Martyn’s Law is the everyday name for the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025. It received Royal Assent on 3 April 2025.
The Act asks organisations to prepare for terrorist attacks and help keep people safe if one happens. In practice, that means thinking ahead: knowing what to do, and making sure your staff know too.
The Government has allowed at least 24 months from Royal Assent before the Act comes into force. So there’s no legal requirement to comply yet. But if your premises might fall within scope, this is the time to understand what’s expected and start preparing.
Martyn’s Law applies across the UK. It sets two tiers, based on how many people your premises can reasonably expect to have on site at once:
- Standard tier (200–799 people): simple, low-cost measures to reduce harm and save lives.
- Enhanced tier (800+ people): covers premises and events with larger crowds.
Martyn’s Law is risk-based and proportionate. It asks you to take reasonably practicable steps based on your organisation’s size, activities and risk profile.
There’s no fixed list of security measures to work through. Instead, you need to show that you have:
- thought about the risks
- put appropriate procedures in place
- made informed, reasonable decisions
Martyn’s Law raises the bar on:
- preparedness and response planning
- staff awareness and procedures
- accountability for decision-making and risk management
As Martyn’s Law moves towards implementation, expect closer scrutiny of how you make and document decisions, especially for public-facing premises. This isn’t only about preparedness and duty of care. The Act also creates a regulator, the Security Industry Authority (SIA), which will assess compliance and use enforcement powers where needed.
Breaking Martyn’s Law can cost a business up to £18 million, or 5% of worldwide revenue. The Security Industry Authority (SIA) regulates compliance, and its approach will be risk-based and proportionate, with checks that may include desk-based reviews and on-site inspections.
The SIA will help those responsible for qualifying premises and events understand their duties, assess compliance, identify non-compliance and bring premises back into line where needed.
Keep clear records of your decisions, responsibilities and the reasoning behind any measures you put in place. The SIA is likely to focus on whether you’ve considered and documented reasonable, proportionate steps, not on whether you’ve installed every possible security measure.
Martyn’s Law isn’t an insurance requirement. But it does affect how you manage risk, accountability and potential liability.
Taking reasonable steps to prepare for an incident, and to reduce its impact, can also affect how liability and management exposures are viewed. Think about how the legislation interacts with:
- duty of care and liability exposure
- management responsibilities and decision-making
- public liability and employers’ liability considerations
- crisis response, continuity and incident management planning
No, not always. Reputational damage, operational disruption and crisis management costs can fall outside a policy. That’s another reason preparation, documented procedures and clear ownership of decisions matter.
You don’t need to wait for Martyn’s Law to fully come into force to act. Practical steps you can take now:
- confirm whether your premises fall within scope (200+ capacity)
- put basic response procedures in place (evacuation, lockdown, communication)
- make sure staff understand how to respond in an emergency
- check that your risk management, incident response, governance and record-keeping arrangements line up
- work out whether liability, management and regulatory exposures are understood and documented
Early, proportionate steps improve resilience, support your compliance planning and help you evidence the decisions you’ve made.
For most businesses, the real question isn’t whether you need expensive security measures. It’s whether you can show you’ve considered the risks and put proportionate procedures in place.
You don’t need insurance to comply with Martyn’s Law. But it’s a good moment to check your public liability and employers’ liability cover still reflects how your business runs.
Speak to one of our advisers, and we’ll help you find the right cover from our panel of trusted, A-rated insurers.
