Martyn’s Law for hotels
A hotel is busiest when the function suite is full on a Saturday and quietest at 3am with one person on reception. The procedures have to work for both.
A hotel is in the standard tier of Martyn’s Law if it is reasonable to expect 200 to 799 people there at once — guests, diners, function attendees and staff together — and enhanced at 800 or more. It must notify the SIA and have evacuation, invacuation, lockdown and communication procedures that work day and night.
What is different about hotels?
- Guests may be asleep: invacuation may mean telling people to stay in their rooms, not moving them.
- Night staffing is thin; the procedure must work with one or two people.
- Function suites and public bars bring in non-residents who do not know the building.
- Many entrances: car park, bar, terrace, deliveries.
What do the four procedures look like in a hotel?
Communication is often the hard one: a room-phone message, a PA announcement and a message the night porter can read out.
See the four procedures and the worked example for a similar layout.
Before you pay anyone: the Home Office says premises do not need to buy consultancy to meet the standard tier, and its guidance, the SIA’s guidance and the ProtectUK training are free. Neither the Home Office nor the SIA endorses any provider, including us. The legal responsibility stays with the person responsible for the premises; we help with the work, we do not take the duty off you.
Want a second pair of eyes on it?
Send the venue type, the most people you would expect in at once, and how many sites you run. We will tell you which tier you look to be in and whether the free route is enough before quoting anything.
Common questions
Do hotel guests count towards the 200?
Yes. Everyone reasonably expected at the same time counts: residents, diners, function guests and staff.