Fire Extinguisher Training Online

The Fire Extinguisher Training Online course is a video-based course for workers. It teaches them to deal safely with a small fire at work or in a vehicle. Trainees learn how fires start, how to choose and use the right extinguisher, and when not to fight a fire.

The course is done online, at the trainee's own pace. There are knowledge checks throughout, and trainees get a certificate of achievement when they finish.

Anyone who may need to use a fire extinguisher at work needs fire extinguisher training. This includes:

• truck, bus and fleet drivers
• warehouse and yard staff
• workshop teams and mechanics
• retail and hardware store staff
• lab workers and technicians
• welders, fabricators and tradespeople
• office staff
• health and safety representatives and fire wardens.

If your workplace or vehicles have fire extinguishers, the people who work near them should know how to use them.

Most industries use fire extinguisher training. It matters most where the fire risk is high, or where many people need to get out safely:

• Transport and logistics: trucks, buses and fleet vehicles carry extinguishers, and drivers may face a fire on the road.
• Manufacturing: machinery, electrical panels, dust and hazardous substances raise the risk.
• Hospitality: commercial kitchens have high heat, open flames and cooking oil (class F fires).
• Construction: welding, cutting and grinding make sparks near flammable materials.
• Warehousing: high racks, packaging, and charging areas for forklift batteries.
• Oil, gas and chemicals: sites store flammable and explosive substances.
• Healthcare and aged care: moving patients out is slow, so staff need to stop small fires early.

The Fire Extinguisher Training Online course teaches trainees to:

• spot fire risks at work, in vehicles and around equipment
• know what to do in the first moments of a fire
• name the classes of fire and the right extinguisher for each
• use a fire extinguisher with the PASS method (Pull, Aim, Squeeze, Sweep)
• avoid the projectile hazard from a damaged extinguisher
• respond safely to a vehicle fire
• support fire wardens and follow the workplace emergency plan
• check extinguisher locations, signs and condition
• decide whether to fight a fire or evacuate.

Yes. The Fire Extinguisher Training Online course has a module on vehicle fires. It explains why vehicle fires grow quickly, and the danger of toxic smoke and explosion in modern vehicles. Drivers learn when they can try to put out a vehicle fire and when they must get away, including in underground car parks.

The vehicle module is optional. You can hide it for staff who don't drive for work.

Employers must train workers to use the equipment they may need to use safely, and that includes fire extinguishers. This duty is in regulation 9(1)(b) of the Health and Safety at Work (General Risk and Workplace Management) Regulations 2016.

Every workplace must also have an emergency plan, and train the relevant workers to follow it (regulation 14 of the same regulations). Some workplaces that store flammable or oxidising substances must have fire extinguishers (regulation 5.3 of the Health and Safety at Work (Hazardous Substances) Regulations 2017) and provide fire extinguisher training alongside spill kit training and dangerous goods handler training. The Fire Extinguisher Training Online course helps you meet the training part of these duties.

No. Unit standards are not compulsory for fire extinguisher training in New Zealand. The Fire Extinguisher Training Online course is a competency-based course, not a unit standard course, so it doesn't award NZQA credits.

The course covers the knowledge in unit standard 3271 (Suppress fire using hand extinguishers and fixed hose reels). It also covers unit standard 4647 (Explain principles of fire science). It works well as a refresher for people who already hold them. Unit Standard 3271 must be assessed with a live fire. If a client or insurer asks for the unit standard itself, your staff will need a live-fire course with an NZQA-accredited provider.

DT Training recommends refreshing fire extinguisher training every two years. New Zealand law doesn't set a refresh period. Also retrain staff when you get new types of extinguishers, bring in new fire risks such as new flammable materials, or change your emergency plan.

Yes, you can learn the knowledge online. The Fire Extinguisher Training Online course uses short videos to teach fire classes, extinguisher types, the PASS method and safe decision-making. A supervisor can then use the course's practical checklist to check each trainee at your workplace, with your own extinguishers. The course does not include live-fire practice.

Doing the training online also means:

• no time off site, and no waiting for a course date
• you can assign the course to staff straight away and track their progress
• trainees can repeat any module
• video subtitles in 25 languages, and questions in 76 languages
• managers can download certificates and reports for your records.

The practical assessment in the Fire Extinguisher Training Online course is optional. DT Training supplies a checklist that a supervisor can work through with each trainee at your workplace. It covers:

• where the extinguishers and other equipment are
• how to identify each type of extinguisher
• how to operate them
• special fire risks on your site.

You can change the checklist to suit your company. If you don't need the practical assessment, you can hide that module.

Yes. If you're managing multiple trainees, purchase the required number of course licences (one for each trainee) and assign it to them. They'll receive an email invitation with instructions. You can add managers to help manage the training. You can download detailed reports, plus track and manage trainees. Setup is free and support is free.

No. Four modules in the Fire Extinguisher Training Online course are optional, so you can hide them for trainees who don't need them:

• Alternative fire suppression methods
• Special fire risks (kitchens, chemical stores and hazardous materials)
• Vehicle fire response
• Practical assessment.

Hiding all four takes about 30 minutes off the course.

Each trainee who finishes the Fire Extinguisher Training Online course gets a certificate of achievement. Managers can download it for your training records.

The course also includes:

• 15 video modules with knowledge checks
• a practical assessment checklist you can change to suit your site
• manager tools to assign the course, track progress and download reports.

DT Training is part of TR Group, which runs a large truck and trailer fleet, workshops and a paint booth around New Zealand. TR Group uses this fire extinguisher course to train its own team. DT Training has offered online vehicle and workplace training since 2010.

TR Driver Training, also part of TR Group, is a Category 1 Private Training Establishment. That is the highest rating NZQA gives.

To take the Fire Extinguisher Training Online course:

• You will need one course licence per trainee taking the course. You can't use one licence for several trainees.
• You will need a computer, smartphone or tablet with internet access.
• There are no prerequisites. Anyone can take this course.
• If you already have Unit Standard 3271 or 4647, this course will refresh that knowledge.

Yes. The Fire Extinguisher Training Online course has:

• video subtitles in 25 languages (choose the language in the video)
• questions you can view in 76 languages (check the language option at the top of the page; written answers must be in English)
• an English audio recording of every question
• documents in English.

Some captions are AI-generated, so they may have occasional errors.