Key Points
- Audit Scope: Glasgow Fire and Rescue staff inspected 18 business premises, including vape shops, following the major Union Street blaze.
- Key Findings: The safety audit revealed a widespread lack of awareness regarding fire legislation and safety duties, alongside missing safety documents.
- Landlord-Tenant Issues: Officials noted instances of poor coordination between landlords and tenants regarding who holds safety responsibilities.
- Action Plan: The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) plans to issue formal letters to commercial premises located within the same buildings as residential flats to clarify legal obligations.
- Ongoing Investigation: The safety drive forms part of ongoing efforts to raise awareness while multi-agency teams investigate the origin and cause of the catastrophic March fire.
Glasgow (Glasgow Express) September 24, 2026 — As reported by Sarah Hilley, Local Democracy Reporter for Glasgow Live, local fire and rescue staff have been carrying out targeted checks on commercial premises across the city, including vape shops, in the wake of the huge Union Street blaze.
The safety audit encompassing 18 premises found that there was a notable lack of awareness regarding legislation and fire safety duties, alongside issues where mandatory documents were not available. Speaking at the Safe Glasgow Partnership meeting, local senior officer Glasgow Area Commander Mr Marshall stated that the audit of a number of Glasgow businesses discovered there “was a lack of awareness of the Fire Scotland Act”.
Mr Marshall added that safety documents were frequently unavailable during the inspection visits and highlighted cases of “poor coordination between landlords and tenants”.
Why is the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service targeting mixed-use buildings?
As reported by Sarah Hilley of Glasgow Live, the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) plans to roll out direct letters to businesses located within the same buildings as residential flats.
According to Glasgow Area Commander Mr Marshall, the local senior officer stated that the fire service wants to actively raise awareness around fire safety responsibilities while an investigation remains ongoing into the “origin and cause” of the major Union Street fire. The devastating blaze in March led to extensive road closures and the major demolition of the impacted historic building, after starting inside a ground-floor vape shop.
Mr Marshall explained that issuing the upcoming letters will ensure premises know they are legally responsible for carrying out a thorough fire risk assessment.
Background of the particular development
The recent fire safety audits and planned correspondence follow the catastrophic fire that struck a 19th-century building on Union Street on March 8, 2026. That incident drew a massive emergency response involving over 250 firefighters battling flames that originated in a vape shop. The structural damage was so severe that the block suffered a partial collapse, prompting a full manual demolition of the remaining framework for public safety. The subsequent scrutiny exposed vulnerabilities in commercial compliance, regulatory tracking of emerging hazards like lithium-ion batteries, and communication gaps in multi-occupancy properties across Glasgow.
Prediction on how this development can affect local business owners and residents
The proactive distribution of warning letters and increased audit scrutiny will significantly alter compliance standards for small business owners and landlords operating in shared or mixed-use urban buildings. Commercial tenants and property owners can expect stricter enforcement, higher accountability regarding fire risk documentation, and a pressing need to bridge communication gaps between parties. While this administrative push may increase short-term compliance pressures and operational reviews for independent retailers, it is projected to substantially lower long-term catastrophe risks, improve tenant-landlord cooperation, and enhance structural safety for residential flat-dwellers situated above commercial units.
