As of 13 August 2026, AI cannot choose a fire extinguisher for your business premises.

What to actually do

1. Hand it to a person

   The route this page recommends

   Someone with a licence or accountable authority has to sign this before it counts.

2. Use a tool built for this

   Second choice

3. Do it yourself

   The distant third

   A chat interface gets you a draft, but you cannot verify it yourself. That is the catch.

   How to actually do it

   1. Open the current fire risk assessment, evacuation plan and any records for extinguisher servicing at the premises.
   2. Walk through every room and record the materials, machinery, cooking equipment, electrical equipment, charging points, flammable liquids, gases and outdoor hazards present.
   3. Measure or obtain the floor layout, mark exits and note where extinguishers are currently located, including any blocked, damaged or difficult-to-reach positions.
   4. Paste the gathered information and the prompt into Perplexity or another linked chatbot, and require a source beside every product or safety claim.
   5. Open each cited GOV.UK, fire and rescue service or manufacturer source and remove any shortlist item whose specification or use is not supported there.
   6. Send the brief, source links, site layout and current fire-risk assessment to a competent fire risk assessor or fire-safety supplier, asking them to confirm types, ratings, locations, quantities, signage, training and maintenance.
   7. Before buying, compare the written recommendation with the supplier's current product instructions and obtain confirmation that the chosen equipment is suitable for the actual premises.

   Prompt

   I need a safe, source-led decision brief for fire extinguishers at a UK business premises. Do not make a final purchase recommendation and do not present this as professional advice.
   
   Business activity: [describe the business]
   Premises layout and size: [describe rooms, floors, access routes and exits]
   People present: [staff, customers, visitors and any evacuation needs]
   Likely fire hazards: [paper, textiles, wood, cooking oils, flammable liquids, gases, vehicles, machinery or other materials]
   Electrical equipment: [list significant equipment and charging areas]
   Existing fire precautions: [list current extinguishers, alarms, signage and inspection arrangements]
   Known restrictions: [accessibility, weather exposure, vandalism risk, storage conditions or other constraints]
   
   Using current UK sources, official guidance and manufacturer documentation where available:
   1. Identify the fire classes and hazards that may apply, marking unknowns instead of guessing.
   2. Explain which extinguisher types might be relevant and which should not be used for each identified hazard.
   3. Produce a shortlist of suitable UK products or specifications only where the source supports the claim. Include the evidence source, extinguisher medium, stated use, limitations, rating and any relevant installation or maintenance information.
   4. Separate facts, assumptions and questions that require an on-site answer.
   5. List the questions and evidence I should take to a competent fire risk assessor or fire-safety supplier.
   6. Flag anything that needs checking against the current fire risk assessment, manufacturer instructions, applicable UK requirements or local fire and rescue guidance.
   Do not invent a fire rating, coverage area, quantity, placement, legal requirement, price or product availability. Do not tell me that a particular extinguisher is sufficient for the premises without a competent person checking the site.

   Open it prefilled in ChatGPT or Claude, or copy it into Gemini, which takes no prefill link.