Introduced under the UK’s Building Safety Act 2022, building safety case reports are a crucial part of demonstrating that you’ve taken all reasonable steps to prevent a building safety risk from materialising — and to reduce its severity if it does.

But while the requirement is clear, the execution often isn’t. Many duty holders and Accountable Persons are still grappling with what the report should contain, how it should be structured, and how to gather the necessary information.

Unfortunately, getting it wrong isn’t just a paperwork issue — it can lead to regulatory pushback, reputational damage, or worse: real safety issues going unaddressed.

To help, here are five common mistakes to avoid when preparing a Building Safety Case Report — and what you can do to get it right.

1. Incomplete or Disorganised Golden Thread Information

One of the cornerstones of a strong safety case report is the Golden Thread of information — the structured, accurate, up-to-date data that supports building safety across its entire lifecycle.

Yet, many organisations struggle to compile this in a coherent way. Common issues include:

• Missing floor plans or evacuation procedures
• Outdated fire risk assessments
• Siloed information held by different teams or contractors
• Poor version control across documents
  

Without a centralised, validated set of documents and data, your report is on shaky ground. The Regulator expects you to demonstrate not just what you know, but that your information is complete, current, and accessible.

Tip: Start by mapping where your building safety information currently lives. Who holds what? Is it digital, paper-based, or both? Create a simple inventory and assess gaps early on.

2. Failing to Demonstrate Clear Risk Management Actions

A safety case report isn’t just a description of risks — it’s a demonstration of how those risks are being controlled and reduced.

Too often, reports fall short by:

• Listing hazards without documenting mitigation efforts
• Providing vague or generic risk assessments
• Lacking evidence of inspection, remediation, or maintenance work

What the Regulator wants to see is a clear chain of accountability and action:

• What risks were identified?
• What actions were taken?
• Who was responsible?
• When were they completed?
• How will they be reviewed going forward?

This is particularly critical for fire and structural safety, which are the core focus areas of the Building Safety Act.

Tip: Maintain a live risk log for each building that includes actions, dates, responsible persons, and evidence (e.g. photos, certificates, reports). This can then be summarised and referenced in your report.

3. Letting the Report Go Stale

Building Safety Case Reports are not meant to be one-off documents that gather dust once submitted. They are living documents — reflecting an ongoing approach to building safety.

A major misstep is treating them like a tick-box exercise:

• Only updating annually (or not at all)
• Failing to revise after significant building changes
• Not logging new risks or maintenance issues in real-time

This isn’t just bad practice — it risks non-compliance. If an incident occurs and your report is outdated, it may not stand up to scrutiny.

Tip: Set a schedule to review and update your safety case reports regularly. Align this with your building’s risk assessment cycle or planned maintenance schedule. Even small changes (e.g. tenant alterations, new materials used) may warrant an update.

4. Submitting Unprofessional or Inconsistent Reports

How your safety case report looks may not be a regulatory requirement — but perception matters. A poorly formatted, inconsistent, or generic report undermines confidence in your safety culture.

Common presentation issues include:

• Inconsistent branding, fonts, or terminology
• Lack of clear structure or indexing
• Absence of a contents page or executive summary
• Spelling errors or unclear language

A professional, well-organised report tells the Regulator (and other stakeholders) that your organisation takes safety seriously — and that you’re in control of the details.

Tip: Create a simple template for all your safety case reports with a consistent structure: Executive Summary → Building Description → Risk Overview → Mitigation Measures → Supporting Evidence → Appendices. Include your company branding to reinforce ownership and professionalism.

5. Poor Data Security and Version Control

Lastly, let’s not forget the sensitivity of the information you’re handling. Your safety case report and supporting documents will contain:

• Structural details
• Evacuation plans
• Equipment specifications
• Resident information (in some cases)

Storing these in shared folders, unsecured email threads, or outdated filing systems opens you up to data breaches — and may breach your organisation’s own data governance policies.

Additionally, version confusion can lead to outdated information being submitted — or the wrong file being shared with the Regulator.

Tip: Make sure your storage and sharing systems are:

• Encrypted and access-controlled
• Compliant with ISO 27001 or similar standards
• Equipped with version history and change tracking
• Regularly backed up

This is especially important for larger portfolios or organisations managing multiple buildings simultaneously.

Bringing It All Together

Creating a Building Safety Case Report is a serious responsibility — and one that will increasingly come under the spotlight as regulatory enforcement tightens. Avoiding the five mistakes above will not only improve the quality of your report, but also demonstrate a culture of accountability and transparency.

But if this all sounds complex, you’re not alone.

How INDIGO Can Help

At Cardinus, we work with building owners and duty holders every day who face the same challenges. That’s why we developed our Building Safety Case Report Service within INDIGO, our property risk management platform.

With INDIGO, you can:

• Collect and maintain your Golden Thread information in one place
• Identify, prioritise, and track building risks
• Generate professional, company-branded safety case reports
• Ensure your data is securely stored, version-controlled, and audit-ready

Want to know more? Speak to a member of our team about INDIGO.