MacMartin produces fire safety film rooted in the psychology of anticipated regret.
MacMartin has delivered a new fire safety campaign for Derventio Housing Trust, using behavioural science to shape every stage of the creative process and encourage safer behaviours around e-scooters and e-bikes in supported housing.
The campaign film, Don’t Be The One, was commissioned following a serious fire at one of the Trust’s properties in Swindon, caused by a faulty e-scooter battery. The film has been designed to raise awareness among residents about the dangers of storing and charging e-scooters and e-bikes inside properties, where they are prohibited.
Working alongside Derby-based production company AV IT Media, MacMartin developed a creative approach rooted in behavioural insight rather than traditional fear-based messaging.
Instead of relying on dramatic visuals or authoritative warnings alone, the campaign draws on the psychological principles of peer influence and anticipated regret – encouraging residents to reflect on how their actions could affect the people they live with and the safety of their shared home.
Anna Hutton, Director at MacMartin, said:
The traditional way to approach this video would be to show something like a dramatic house fire combined with a straightforward message warning about the threat from lithium batteries bursting into flames.
However shocking or arresting those videos are, research shows that they aren’t very effective at changing behaviour because the stark, authoritarian tone causes people to shut down.”
The film follows a resident who ignores the ban on e-scooters and charges one inside the property, with scenes interwoven with comments and perspectives from his housemates. After the scooter catches fire, the narrative shifts to the emotional and practical consequences of the incident, alongside real imagery showing the aftermath of the Swindon fire.
The campaign carries the message: Protect Your Housemates. Protect Your Home.
Anna continued:
Backed by research and our own experience, we all agreed that this peer-influenced intervention approach would have the greater impact, and we took this approach into writing the script and storyboarding the video.
This isn’t the first time we’ve used this approach, but it is another step forward in applying scientific principles throughout the creative process and we believe it represents a landmark campaign for the social housing sector.”
The project reflects MacMartin’s wider mission to bridge behavioural science and creativity to deliver campaigns that create measurable social impact.
Last year, MacMartin received Innovate UK funding to develop the first evidence-based framework for translating behavioural science recommendations into creative decisions in a bid to replace gut instinct with informed decision-making.
The agency’s work draws on established behavioural science frameworks including the COM-B model, the Behaviour Change Wheel and the Behaviour Change Techniques Taxonomy as a starting point for campaign development.
Derventio Housing Trust will now use the campaign as part of ongoing resident engagement and feedback sessions to understand its impact on awareness and attitudes around fire safety.
You can watch the full campaign video here.
