Request an incident report

Following our attendance at an incident, there’s often a need to obtain an official confirmation and details of the incident, here’s how to access it.

Individuals and Organisations affected by an incident that we’ve attended can request the following:

Tier 1 - A ‘Confirmation of Attendance email’

Wherever we have attended a call, we can provide the following details to those with a vested interest:

    • The incident number
    • Time and date of both the first call and our arrival at the incident
    • Location to which the 999 caller asked us to attend.

These are available for all types of incidents at no cost.

Tier 2 - An ‘Incident Report’

Also known as a ‘Fire Report’, is automatically generated by the Home Office’s Incident Recording System (IRS) whenever we attend an incident.

These reports are only provided to persons with a vested interest i.e. those who can provide proof they own, live in or insure a property (or vehicle) involved in the incident. Additionally, there is a charge for this report in some cases, these charges are explained below.

The IRS system only allows us to record basic details as categorised by the Home Office for statistical purposes. They are created for fires, false alarms, and non-fire accidents and include information such as:

  • an indication of the level of damage involved
  • some more specific information about where the fire started
  • more information about how the fire was discovered
  • a limited assessment of the most likely cause of the fire

Please be aware that the cause of fire information is not the opinion of the attending crew. It is an option selected from a limited and set list of categories provided by the Home Office. For example, “Overheating, unknown cause”, “Cooking – other cooking” or “Vehicle crash or collision”. It does not represent a legal conclusion following a detailed investigation of the incident, nor is it a scientific or expert opinion on the cause of the fire. For further information about what is contained within an Incident Report, please see the Incident Recording System guide provided by the Home Office. Not all field are completed for all incident types, this is determined by the Home Office.

Tier 3 - A ‘Fire Investigation Report’

This is a report created by one of our qualified expert investigations who conduct a detailed scientific analysis of the fire. These reports are only created in certain circumstances and are not created for all incidents.

Reports of this nature can be made available only via Insurance companies on request and at cost.

These reports will include detailed information (including images) relating to:

  • The cause of fire
  • Whether any accelerants were involved in the fire
  • The source of the fire’s ignition
  • The damage caused.

These reports are usually created where there has been a fatality at an incident and may be created at the request of the Police as part of their investigations. Therefore, these are created for consideration by a court at trial and are not routinely published or made public. We are not required to release them publicly or to media outlets.

For more information about Fire Investigation Reports, or to request one, please contact us.

How to make a request

To request an incident report online or you can send a letter to Fire Incident Reports, Hampshire & Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service Headquarters, Leigh Road, Eastleigh, Hampshire SO50 9SJ. We only release fire reports to people or organisations with a legal interest in the report; e.g. occupiers of a property, landlords/ housing associations/ solicitors, insurance companies, loss adjusters, etc.

Your request should include:

  • Your full name
  • Your contact details (email address and day-time telephone number)
  • Evidence of residency or ownership of an affected property or vehicle
  • If applicable, a company email signature/ letterhead
  • Why you need the report
  • Information about the incident to help us to identify it; e.g. the date, time and full address where it happened, including the postcode.

What happens next?

We aim to respond to all requests within one week of receipt – either to acknowledge your request, ask for more information if we need it, or to send you information you have requested.

Before we can send you any information, our internal record of the incident will need to have been completed by the attending crew – this can take up to two weeks from the date of the incident.  We also need to make sure we finish any investigations (if carried out).  This can sometimes take days, weeks, or longer, depending on the nature of the incident.

Is there a charge?

As of 1 April 2022, we will charge other organisations and businesses for a copy of the Incident Report. The cost of this charge will be £69.60 + VAT. It should be noted that some personally identifiable information may be removed.

We will not charge members of the public involved in the incident.

Can anyone request a report?

Every request we receive must be assessed to make sure you are entitled to receive a report, and ensure that our actions confirm to the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulations.  Some details in the fire report will be personal information and will therefore be redacted before the report is sent out.

Requests from owners or tenants of damaged property, people injured during an incident, and any professional or organisation acting on their behalf are generally considered to be reasonable and have a good chance of success.

Requests from local councils, police services and other government organisations may also be eligible if there is a need to take action related to the incident.

Availability of information

We aim to provide eligible parties with the information requested.  However, we are unable to release any information on the following:

  • the phone calls we received regarding the incident, especially caller details;
  • Individuals involved in an incident;
  • our opinion on the habitability of a residential property, or whether a building is safe to enter, following an incident.

The information available in our reports is collected primarily for statistical purposes according to a standardised procedure (and largely determined recording scheme specified by the Home Office), and as a result if your request is for information that is not routinely recorded, we may not be able to provide that information.

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