires measured results, the records should contain those results rather than only a general statement that a system was satisfactory.

Our fire safety testing and inspection service explains how inspection findings, service history and repair requirements can be recorded and reported.

What if the building has incomplete historical records?

Incomplete records do not automatically establish a serious compliance failure. Building Commission NSW has acknowledged that older buildings may lack original design information or baseline data.

It has also clarified that buildings were not expected to complete every long-interval service immediately when the February 2026 requirements commenced. The first annual service under the new arrangements is expected by February 2027.

The more useful question for a buyer is whether the owners corporation has established a servicing program that meets the current requirements and can explain any outstanding work.

A building with a documented maintenance program, identified deficiencies and an agreed plan is in a different position from one where nobody can produce the servicing records.

3. Find out which fire safety defects remain unresolved

Service reports become particularly useful when they identify faults. Under AS 1851-2012, inspection findings can include critical defects, non-critical defects and non-conformances.

These classifications have different implications.

Critical defects can render fire protection equipment or systems inoperable and require urgent attention. The building owner may also need appropriate interim risk mitigation while the affected system is unavailable.

Non-critical defects do not critically affect the operation of the measure but should be managed through an appropriate rectification plan.

Non-conformances may involve missing documentation or information that does not directly affect system operation. Their significance should be assessed on the particular facts.

NSW regulations do not require every non-critical defect or non-conformance identified during servicing to be rectified immediately.

For a prospective purchaser, the important questions are more practical:

• Which defects are still open?

• Has the owners corporation received quotations for the required work?

• Have repairs been approved and funded?

• Are there outstanding items affecting the next AFSS?

• Is there a documented timeframe for rectification?

Consider a building with repeated fire door defects reported over several years.

The immediate repair cost may be manageable. However, if the same doors continue to fail inspections and the committee has repeatedly postponed replacement, the issue may indicate a broader maintenance or funding problem.

The same applies to ageing fire detection equipment, sprinkler components or hydrant systems approaching major replacement work.

Where necessary, buyers should seek advice from an appropriately qualified fire safety practitioner rather than trying to determine the technical severity of defects themselves.

For existing owners corporations, we provide fire protection maintenance and repair services covering fire detection, wet systems, emergency lighting and passive fire protection.

4. Compare fire safety reports with strata meeting minutes and the capital works plan

Fire safety documents explain the technical condition of the building. Meeting minutes and financial records help establish whether the owners corporation is dealing with the problems identified.

Review the previous two or three years of strata committee and general meeting minutes.

Look for references to fire safety defects, major replacement proposals, contractor quotations, council correspondence and special levies.

A recurring defect is not necessarily a reason to abandon a purchase. But if the same repair has been discussed repeatedly without an approved solution, it deserves attention.

Then examine the 10-year capital works plan.

The plan should help you understand how the owners corporation expects to fund major common-property expenditure. For an older apartment building, this may include replacement or substantial refurbishment of fire safety equipment.

Compare the planned expenditure with the issues identified in the servicing reports.

For example, if a fire panel requires replacement within the next few years but the capital works plan contains no allowance for that expense, ask how the work will be funded.

The NSW Government notes that inadequate capital works funding can result in future levy increases or special levies.

Will the Section 184 Certificate reveal these problems?

Not necessarily.

A Section 184 Certificate provides prescribed information about the strata scheme, including levies and certain financial and administrative matters.

From 1 April 2026, the certificate must also include certain compliance actions and orders against the owners corporation, along with information about recent and upcoming meetings.

The NSW Government's guide to the 2026 strata law changes explains these additional disclosure requirements.

This improves access to information, but the certificate is not a technical fire safety report and does not provide a complete defect history.

Buyers should still request the underlying inspection reports, relevant meeting minutes and capital works documentation.

For newly established schemes, the developer's initial maintenance schedule is also worth reviewing.

5. Investigate cladding concerns, fire safety orders and council notices

External wall cladding requires a separate check. A building may have a current AFSS while an assessment or remediation process involving combustible cladding remains outstanding.

An AFSS assesses applicable essential fire safety measures. It does not, by itself, certify the safety of the external wall system.

The NSW Government guidance on external wall cladding recommends checking whether a building contains potentially combustible materials and whether an appropriate professional assessment has been undertaken.

If cladding is present, ask for the assessment reports and any resulting recommendations.

Also request information about:

• Outstanding Fire Safety Orders

• Council notices or compliance requirements

• Cladding remediation proposals

• Required interim fire safety measures

• Approved funding and completion dates for outstanding work

The presence of combustible cladding does not automatically mean a building is unsafe. The material, its installation, the building's design and the findings of the relevant assessments all matter.

We have a separate guide explaining combustible cladding requirements for NSW strata buildings, including how cladding assessments differ from the AFSS process.

Where concerns arise, ask your conveyancer to seek written confirmation from the seller and consider obtaining information directly from the relevant council.

An additional check: EV charging in the car park

Electric vehicle charging is another area worth reviewing, particularly in buildings with enclosed basement car parks.

If charging stations are already installed, ask whether their introduction involved an appropriate fire safety assessment.

If the owners corporation is planning an installation, review whether the proposal addresses existing fire protection systems, electrical infrastructure and any necessary building approvals.

Fire and Rescue NSW updated its position on electric vehicles and charging equipment on 18 August 2026. FRNSW considers EVs and EV charging stations to be special hazards under relevant provisions of NCC 2022. Its guidance recommends outdoor or open-air locations where practicable and sets out additional fire protection considerations for installations inside buildings.

The position does not automatically impose retrospective sprinkler upgrades on all existing apartment car parks. The requirements for a particular installation depend on the building, the proposed work and applicable approvals.

Our guide to EV charging in NSW strata car parks covers the relevant fire safety considerations in greater detail.

What should you do if the records are missing or incomplete?

Not every missing document indicates a dangerous building, and not every defect will lead to a major levy. The response should depend on what is missing and why.

If the AFSS cannot be produced, establish whether the building is required to have one and ask for the current statement or applicable certificate.

If the logbook is incomplete, find out whether a compliant servicing program is operating and what records are available.

If there are unresolved defects, request the repair scope, quotations, approval status and anticipated funding source.

If a council order exists, have your conveyancer review its implications before you commit to purchasing the lot.

A technical assessment may be appropriate where the records indicate significant fire safety risks or potentially expensive rectification work.

For private treaty purchases, raise these matters before exchange. For auction purchases, complete the relevant enquiries before bidding, as the contractual position can be different.

Documents to request before purchase

Use this checklist when speaking with the selling agent, strata manager or conveyancer:

Document	Main question
Current AFSS and Fire Safety Schedule	Are the applicable annual fire safety assessment obligations being met?
AS 1851-2012 logbook and servicing reports	Is routine maintenance documented and current?
Latest defect reports	What remains unresolved, and how serious is it?
Recent meeting minutes	Have repairs been approved, delayed or rejected?
10-year capital works plan	Is major fire safety expenditure anticipated and funded?
Cladding assessments and council notices	Are remediation or enforcement matters outstanding?
EV charging assessment, if applicable	Have the proposed or existing charging arrangements been reviewed?

These documents will not answer every technical question, but together they provide a much clearer picture than the AFSS alone.

Keeping fire safety records ready for the next buyer

For strata committees and building managers, the same checks are useful even when no apartments are currently being sold. A complete and accessible record of routine servicing, identified defects, rectification work and annual assessments helps demonstrate how the building's fire safety obligations are being managed.

It also makes responding to strata searches, council enquiries and changes of managing agent considerably easier.

EverSure Fire Protection works with owners corporations, strata managers and building managers throughout Greater Sydney, providing fire safety inspections, AS 1851-2012 servicing, defect rectification and AFSS-related support.

If your building's documentation is incomplete, or you need assistance identifying outstanding maintenance and compliance requirements, contact our Protection team.