Due diligence guide
Hotel due diligence checklist: which maintenance records to ask for
Chris Morgan, Founder of Fixray · Last updated
Ask for the fire risk assessment and fire equipment logs, gas and fixed electrical inspection records, lift examination reports, the Legionella risk assessment and monitoring, the asbestos assessment and plan, any pressure-system scheme, and the planned maintenance history. A seller should have every one ready before the hotel goes on the market.
Which maintenance records does hotel due diligence cover?
Each record below rests on a legal duty, except the last two, which show how well the building has been run. The law sets the duty; it rarely sets the format. A missing record does not prove the work was skipped, but nobody can rely on work they cannot see.
| Record | What the law requires | How often | What to check |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fire risk assessment | Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, article 9: a "suitable and sufficient assessment", recorded by the responsible person | Reviewed "regularly", and when it may no longer be valid or after a significant change | Date, who made it, and whether every action it lists was done |
| Fire safety equipment | Fire Safety Order 2005, article 17: facilities, equipment and devices under "a suitable system of maintenance" and in good repair, where necessary for safety | No interval in the Order | Alarm and emergency lighting test logs with no gaps, and contractor service reports |
| Gas appliances | Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998, regulation 35: appliances, pipework and flues at a workplace "maintained in a safe condition" | No interval in regulation 35 | The latest inspection and service record for every appliance, including the kitchen |
| Fixed electrical installation | Electricity at Work Regulations 1989, regulation 4(2): systems "maintained so as to prevent, so far as is reasonably practicable, such danger" | No interval in the Regulations | The latest inspection report for the wiring, and proof that remedial work was done |
| Lifts | Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998, regulation 9: lifting equipment for lifting people, where it is exposed to conditions causing deterioration liable to result in dangerous situations, thoroughly examined | "at least every 6 months", or under an examination scheme | The last two examination reports, and whether listed defects were fixed |
| Legionella | HSE: an employer or person in control of premises must identify and assess sources of risk; with 5 or more employees, record the significant findings | Monitoring as the written control scheme sets | The risk assessment, the written scheme, and monitoring results with dates |
| Asbestos | Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012, regulation 4: assess whether asbestos is present in non-domestic premises, record the conclusions, and keep a written plan where it is | Plan "reviewed and revised at regular intervals" | The survey or assessment, the management plan, and the record of measures taken |
| Pressure systems | Pressure Systems Safety Regulations 2000, regulation 8: a written scheme for periodic examination by a competent person before the system is operated | As the written scheme specifies | The scheme, and the latest examination report for each boiler or vessel it covers |
| Planned maintenance history | Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992, regulation 5: equipment and systems "subject to a suitable system of maintenance" where appropriate | As your schedule sets | What is scheduled, and the completion record: who did each job and when |
| Open faults and repairs log | No single regulation; it is the evidence of how the building is run day to day | Kept continuously | How many faults are open, the age of the oldest, and which rooms keep coming back |
How should a buyer use this checklist?
Ask for every record in the table before you commit, alongside the survey. Then do three things with what comes back.
- Read the dates. A record that has lapsed is a job the new owner inherits on day one.
- Check that actions were closed. A fire risk assessment or an inspection report with open actions is a list of work, not evidence that the building is fine.
- Ask for anything missing to be commissioned, or cost it yourself, before completion. Your solicitor and surveyor will advise how to handle what you find.
What should a seller prepare before marketing a hotel?
A buyer can rely only on what you can show. Gather every record in the table into one place before the hotel goes on the market, and fix the gaps while you still control the timetable.
- Commission any inspection you cannot evidence, so the buyer sees a current report, not a gap.
- Close the actions from your fire risk assessment and inspection reports, and keep the proof.
- Bring the open faults list down, and show the planned maintenance history behind it.
- Keep the records current until completion: a lift examination that falls due during the sale still has to happen.
How long should maintenance records be kept?
The law sets few retention periods for these records. HSE gives one for Legionella: records "should be retained throughout the period for which they remain current and for at least 2 years after that period", and monitoring records "for at least 5 years".
For everything else, keep at least the current record and the one before it, so a buyer can see that checks happen on time, not once.
Where does Fixray fit?
Fixray keeps the two records at the bottom of the table: the planned maintenance history and the faults log. Each completed scheduled job and each closed issue records who did it and when, plus a completion photo where one is added or your team requires it. Plus and Pro export the records as a PDF.
It does not replace the certificates and reports your contractors issue for fire, gas, electrical, lift, Legionella and asbestos work. Keep those alongside it.
Is this legal advice?
No. This is general information drawn from the sources below, checked on 4 November 2026, and it covers England and Wales. Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own fire safety law, and Northern Ireland has its own health and safety regulations. Your solicitor, surveyor or a competent person should confirm what applies to a particular hotel.
Sources
- The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, article 9
- The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, article 17
- The Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998, regulation 35
- The Electricity at Work Regulations 1989, regulation 4
- The Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998, regulation 9
- HSE: Legionnaires' disease, what you must do
- HSE: Legionnaires' disease, keeping records
- The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012, regulation 4
- The Pressure Systems Safety Regulations 2000, regulation 8
- The Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992, regulation 5
Frequently asked questions
- What does hotel due diligence include?
- Due diligence on a hotel usually covers its finances, legal title, licences, staff and the building. This checklist covers the building's maintenance and compliance records. Your solicitor and surveyor will cover the rest.
- How often do hotel lifts need examining?
- Under the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998, lifting equipment for lifting people that is exposed to conditions causing deterioration liable to result in dangerous situations must be thoroughly examined at least every 6 months, or in line with an examination scheme drawn up for it.
- Is an EICR a legal requirement for a hotel?
- The Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 require electrical systems to be maintained so as to prevent danger, so far as is reasonably practicable. They set no inspection interval and do not name a report. Ask for the latest inspection report for the wiring and proof that its remedial work was done: that is the evidence the system has been checked.
- How long should Legionella records be kept?
- HSE says records should be kept for as long as they are current and for at least 2 years after that, and records of monitoring inspections, tests and checks for at least 5 years.
- What if the seller cannot produce a record?
- Ask for the inspection to be done before completion, or have it done yourself and cost any work it finds. A missing record does not prove the work was skipped, but you cannot rely on work you cannot see.
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