"False alarms don’t just waste emergency service time, they erode trust and create complacency as residents become desensitised to repeated alerts"
- David Simpson - Drax Technology
The number of false fire alarms in medium and high-rise apartment buildings has increased year on year, with more than 22,000 incidents recorded between April 2024 and March 2025. This represents a 10% rise on the 20,215 recorded the previous year, according to new data.
The figures equate to around 61 false alarms every day across blocks of four storeys or higher. The analysis, carried out by Drax Technology, drew on data collected by Fire and Rescue Services across England. The dataset covers occasions when crews were dispatched believing there was a fire, only to find none on arrival.
Although the statistics are not limited to the build to rent sector, most BTR developments are multi-storey apartment blocks and therefore exposed to the same issues.
The causes of false alarms were varied, with many linked to cooking fumes, steam, dust, aerosols and smoking. However, 6,631 cases in 2024/25 involved faulty, damaged, poorly maintained or incorrectly positioned alarms. This compares with 5,674 the year before, a 17% year-on-year increase.
On more than 2,000 occasions, between seven and nine fire service vehicles were mobilised in response to callouts. Nationally, fire and rescue services attended 250,226 false fire alarms across all property types in the year to March 2025. Incidents in medium and high-rise apartments accounted for around 9% of the total, almost one in ten.
“False alarms don’t just waste emergency service time, they erode trust and create complacency as residents become desensitised to repeated alerts,” explained David Simpson, group product director at Drax Technology. “In high-rise Build to Rent communities, remote alarm management is now essential. It verifies alarms in real time, minimises disruption, and ensures safety and compliance are never compromised. Smarter fire safety isn’t only about reducing callouts, it builds trust, reassures residents, and demonstrates responsible management. As the Build to Rent sector matures, premium rents will demand premium standards, and safety must be at the top of that list.”
Drax Technology noted that its findings underline the importance of having well-maintained fire alarm systems with remote management capabilities. Remote access enables on-site teams to check false alarms instantly, silence or reset systems, and review real-time data to identify recurring problems. The company said this approach reduces unnecessary callouts, limits disruption for residents and supports compliance.
“By adopting remote monitoring and analytics, operators can future-proof their buildings, cut costs, and most importantly protect residents and safeguard their reputation,” Simpson commented. “Our solutions provide real-time visibility of fire safety, with reliable event logging and seamless integration across building systems. This level of oversight not only strengthens compliance but also sets a new benchmark for transparency, trust, and professionalism in the Build to Rent sector.”
While there is no standard national charge for fire services attending false alarms, some services apply cost-recovery fees of up to around £417 per callout. These are usually imposed from the fourth false alarm onwards and generally apply only to non-domestic premises such as commercial buildings. It is widely reported that false alarms cost around £1bn annually.
