Fire door help!

[firedoornewname]

Hi, hoping for some advice please.
I own a flat and have been told that the front door to my flat, which opens onto a communal corridor (so not an external door) has to be replaced with a fire door, in order to comply with regulations. I am working but on a low income & I can't afford this. Does anyone have any ideas of how I can find some help with this? Even advice about where to go to find a company who will do this would be helpful, as so far all I seem to get are companies interested in selling upvc external doors, or else aimed at businesses wanting to buy dozens of fire doors!
Things I have already tried without success include Citizens Advice, management company of the block of flats and the local authority. Tia.

Bumping hopefully...

You could see if you could get a personal recommendation from friends family or local social media group for a carpenter or odd job person with a trade account at Howdens or Magnet . They could source it at a reduced price and you could pay them to fit it .

You will also need to make sure that you have the correct ironmongery fitted. You should really have a rollerbolt nightlatch and you will need 3 x 4 inch fire rated hinges and intumescents. If you have a letterbox it will need to be a sleeved intumescent one. It isn't going to be cheap to get it all done properly and if it's not done properly it will need doing again. Contact a local door company or good joiner they should be able to help you.

You say it is an internal door, so it does not need to be weatherproof.

Internal fire doors are mostly made of thick chipboard and can be bought for about £80 upwards.

There will be an additional cost for the substantial hinges and other door furniture including intumescent strip which is not expensive, and I expect you will want a new lock.

If you manage to find an experienced local carpenter s/he will be very familiar with the work. It is done every day of the week all over the country, especially in flats and HMOs. You do not need a joiner, but joiners can usually do simple carpentry work like hanging a door.

Front doors come in a small variety of standard sizes, most likely yours is 32" wide and an off-the-shelf door will fit the existing frame. But a new fire frame is even cheaper than the door.

It will cost a few hundred pounds, but not thousands.

A plastic door is entirely wrong.

The technology of wooden doors is quite simple.

You do not need a national company that advertises on TV.

A local builders merchants should have fire door suppliers and be able to order one for you.
If your council has a building control department they may be able to advise on the type of fire door (eg how long it will hold a fire back for), rather than the brand.

I bet you 50p it will be an FD30.

Safety issue aside, I would start trying to save up a bit each month to pay for the door. In my experience, these things seem to take a long time to organise and it could be some time before they start chasing you about this.

Yes, it's an FD30, so you'd be up by 50p pigletjohn!
The lowest I have been quoted so far is £1700! This is for the door set, hardware/closer and fitting.
Thanks for your replies.

Are you certain you are responsible for the door leading into the corridor?
Check your lease. It may be that the landlord (freeholder) should be paying for it.

According to the LAS:
"Under the terms of most leases, it is common for the leaseholder to own the flat entrance door and be responsible for its maintenance and repair."

Whoops, missed the relevant part of the quote:
"In some cases the freeholder retains ownership of this door and/or is responsible for its maintenance and repair."

Thanks, I've checked my lease, but apparently I am the one responsible for it.

Are there any other flats in your building that need to do the same thing? You might be able to get a cheaper quote per door if you group together (but ask for separate invoices)?

I’d check that there is no requirement to install a definite door type in the terms of the lease OP. If no, I’d take Pigletjohn’s advice, as the door doesn’t need to be weatherproof this will be considerably less than a ‘front door’ and order an FD30 door, the specialist fire rated hinges and sleeved letterbox (if you need one but check the door can accommodate one with the supplier). Then hire a local carpenter to install. On a day rate expect to pay c.£180 depending on your location. Get local trade recommendations from FB. Much cheaper than getting door companies to quote for the job and you’ll have complied with the regs in a quicker timeframe if the cost is reduced.

You need to make sure who ever fits it knows what they are doing. You can't fit a fire door into an existing frame and day it will be 30mins. That's not how they are tested. The door comes as a set ie frame and door and all ironmongery approved when the door was tested. If anything else is fitted then no guarantee from the manufacturer it will last 30mins. The fixing method will be specified by the manufacturer and any gaps around the frame. Is there any glass above the door .

Thanks for advice.
There is no glass, nor a letterbox.
I went on the link that the Fire & Rescue service provided (who were where the letters/inspector are from) there is a 'find a member' facility to recommend qualified installers, but none come even close to my postcode! I live in a busy area. They are definitely not making this easy.
The others in the flats are not exactly very appraoachable ! One who rents has had theirs done, and it is from the person who did theirs that I have had the expensive quote from.

Avoid listings on advertising websites masquerading as recommendation sites.

Sometimes reviews and recommendations are written by the trader or his mum.

A personal recommendation from someone you know and trust is best, if they are competent to recognise good workmanship.

A local plumber or electrician may know a local carpenter. Good tradesmen tend to hang around with other good trades. Bad ones do the same. A good worker will not risk his reputation by suggesting someone shoddy.

A handyman or DIYer should not be trusted to fit a door skillfully.

Look out for building work locally and ask for a card. Do not ring a freephone or out-of-area number, it will be an agency.