Abstract
Fires can lead to costly building damage as well as loss of lives and injuries. Installed to protect buildings from fire, or to limit the damage from such outbreaks, fire protection measures are a common feature in buildings. However, these features come at a cost. Although quite ubiquitous in buildings, the value of these features to private individuals and to society is not fully understood. To understand their value, a cost benefit analysis detailing the costs and benefits of fire protection measures is needed. Carrying out such an analysis requires methods for computing both the cost of these fire protection measures, and losses from fires (including both direct and indirect losses). This study outlines methodologies for evaluating those costs and losses. An exhaustive collection of available data necessary for estimating both costs and losses is presented. Several limitations in current methodologies and data constraints were identified, with recommendations proposed to address these shortcomings. Relevant sections of a study by the authors that refines fire protection cost estimation at national and sub-national levels are emphasized, including updated building categories, guidance on computing multipliers, and detailed cost calculation methods for installation and maintenance costs. The calculation uses regularly updated U.S. Census Bureau construction data, ensuring timely multiplier updates. The insights and suggestions presented in this study will ultimately refine the process of selecting fire protection strategies that maximize the net benefit of fire protection measures for both private stakeholders and society at large.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Zhuang J, Payyappalli VM, Behrendt A, Lukasiewicz K (2017) Total cost of fire in the United States. Fire Protection Research Foundation Quincy, MA, USA
Hall J (1993) The total cost of fire in the United States. Fire Protection Research Foundation Quincy, MA, USA
Hall J (2014) The total cost of fire in the United States. Fire Protection Research Foundation Quincy, MA, USA
Ashe B, McAneney KJ, Pitman AJ (2009) Total cost of fire in Australia. J Risk Res 12:121–136
Schaenman P, Stern J, Bush R (1995) Total cost of fire in Canada: an initial estimate. National Research Council of Canada, Ottawa, Canada
Pickering J, Beall W, Phillips W (2023) Economic and social cost of fire. London, UK
Jones-Lee M, Aven T (2011) ALARP—What does it really mean? Reliab Eng Syst Saf 96:877–882
Van Coile R, Jomaas G, Bisby L (2019) Defining ALARP for fire safety engineering design via the life quality index. Fire Saf J 107:1–14
Lundin J, Frantzich H (2002) Cost-benefit and risk analysis-basis for decisions in the fire safety design process. In: Proceedings from the 4th International Conference on Performance based codes and Fire Safety Design Methods. pp 370–381
Banks J, Reichard K, Crow E, Nickell K (2009) How engineers can conduct cost-benefit analysis for PHM systems. IEEE Aerosp Electron Syst Mag 24:22–30
Eigner M, Huwig C, Dickopf T (2015) Cost-Benefit Analysis in Model-Based Systems Engineering: State of the Art and Future Potentials. In: DS 80–7 Proceedings of the 20th International Conference on Engineering Design (ICED 15) Vol 7: Product Modularisation, Product Architecture, systems Engineering, Product Service Systems, Milan, Italy, 27–30.07. 15. pp 227–236
Ramachandran G (2002) The economics of fire protection. Routledge, London
Hopkin D, Spearpoint M, Arnott M, Van Coile R (2019) Cost-benefit analysis of residential sprinklers–Application of a judgement value method. Fire Saf J 106:61–71
Johansson N, Van Hees P, MacNamee MS, Strömgren M (2012) A Cost-Benefit Analysis of Fire Protection Systems Designed to Protect Against Exterior Arson Fires in Schools. In: 9th International Conference on Performance-Based Codes and Fire Safety Design Methods. Society of Fire Protection Engineers
Newport Partners LLC (2014) Home Fire Sprinkler Cost Assessment. Springer, New York, USA
Duncan CR, Wade CA, Saunders NM (2000) Cost effective domestic fire sprinkler systems. BRANZ, New Zealand
Butry DT, Brown MH, Fuller SK (2007) Benefit-Cost Analysis of Residential Fire Sprinkler Systems. US Department of Commerce, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD
Palmer D, Caldwell C, Fleischmann C (2000) Risk Assessment & Cost Benefit Analysis of Corridor Smoke Detectors in Rest Homes. New Zealand
Hasofer AM, Thomas IR (2008) Cost benefit analysis of a fire safety system based on the life quality index. Fire Saf Sci 9:969–980
Simonson M, Van den Berg M, Andersson P (2006) A cost benefit analysis model for fire safety: Methodology and TV case study. Swedish National Testing and Research Institute, Boras, Sweden
van Coile R, Lucherini A, Chaudhary RK, et al (2023) Economic Impact of Fire: Cost and Impact of Fire Protection in Buildings. Quincy, MA, USA
De Sanctis G, Fontana M (2016) Risk-based optimisation of fire safety egress provisions based on the LQI acceptance criterion. Reliab Eng Syst Saf 152:339–350
Aldrich R, Arena L (2013) Evaluating ventilation systems for existing homes. National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO, USA
Brown MH (2005) Economic analysis of residential fire sprinkler systems. US Department of Commerce, Technology Administration, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD, USA
California Utilities Statewide Codes and Standards Team (CSUCS) (2011) Control of Egress Lighting. California Public Utilities Commission, California, USA
Ghosh B (2009) Assessment of the benefits of Fire Extinguishers as fire safety precautions in New Zealand Buildings. University of Canterbury, Christchurch, NZ
National Fire Sprinkler Association (NFSA) (2020) The true cost to install a residential sprinkler system. https://nfsa.org/2020/09/15/the-true-cost-to-install-a-residential-sprinkler-system/. Accessed 25 Jul 2023
Russell M, Sherman M, Rudd A (2007) Review of residential ventilation technologies. Taylor & Francis, Milton Park, USA
Zega M (2018) Best practices for emergency lighting: Explore how to implement safe, code-compliant, and cost-effective emergency lighting systems. Consult Specif Eng 55:28–33
Chapman RE, Butry DT, Huang AL, Thomas DS (2010) Economics of Egress Alternatives and Life-Safety Costs. Gaithersburg, MD, USA
Quarles SL, Pohl K (2018) Building a wildfire-resistant home: Codes and costs. Headwaters Economics
Esposito DC (2004) Economic impact of fires in buildings. MSc Thesis Carleton University
Napier TR (2013) Costs and benefits of resilient construction. Construction Engineering Research Laboratory, Champaign, IL, USA
Gordian (2021) Facilities Construction Costs with RSMeans Data, 36th ed. RS Means Company, Rockland, MD, USA
Gordian (2021) Residential Costs with RSMeans Data, 40th ed. RS Means Company, Rockland, MD, USA
Gordian (2021) RSMeans Data Online. https://www.rsmeans.com/products/online/tiers. Accessed 11 Jan 2022
Construction | BCIS. https://bcis.co.uk/products/construction/. Accessed 22 Oct 2022
Lange D, Devaney S, Usmani A (2014) An application of the PEER performance based earthquake engineering framework to structures in fire. Eng Struct 66:100–115
Hicks SJ (2004) Comparative structure cost of modern commercial buildings. Steel Construction Institute
Group R (2006) Rawlinson’s Australian Construction Handbook 2006, 24th edn. Rawlhouse Publishing, Perth, Australia
Xactimate | Insurance Claims Estimating Software | Verisk. https://www.verisk.com/insurance/products/xactimate/. Accessed 22 Oct 2022
Lufkin PS, Pepitone AJ (2010) The Whitestone Building Maintenance and Repair Cost Reference 2010. Whitestone Research, Santa Barbara, USA
Gordian (2021) Facilities Maintenance and Repair Costs with RSMeans Data, 28th ed. RS Means Company, Rockland, MD, USA
Apostolow JJ, Bowers DL, Sullivan III CM (1978) The nation’s annual expenditure for the prevention and control of fire. Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Worcester, MA, USA
Meade WP (1991) A first pass at computing the cost of fire safety in a modern society. Fire Technol 27:341–345
Hanscomb Consultants Inc (1993 and 1992) Input into Economic Model of Capital and Maintenance Cost for Fire Protection. National Research Council, Ottawa, Canada
Standohar-Alfano CD, van de Lindt JW, Holt EM (2018) Comparative residential property loss estimation for the April 25–28, 2011, tornado outbreak. J Archit Eng 24:04017026
Wiebe DM, Cox DT (2014) Application of fragility curves to estimate building damage and economic loss at a community scale: a case study of Seaside, Oregon. Nat Hazards 71:2043–2061
U.S. Census Bureau (2021) US Census: Construction Spending. https://www.census.gov/construction/c30/c30index.html. Accessed 18 Oct 2021
International Code Council (2020) International Building Code 2021. International Code Council, Incorporated, Washington DC, USA
NFPA (2021) NFPA 101-Life safety code. National Fire Protection Agency, Quincy, MA
Federal Emergency Management Agency (2003) Multi-Hazard Loss Estimation Methodology: Earthquake Model, HAZUS-MH MR4, Washington, D.C.
Lam C, Robbins A (2021) Comparison of component categorizations used in international total cost of fire estimates. Fire Saf J 120:103142
Ahmad N, Ali Q, Crowley H, Pinho R (2014) Earthquake loss estimation of residential buildings in Pakistan. Nat Hazards 73:1889–1955
Chandler AM, Jones EJW, Patel MH (2001) Property loss estimation for wind and earthquake perils. Risk Anal 21:235–250
Hamilton SR (2011) Performance-based fire engineering for steel framed structures: a probabilistic methodology. DISS, Stanford University
Ni S, Gernay T (2021) A framework for probabilistic fire loss estimation in concrete building structures. Structural Safety 88:
Moehle J, Deierlein G (2004) A framework methodology for performance-based earthquake engineering. In: 13th World Conference on Earthquake Engineering. Vancouver, B.C., Canada, p No. 679
FEU | EU FireStat project. https://www.f-e-u.org/projects/eu-firestat/. Accessed 22 Oct 2022
National Fire Incident Reporting System. https://www.usfa.fema.gov/nfirs/. Accessed 25 Nov 2022
Fire and rescue incident statistics - GOV.UK. https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/fire-statistics-monitor. Accessed 22 Oct 2022
Fire Protection Association FPA Large Loss Database. https://fpalargeloss.riscauthority.co.uk/. Accessed 22 Oct 2022
Global BRE (2013) An environmental impact and cost benefit analysis for fire sprinklers in warehouse buildings. Building Research Establishment, Watford, UK
EN BS (1991) 1–2: 2002 Eurocode 1: Actions on structures—Part 1–2: General actions—Actions on structures exposed to fire. British Standards
Vassart O, Zhao B, Cajot LG, et al (2014) Eurocodes: background & applications structural fire design. JRC Scientific and Policy Reports EUR 36698:
Economic impact of warehouse fires - CEBR. https://cebr.com/reports/economic-impact-of-warehouse-fires/. Accessed 22 Oct 2022
Rutstein R (1979) The probability of fire in different sectors of industry. pdf. Fire Surv 8:20–23
Manes M, Rush D (2017) Meta-analysis of UK, USA and New Zealand fire statistics databases with respect to damage and financial loss. In: Gillie M, Wang Y (eds) Applications of Fire Engineering. CRC Press, Boca Raton, pp 179–188
Manes M, Rush D (2019) A critical evaluation of BS PD 7974–7 structural fire response data based on USA fire statistics. Fire Technol 55:1243–1293
Manes M, Rush D (2021) Assessing fire frequency and structural fire behaviour of England statistics according to BS PD 7974–7. Fire Saf J 120:103030
Fischer K (2014) Societal decision-making for optimal fire safety. Dissertation, ETH
Salter C (2013) Economics of fire: exploring fire incident data for a design tool methodology. DISS, Loughborough University
Greene MA, Andres CD (2012) Fire department attended and unattended fires: estimates from the 2004–2005 national sample survey and comparison with previous surveys. Fire Technol 48:269–289
Drysdale D (2011) An introduction to fire dynamics. Wiley, Hoboken, NJ, USA
Federal Emergency Management Agency (2015) Earthquake loss estimation methodology, Hazus-MH 2.1: Advanced engineering building module (AEBM) - Technical and user’s manual. Washington, DC
Tillander K (2004) Utilisation of statistics to assess fire risks in buildings. DISS, Helsinki University of Technology
Ahrens M, Andersson P, Campbell R, et al (2022) EU FIRESTAT - Closing Data Gaps and Paving the Way for Pan- European Fire Safety Efforts. Brussels, Belgium
Gernay T, Khorasani NE, Garlock M (2016) Fire fragility curves for steel buildings in a community context: a methodology. Eng Struct 113:259–276
Kanda J, Shah H (1997) Engineering role in failure cost evaluation for buildings. Struct Saf 19:79–90
Dixon L, Stern RK (2004) Compensation for Losses from the 9/11 Attacks. RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, USA
Kelman S (1981) Cost-Benefit Analysis: An Ethical Critique. American Enterprise Institute
Ramachandran G, Hall Jr JR (2002) Measuring consequences in economic terms. SFPE Handbook of Fire Protection Engineering, pp. 5–79
Andersson H, Treich N (2011) The value of a statistical life. In: de Palma A, Lindsey R, Quinet E, Vickerman R (eds) A handbook of transport economics. Edward Elgar Publishing, Cheltenham, UK
Delorme F, Waterhouse D (2021) Comprehensive Study on the Economic and Social Benefits of Fire Prevention. Quebec, Canada
International Organization for Standardization (2015) ISO 2394: 2015: General principles on reliability for structures. ISO Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
Sunstein CR (2018) The cost-benefit revolution. MIT Press, Cambridge, MA, USA
Nathwani JS, Lind NC, Pandey MD (1997) Affordable Safety by Choice. Institute for Risk Research, University of Waterloo, Canada
Departmental Guidance on Valuation of a Statistical Life in Economic Analysis | US Department of Transportation. https://www.transportation.gov/office-policy/transportation-policy/revised-departmental-guidance-on-valuation-of-a-statistical-life-in-economic-analysis. Accessed 22 Oct 2022
Viscusi WK, Aldy JE (2003) The value of a statistical life: a critical review of market estimates throughout the world. J Risk Uncertain 27:5–76
Thomas IR (2002) Effectiveness of fire safety components and systems. J Fire Prot Eng 12:63–78
Fahy RF, Petrillo JT (2021) Firefighter Fatalities in the US in 2020. Quincy, MA
Campbell R, Evarts B (2021) United States Firefighter Injuries in 2020. Quincy, MA
NFPA report - Fires by occupancy or Property Type. https://www.nfpa.org/News-and-Research/Data-research-and-tools/US-Fire-Problem/Fires-by-occupancy-or-property-type. Accessed 22 Oct 2022
Thomas DS, Butry DT (2011) Tracking the National Fire Problem: The Data Behind the Statistics. National Institute of Standards and Technology Technical Note 1717:
Moller K (2001) The socio-economic costs of fire in Denmark. Danish Emergency Management Agency, Birkerod, Denmark
Amon F, Gehandler J, Stahl S et al (2016) Development of an Environmental and Economic Assessment Tool (Enveco Tool) for Fire Events. Springer, New York, USA
Martin D, Tomida M, Meacham B (2016) Environmental impact of fire. Fire Sci Rev 5:5. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40038-016-0014-1
McNamee M, Marlair G, Truchot B, Meacham B (2020) Research roadmap: environmental impact of fires in the built environment. Retrieved 1:2022
Amon F, Gehandler J, McNamee R et al (2021) Fire impact tool- measuring the impact of fire suppression operations on the environment. Fire Saf J 120:103071. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.firesaf.2020.103071
Watts JM, Kaplan ME (2001) Fire risk index for historic buildings. Fire Technol 37:167–180
Hicks HL, Liebermann RR (1979) A study of indirect fire losses from fires in non-residential properties. Volume 1. Final Report Ryland Research
International Organization for Standardization (2019) 14008: 2019—Monetary Valuation of Environmental Impacts and Related Environmental Aspects. International Organization for Standardization (ISO): Geneva, Switzerland
Gordian (2021) Square Foot Costs with RSMeans Data, 42nd ed. RS Means Company, Rockland, MD, USA
Gordian (2021) Building Construction Costs with RSMeans Data. RS Means Company, Rockland, MD, USA
Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Building and construction | Australian Bureau of Statistics. https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/industry/building-and-construction. Accessed 21 Jan 2022
Statistics Canada (2021) Building construction price indexes, percentage change, quarterly. https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=1810013502. Accessed 25 Dec 2021
Seward SM, Plane DR, Hendrick TE (1978) Municipal resource allocation: minimizing the cost of fire protection. Manage Sci 24:1740–1748
Rider KL (1979) The economics of the distribution of municipal fire protection services. Rev Econ Stat pp. 249–258
Manes M, Jomaas G, Rush D, Messerschmidt B (2021) What is the role played by fire statistics? Challenges and benefits in their application towards improved fire safety. In: Proceedings of the 12th Asia-Oceania Symposium on Fire Science and Technology (AOSFST 2021). The University of Queensland
Acknowledgements
The authors gratefully acknowledge the Fire Protection Research Foundation (FPRF) and the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) for the funding through the project “Economic Impact of Fire: Cost and Impact of Fire Protection in Buildings”. The authors thank Amanda Kimball, Birgitte Messerschmidt, and the members of the Project Technical Panel for their support.
Funding
Fire Protection Research Foundation
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that they have no competing interests.
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.
About this article
Cite this article
Unobe, I.D., Lucherini, A., Ni, S. et al. State of the Art Methodologies for the Estimation of Fire Costs in Buildings to Support Cost–Benefit Analysis. Fire Technol (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10694-024-01561-5
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10694-024-01561-5