Hi Simon. Given the info you supplied I would not have them installed. If you do then you will have to train all of the drivers in their use, and have them serviced. All cost to the business that you may not need. First I'd risk assess if you need them in the vans. Andy

Simon. That does not apply at all. Its purely for the carriage of DG's. It comes from the transport of dangerous goods section of the HSE website- that should give him a clue. There are differing extinguisher requirements dependant on the load of DG's. I feel that for your circumstances fire extinguishers would not be any benefit at all. Andy

OK, me being me would like to pose this question. You are driving on a main road, could be motorway or Primary route etc. and the vehicle in front of you catches fire and stops, you are obliged to stop to avoid an accidental collision and the vehicles to either side of you stop as well. (It does happen you know). The fire is developing and spreading toward you and your vehicle, wouldn't you like to have an extinguisher close to hand, (dry powder for instance) to enable you to knock down the flames and so assist in the evacuation of yourself and others from the danger area?

In my opinion, all vehicles must have fire extinguishers, no matter if they are personal or company ones. Motorhead says that this is extra expenses for the business, but what if you catch a fire while driving at the motorway and the closest fire brigade can come after 30 minutes? Fire will destroy your vehicle and equipment for that period of time. Pikeman says that it is dangerous to start extinguishing the fire on your own, because the tank of the vehicle can explode. Well, if an explosion happens, it will hurt you and other people, no matter whether you are watching your car/van/truck burning or trying to put out the fire. To stay safe from such an explosion you have to be at least 500 meters (or even more) away from the vehicle. In a conclusion I will say that it is better to have a fire extinguisher in your company vehicles, for the sake of your employees' lives and for the sake of your equipment. I work in an oven cleaning company ( http://www.fantasticovencleaners.co.uk/ )and I'm glad our vehicles are equipped with dry powder fire extinguishers. I recommend the dry powder extinguishers, because the powder can't conduct electricity, which can be the cause for fire in some extreme cases. Stay safe.

When I put together a fire safety training course I spoke to our local fire service who told me that it was great that our company had DP extinguishers in all our vans but realistically they should not be used to tackle a fire but to assist in escape from a vehicle. They went on to tell me that the methods of fighting an engine bay fire were traditionally: 1. From underneath or through the wheel arches into the engine bay. 2. Through the rad grill. 3. Two crew - one pops the hood, the other stuffs the hose in. They explained that with wheel arch liners, engine undertrays, a radiator and a/c heat exchanger coupled with how packed in modern engines are that some modern cars it is almost impossible to get at the seat of an engine bay fire so certain makes and models they allowed to burn out in a controlled manner. With that in mind I would not tackle an car on fire unless it was to aid escape. As a complete aside I did see a large DP extinguisher drop of the back of a HGV cab a few years back landing on and breaking if the valve, discharging it almost instantly. The cloud of powder spread across lane 1, 2, & 3 it was like fog !

I suspect that 1 & 2 were if the bonnet was too crunched to open. Me being a bit backwards... I blame the heat.... Honest !

No- they are not. Like a lot of things- its down to risk assessment. Given the info from the OP I would advise any company in that position that they did not need them. Andy

Motorhead - agree whole heartily... However... As most work vans carry a multitude of small quantity DG it is sensible to advise it as nice to have in support of firesafety101 comment... Even the BCGA recommend a minimum kit for carriage of gas cylinders in vans which do operate under the ADR 1.1.3.6 threshold... So the answer is maybe...your risk assessment should consider it...

Could not agree more. Must be risk led, either in terms of life or property Our risk assessment has determined that our vehicles which carry expensive equipment (sometimes £2m+ of kit in a transit size van) should carry DP extinguishers - and in fact they always carry two. It would be stupid for an engine compartment fire to spread and take out this expensive equipment, plus they are never moved with a driver only. Whereas a company cars - 90% lone worker and no expensive kit- do not require FFE

So gentlemen we have established that there is no blanket necessity to carry fire extinguishers in a company vehicle but it is down to a risk assessment. I agree. So what risk are we managing? 1. The risk of the vehicles you are driving catching fire ie an engine fire. 2. The risk of the equipment/goods you are carrying eg gas cylinders, flammable paints etc catching fire 3. The risk TO the stuff you are carrying from a fire eg the £1 million worth of comms equipment etc 4. The risk from other users catching fire on the road 5. Or combination of all of the above? Thank You

All Just as an additional thought about a DP extinguisher in a van and that there is the risk of the cab as an enclosed space with restricted ventilation which could cause asphyxiation from inhaling the DP, if you were trapped and let one off you could be in trouble?. Regards Shaun

How much trouble do you think you would be in without an extinguisher? Just use the extinguisher to break the window glass then put the fire out, to enable you to get out if possible.