29 July New Restrictions on AFFF Foam Extinguishers Do you have foam fire extinguishers on site? The rules have changed – are you still compliant? From 04 July 2025, the use of some foam extinguishers (AFFF containing C8 chemicals) have been banned due to environmental effects related to the presence of ‘forever chemicals’. Not all foam extinguishers are affected, but those containing PFOA or PFOS must now be removed from use and disposed of safely. Most extinguisher manufacturers stopped using these chemicals in 2015/2016. If your extinguishers are less than 10 years old, they should not be affected. If your extinguishers are more than 10 years old, they have likely reached end of serviceability, and should now be replaced anyway. What does this mean for you? Check your extinguishers: Check if your foam extinguishers contain ‘C8’, PFOS, or PFOA if you can, and replace them if so. Reach out if you are not sure. Arrange disposal and replacement: Contact your fire extinguisher supplier to arrange for the safe disposal of any non-compliant extinguishers and arrange replacement of a suitable alternative. Update fire risk assessment and policies: Ensure your paperwork and policies reflect these changes and are easily accessible to all employees. Update staff: Inform relevant staff of the changes and provide training where appropriate on the changes made. This might be a good time to consider reviewing your Fire Warden training provision. This change has been hard to navigate, and many people feel lost in how to get this right. We can help if you are unsure. If any fire extinguisher, fire warden or refresher training is required, reach out to LRB to set this up.