Keeping employees and customers safe is essential to running a retail outlet, which means regular maintenance and checks must be carried out. Without the proper level of care, your retail property will begin to look tired and dangerous, which will reduce the number of returning customers.  There are a lot of tasks involved in retail property maintenance, and they can be difficult to keep track of, which is why we’ve put together this short guide.

Meet all building regulation requirements

Outside of being good practice, keeping the property maintained to a high standard will be included in local building regulations. Therefore, your maintenance schedule should aim to fulfil all criteria. For example, to prevent unnecessary fires and electrocution, the electrical wiring will need a commercial electrical installation certificate, valid for five years and demonstrating its safety.

Maintenance should be routine

There are a lot of maintenance tasks to complete, but they don’t all need to be done at the same frequency. Therefore, you should create a schedule for maintenance, which details tasks that need completing daily, weekly, monthly and annually. Whether you decide to use paper and pen tracking or a management system, make sure every task gets ticked off when completed and checked by a manager.

Carry out regular checks

As well as having mandated checks carried out, like the electrical test certificate, it’s important to perform in-house checks periodically. Compile a checklist of each part of your premises, and walk through the building while noting the condition of each item. If you come across parts that need work, make the appropriate notes and action them.

Track maintenance costs

Maintenance costs money but also prevents you paying more for unnecessary repairs. The best way of keeping track of repairs is by using maintenance tracking software, which will allow you to add the cost for each repair or action. In some cases, like having regulatory electrical checks, you can find your provider’s EICR certificate cost.

Repair any damage straight away

If you discover property damage and delay the repair, you run the risk of making it worse, and it may cause an injury to your team or customers (a lawsuit waiting to happen). Therefore, regardless of how “essential” or not the repair is, you must address it immediately.

Keep accurate maintenance records

If you have a visit from inspectors, you need to prove beyond a doubt that you’re taking the proper measures to maintain the building. To do this, you will have to keep accurate records, which means keeping hold of any certification, including the EICR certificate. As well as this, you should keep all checklists for carried out maintenance and in-house inspections.

Maintaining a property involves more than just carrying out reparative work when obvious damage appears; you also need to follow all local regulations and perform regular checks/maintenance tasks. Naturally, this will take some money to fulfil, so put a budget in place that includes the EICR cost, repairs, replacements, and other mandatory checks.