2. The Fire Statistics United Kingdom 1990 published by the Home Office in April 1992 reveal that the numbers and costs of fires thought to have been started deliberately have risen significantly in recent years. The number of such fires in occupied buildings has increased from 15,500 in 1983 to 23,600 in 1990 and now represents over a fifth of all fires in such locations. In dwellings these fires have risen from 10% of all fires in 1983 to 15% in 1990 with the actual number of such fires increasing by 72%; for occupied buildings other than dwellings they have risen from 25% to 31% of all fires over the same period.

3. Deliberate or possibly deliberate fires were thought to have caused about 100 deaths in England and Wales in 1991 and the number of non-fatal injuries attributable to this cause runs into many hundreds every year. The Association of British Insurers has calculated that approximately one in four fires is started deliberately. The total fire damage this represents is between 40% and 50% of all insured losses. This means that the material damage cost to industry and the general public in the United Kingdom of deliberate or possibly deliberate fires is in the region of £500 million per annum. It is also worth remembering that the real cost of arson is much higher than the ABI figures suggest because these exclude losses insured by Lloyds underwriters, losses by H.M Government (which carries its own risks), and uninsured or under-insured losses. Nor do these figures take account of lost jobs and the consequential loss of profits when businesses cannot trade.

4. It is against this background that the decision was made to set up an Arson Prevention Bureau supported jointly by the insurers and Government. Establishment of the Bureau was the key recommendation of the Standing Conference on Crime Prevention Working Group on the Prevention of Arson. The Bureau was formally launched in February 1991 and it has already initiated a number of research projects.

5. This Circular does not propose any radical departure from the guidance and procedures recommended in 1985 but, following surveys by the Bureau with fire brigades and police forces regarding the incidence of arson and how it is dealt with, it draws attention to some local initiatives which may be of wider interest to the police and fire services and offers advice and clarification on certain aspects of procedures. The Circular also re-emphasises the importance of a clear understanding of the respective roles of the police, fire and forensic science services in the investigation of fires whose origins are doubtful. A procedural summary of recommended appropriate action by the respective services based on the principles and information set out below is contained in Annex A to this Circular. Summaries of the reports produced by the Arson Prevention Bureau are attached at Annexes B and C.