Lettings & Housing
As a landlord or building owner, it’s important to be aware of your fire safety
responsibilities when it comes to ensuring that your tenants and occupants are
safeguarded to every reasonable extent from a fire.
In the event of a fire, as a landlord, you must be able to show evidence that you
have done everything in your power to protect the property and the tenants
within from the damaging impacts of smoke and flames.
The Responsibilities of a Landlord
As a landlord or responsible person, there is some fire safety legislation that you
are legally obliged to fulfil, such as:
Fire-Safe Furniture
Any pre-supplied furniture and furnishings must be fire safe.
Smoke & Gas Alarms
Installing smoke alarms on every storey of a building and a carbon monoxide alarm in any room that contains solid fuel-burning appliances, such as wood burners and fireplaces.
Fire Alarms & Extinguishers
All properties in multiple occupation must contain fire alarms and appropriate extinguishers.
The responsibilities laid out for landlords for rented properties are outlined in various crucial legislations, such as:
The Housing Act 2004, including the Housing Health & Safety Rating System (HHSRS).
The Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (England) Regulations 2015.
Furniture and Furnishings (Fire Safety) Regulations 1988/1989, 1993 and 2010.
Building Regulations: The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order (2005).
These laws are in place to ensure that a landlord is doing everything that can be reasonably expected of them to prevent fires and protect the building, the possessions inside and, most importantly, the lives of the tenants therein.
Some of the specific actions that any landlord or a responsible person needs to undertake in let properties are:
Escape Routes
Ensuring that all escape routes remain clear and communicating with tenants that this is also part of their responsibility.
Hazardous Items
Ensuring that potentially hazardous items and appliances are stored and maintained correctly, for example, tumble dryers must be stored in a well-ventilated area.
Appliance Tests
Ensure that all appliances, both those which you have supplied and those which are brought in by the tenant, are subject to annual portable appliance tests.
Safety Markers
Ensure that all electrical appliances feature a British or European safety marker.
Challenged of Fire Safety in Let Properties
Legislation
When renting out a property a landlord must adhere to many pieces of legislation, all of which must obeyed to ensure that as an owner you have done everything within your power to prevent a fire.
Education
Once you’ve rented a property out to your tenant, it’s important to remember that they also have a responsibility to ensure that all basic fire safety measures are adhered to. Reminding your tenants of this can be difficult when you aren’t face-to-face.
Cost
Although many may assume that renting property is passive income, that isn’t the case when you have to pay to fix issues within the home. Things like rewiring and replacing damaged appliances to mitigate electrical fires is entirely your responsible.
How Can the FireArrest App Help You?
At FireArrest, our pioneering fire stopping app has been designed with the help of professionals from the fire stopping industry for use during a passive fire protection project.
The app features a range of features and tools to give you and your team the flexibility to complete, share and report upon any part of your fire stopping project. The most important part of undertaking any large-scale fire stopping plan is collaboration, communication and efficiency.
The app allows teams to share information, data and reports while ensuring everyone on the team remains accountable with a complete audit trail of all work completed.
For more information on our app, or to find out more about our referral programme, contact the team today.