No. Obtaining a Building Assessment Certificate should not be interpreted as a guarantee that a building is safe or that no further building safety work will be required.
Building safety is not a permanent condition that can be established through a single regulatory assessment.
Buildings change. Components deteriorate, defects emerge, residents and uses change, new information becomes available and the effectiveness of important controls can change over time.
A Building Assessment Certificate is therefore an important regulatory milestone, but it does not replace the ongoing duties of Accountable Persons to assess and manage building safety risks.
This distinction is important because there is a danger that obtaining the certificate becomes the organisational objective.
The better question is not simply: "Have we obtained our BAC?"
It is: "Do we understand our building safety risks, have we taken all reasonable steps to manage them and how do we know our controls continue to work?"
A strong safety case should help the organisation answer those questions before, during and after the Building Assessment Certificate process.
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Find out moreRelated questions
- What is a Building Assessment Certificate?
A BAC is issued by the Building Safety Regulator following its assessment of how building safety duties are being met.
- What is a live building safety case?
A live building safety case changes as the building, evidence and understanding of risk change.
- How often should a building safety case be reviewed?
A safety case should be kept under continuous review rather than updated only when the regulator requests it.
Building safety legislation, regulation and Building Safety Regulator guidance can change. This page is general information, not legal advice — always refer to current legislation and official guidance for your building.