He said the premises without the certificate included 394 factories, 129 office buildings, 117 warehouses, and 67 retail outlets, such as supermarkets, grocery stores and shopping centres.

Apart from this, 37 hotels, 22 hostels, 17 hospitals and treatment centres, five places of gatherings, such as multipurpose halls and clubhouses, and one library were also found to be without an FC.

Norazam said owners of premises should be aware of the existing law that requires them to obtain an FC according to the Fire Services Act 1988 (Act 341).

“Building owners need to have this certificate to confirm that the fire safety system in their premises is working properly and is able to detect fires, issue warnings, and in some cases extinguish fires automatically,” he said.

Norazam said the reasons given by building owners for not possessing FCs include being unaware of the need for the certificate and having insufficient financial resources to maintain the fire safety system.

He advised owners of premises who still do not have an FC to obtain one to avoid being subjected to legal action.

Norazam said anyone found guilty of not possessing an FC can be fined not more than RM50,000 or imprisoned for up to five years or both.

“We are also giving a 30-day grace period to newly-identified premises (that do not have FCs) to give owners time to prepare and submit the relevant documentation to the fire and rescue department,” he added.