How Often Should Emergency Lighting Be Tested?

Emergency lighting plays a critical role in keeping people safe when the unexpected happens. In the event of a power failure, fire, or other emergency, it provides essential illumination that allows occupants to evacuate a building safely and helps emergency services operate effectively. Without reliable emergency lighting, even familiar environments can quickly become hazardous.

For employers, facilities managers, building owners, landlords, and health & safety professionals, ensuring emergency lighting is fully functional is not optional. It is a legal duty under UK fire safety legislation, and one that carries serious consequences if ignored. Regular testing is the only way to confirm systems will work when they are needed most.

Ignite Facilities Ltd supports organisations across Staffordshire with dependable electrical compliance and facilities management services. With particular experience in care home environments, where resident safety and regulatory compliance are paramount, the team helps responsible persons stay compliant, audit-ready, and confident that their emergency lighting systems will perform in a real emergency.

Legal Requirements for Emergency Lighting Testing in the UK

Fire Safety Legislation and BS 5266

Emergency lighting requirements in the UK are governed primarily by the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005. This legislation places a legal duty on the responsible person to ensure that fire safety measures, including emergency lighting, are provided, maintained, and kept in efficient working order.

Supporting this legislation is British Standard BS 5266-1, which provides detailed guidance on the design, installation, and testing of emergency lighting systems. While BS 5266 is not law in itself, it is widely recognised as the benchmark for compliance and is commonly referenced by enforcing authorities, insurers, and fire risk assessors.

BS 5266-1 clearly sets out how often emergency lighting must be tested and what those tests should involve. Following its guidance demonstrates that reasonable steps have been taken to meet legal fire safety obligations and protect building occupants.

Responsible Persons and Legal Consequences

Under the Fire Safety Order, the responsible person is usually the employer, building owner, landlord, or managing agent. In care homes and other complex facilities, this responsibility often sits with senior management or designated facilities managers.

Failure to carry out emergency lighting testing, or to keep adequate records, can lead to serious consequences. These include enforcement notices, fines, invalidated insurance cover, and potential prosecution if a failure contributes to injury or loss of life. In regulated environments such as care homes, non-compliance may also impact Care Quality Commission inspections and ratings.

Emergency Lighting Testing Frequencies Explained

Monthly Functional Tests

Emergency lighting systems must undergo a monthly functional test, sometimes referred to as a short-duration or “flick” test. This test confirms that each emergency light operates when the normal power supply is interrupted.

During a monthly test, the power supply is briefly isolated to check that luminaires illuminate correctly and that any indicator lights or control panels function as expected. The test does not need to run for the full battery duration, but it must be long enough to confirm proper operation.

These tests can be carried out by in-house staff, provided they have received appropriate training and understand the system. After each test, the results must be recorded in an emergency light test log, noting any faults or issues identified. If a fault is found, it should be addressed as soon as possible to maintain compliance and safety.

Annual full-duration Tests

In addition to monthly checks, emergency lighting systems require an annual full-duration test. This is a more comprehensive assessment that involves simulating a complete power failure and allowing the emergency lighting to operate for its full rated duration, typically one to three hours.

The purpose of this test is to confirm that batteries, luminaires, and control equipment can sustain illumination for the required period. It provides assurance that the system will perform effectively during a prolonged emergency.

Because of its complexity and the potential disruption to normal operations, the annual emergency lighting duration test should be carried out by a qualified professional. In environments such as care homes, careful planning is essential to minimise impact on residents while still achieving full compliance.

Additional System Checks

Some emergency lighting systems, particularly those with central battery supplies, require additional daily or weekly visual checks. These checks usually involve confirming that control panels show no fault indicators and that charging systems are operating correctly.

Self-test systems can automate some aspects of testing, carrying out routine checks and flagging faults automatically. While these systems can reduce manual workload, they do not remove the need for regular review, proper record-keeping, and periodic professional inspection.

Best Practices for Record-Keeping and Documentation

What to Include in a Test Log

Accurate record-keeping is a vital part of emergency lighting compliance. A test log provides evidence that required checks have been completed and that faults are managed appropriately.

Each entry should include the date and time of the test, the name of the person carrying it out, the type of test performed, the results, and details of any faults identified. Where issues are found, the log should also record corrective actions taken and the date of repair.

Paper vs. Digital Compliance Logs

Traditionally, emergency lighting test logs have been kept in paper format. While this can still be acceptable, digital compliance reporting is increasingly preferred. Digital systems can provide automated reminders for upcoming tests, reduce the risk of missed checks, and make records easier to access during audits or inspections.

For facilities managers overseeing multiple sites or complex buildings, digital logs offer greater control and visibility. They also support faster reporting and clearer evidence during fire risk assessments or regulatory reviews.

Common Challenges in Emergency Lighting Compliance

Missed Tests and Poor Record-Keeping

One of the most common compliance failures is simply missed testing. Competing priorities, staff changes, or lack of reminders can result in monthly or annual checks being overlooked. Even when tests are carried out, incomplete or missing records can undermine compliance and leave organisations exposed during inspections.

Inadequate Testing Skills or Resources

While monthly emergency lighting tests can be completed internally, problems arise when staff are not properly trained or lack confidence in what they are checking. Annual tests, in particular, are often beyond the scope of in-house teams and require specialist knowledge and equipment.

Relying on untrained personnel increases the risk of faults being missed, systems being left in an unsafe state, or documentation being completed incorrectly.

How Ignite Facilities Can Help

Ignite Facilities provides end-to-end emergency lighting testing and compliance support for commercial properties and care environments. Our qualified electricians carry out every inspection with care, ensuring systems meet BS 5266 requirements and perform reliably when they are needed most.

Our emergency lighting services include:

• Monthly functional (“flick”) testing to confirm correct operation
• Annual full-duration testing to validate battery and luminaire performance
• Fault identification and remedial works to maintain full compliance
• Emergency lighting log management and clear compliance documentation
• Support tailored to care homes and complex facilities
• Rapid 1.5-hour emergency response for critical lighting faults

By choosing Ignite Facilities, you gain a dependable compliance partner who understands the demands of sensitive environments. From routine testing to urgent fault response, we provide clarity, continuity, and confidence that your emergency lighting systems are safe, compliant, and professionally maintained.

Why Emergency Lighting Compliance Matters for Commercial Buildings

In commercial buildings, emergency lighting compliance is essential for protecting employees, visitors, and contractors during power failures, fires, or other emergency situations. Offices, warehouses, retail premises, and mixed-use sites often have complex layouts, varying occupancy levels, and unfamiliar visitors, all of which increase risk if lighting systems fail.

Reliable emergency lighting ensures escape routes, stairwells, and high-risk areas remain clearly illuminated, supporting calm, orderly evacuation and reducing the likelihood of slips, trips, or panic. From a legal standpoint, consistent testing and accurate documentation demonstrate compliance with fire safety legislation and support fire risk assessments, insurance requirements, and enforcement inspections.

Ignite Facilities works closely with commercial building owners and facilities managers to deliver dependable, well-documented emergency lighting compliance. With a focus on minimal disruption and rapid fault resolution, the team helps businesses meet their responsibilities confidently while maintaining safe, fully operational premises.

Conclusion

Regular emergency lighting testing is a legal requirement and a fundamental part of building safety. Monthly functional tests and annual full-duration tests work together to ensure systems will perform when they are needed most.

For employers and facilities managers, staying compliant protects people, supports inspections, and reduces legal and operational risk. By working with a professional partner like Ignite Facilities Ltd, organisations can take a proactive, reliable approach to emergency lighting compliance and broader facilities management.