BS5839 part 1 suggests that your fire alarm system should be inspected at least every 6 months. If you have larger premises, where there may be more alarms and more complex systems, the recommendation is for quarterly inspections to be carried out. Frequency also depends on what type of system you have as some require additional attention.
The reasons for having alarms serviced is to ensure that a) they work, and b) you don’t suffer from problems such as false alarms. The latter is likely to cause greater cost because the fire service may get called out (which can result in a cost being passed onto your business in the event of a false alarm) but having false alarms create complacency for your employees.
While annual, biannual or quarterly inspections of your fire detection and alarm service by a professional are required, you also need to carry out regular tests on site.
Our family run team will be more than happy to assist with any advice and questions you have.