Landlords

I have had the power off over the summer with students having left. Now one of the bedroom sensors doesn't sound an alarm when tested! Do I need to re pair it to the Heat sensor smoke alarm in the kitchen? The green light is on but there is a flashing red light when the test button is pressed which goes away after several seconds the unit is good till 2024 only fitted in 2014. Regards Richard Holden.

Converted house into two self contained flats. Both have their own entrance. No communal areas Does the property need a linked fire alarm system between the two flats? I think it will be section 257 HMO as converted before 1992 and has no planning or building regs approval.

Hello, I hope someone can advise me regarding the correct procedure to follow when the fire alarm goes of in the converted mill building I live in. there are 16 flats with a mix of full time residents, second homes plus three holiday lets. The Building is managed by a RMC and I am one of the directors. We recently commissioned a fire safety report that has been acted upon so we are conforming and an evacuation procedure was confirmed as the best option for us. what we are not sure about is correct procedure once the building is evacuated. There is a procedure that is followed although it isn't anything official, just what seems to be common sense. However one of the direc…

It is a Victorian building converted in the 1970s to 11 Flats. There is one fire exit route. We have a fire alarm and sounders. These can't be heard in individual flats (not much use !) Are we legally required to have a system that is audible ? Does the fact that we have a system which does not alert individual flat owners affected responsibilities ? The building is managed by Residents Management Company.

I own a flat that I am intending to rent out. I would like to make sure that it is as safe as possible for any of my tenants and that I am compliant with any regulations. It is a second story flat. The communal areas have fire safety measures installed by the council who own the lease. What do I need within the flat? Do the fire alarms have to be mains operated?

Hello all, We're in the process of buying a top-floor maisonette (2nd and 3rd floors of a large terrace), which we intend to rent out to tenants. The terrace contains 3 other flats (basement, ground and 1st floors). The Fire Risk Assessment was carried out by the seller + one other flat-owner (both with share of freehold). The FRA states "The common way has been constructed in compliance with local building regulations for fire protection". Assuming that the common stairway is compliant re: fire doors, building materials etc. (as stated in the FRA), this would provide the 'protected stairway' escape route required by The Building Regulations 2010. Howeve…

Grateful for some advice please. We have a four bed house which is now a HMO under additional licensing. It has a twinflex fire alarm but no manual call points. Does the legislation require manual call points? thanks Lucy

I live in a communal block of flats containing 6 flats on 3 floors and one of the tenants keeps storing her prams with blankets underneath the communal stairway which is located next to the main entrance and fire exit doorway. Her visitors are also parking immediately outside of the fire exit doorway causing a restriction to fire crews, ambulances etc. The landlord (housing association) has made her aware that she needs to stop doing all of these things and to remove her vehicles and the prams too. At first, the tenant behaved herself and she stopped her visitors parking cars and leaving her prams near to the communal fire exit. However, she has now chosen to disregar…

I own a flat in a converted house containing 3 flats. 1 flat in the basement, 1 on the ground floor and 1 on the second floor. All are totaly self contained. The entrance on the ground floor has a small hall with stairs to the 2nd floor flat. The basement flat has its own entrance. Is this property subject to the Fire Safety Regulatory Reform Order 2005? Thank you

Dear Sir/Madam We own a beauty salon (10 staff) business and rent a space to run it within a Leisure Centre. They have said we need to obtain a CO2 fire extinguisher. Can you tell me if this is our responsibility or theirs as landlord. Also, this has made me wonder whether we are individually responsible for complying with fire legislation generally? Thanks

Could you confirm that if a fire panel is installed in a rented premises then is it regulation/statue that it must be maintained by the landlord in a working condition at all times?

Dear All, I received a letter today from the managing agents that look after a block of flats where I own a flat. They have stated that further to a fire risk assessment they have been advised that the building should comply with provisions of the Fire Safety order 2005. They have then gone on to state that the front doors of flats are the responsibility of the lessees and that the onus to comply with fire safety regulations. 1) Have door closers fitted that comply with BS EN1154:1997 (Power 3) 2) Intumescenet strips and cold smoke seals 3) New fire doors must be third party certificated FD30 and should include suitable markings. And that t…

I live in a block of flats the management company are keeping inflammatory items in the electric cupboard I have to speak the the person who is in charge of the management company and found him totally unhelpful andi I was told this cupboard is for the land lord use only we are a private /owned building and there is no landlord I can't get in the meter cupboard to update the usage of electric as Iam pay as yo go .please can you advise-me I have taken pictures of all the stuff

Hi there, My son is renting a flat in Portsmouth.He is on the second floor and the cellar is full of old broken furniture which is obviously a fire risk.The letting agents say that this is fine. Could you please advise? Many thanks Gaynor

Hi I need some advice on electric cooker installation. My landlord is planning on fitting a cooker in my kitchen, I live in a pub and the kitchen is for upstairs in my flat. He is saying he is going to fit the cooker into a space which means the cooker will have one side against a partition wall that joins onto my bedroom, if he leaves a space then the cooker will be partly underneath a cupboard. I have read on some manufacturer sites that there needs to be 150mm space away from the side wall and the cooker and 650mm height space from the cupboard or 150mm space away from the side. Is it law to follow the installation instructions if so what can i do?

In England and Wales the person who has the duty to comply with the Fire Safety Order (RRFSO) is called the Responsible Person (RP). If it is a workplace then the employer is the RP if it is not a workplace then the owner or a managing company working for the owner is the RP. There can be multiple RP’s in a building when more than one premises exist in a building or when there is more than one owner/freeholder in a building of flats/maisonettes. It is important when discussing the RR(FS)O, with regards to flats/maisonettes, you can establish who the RP or RP’s are. Leaseholders Leaseholders are customers who have taken up the option to purchase their property, o…

Dear Sirs, There seems to be mixed information I have been reading with regards to new regulations regarding hardwired smoke detectors/ heat alarms. Can you please confirm if it is a legal requirement to have hard wired smoke detectors interlinked with a heat alarm fitted in the kitchen on all rental properties in Scotland. Am I right or wrong in saying that it is okay to have a battery smoke detector fitted but if it fails to work by law you have to fit it with a hardwired smoke detector. It would be very much appreciated to have the right information at hand to give to Landlords. I look forward to your response. Kind Regards Angie

How do, I recently moved in to a house in Hull - it's a 3 storey town-house. The only smoke alarm in the property is one on the first (middle) floor - but it doesn't seem to work. I have already purchased a few smoke alarms, a heat alarm and a CO alarm for the property to put up myself, but should the landlord have provided us with at least one smoke alarm? What are the rules regarding whether it should work or not? If it just needs the battery changing is that acceptable?

Hi i was wondering if anyone would be able to help me with this issue. i have been in a property for 3 years and have recently found out my smoke alarm/heat alarms dont work. they are mains powered and upon calling my landlord they said take them off and check i then found they are not connected to the connectors and never have been as i moved straight into a new build. should my landlord be liable for this and should they be checked yearly or anything by my landlord. I live in a block of flats and it is from a housing association if this helps at all. i have had nothing but problems from them too.

I recently stayed in a holiday cottage in Scotland, could you tell me if Holiday lets are included in premises that are subject to a Fire Safety Order?

My friend has a property that he rents out. I do maintenance on the property. He lets it to single households, therefore it is not an hmo. The local environmental health office has asked him to provide an escape door at the bottom of the stairs.It is a two up two down terraced house of which there are many I have worked on, 99% of which do not have them. I think that eh are being overzealous in this requirement, and I would like to challenge them on this. Can you provide any information that would help please ?

Hello. I was wondering if you can help me please. I have a problem with the front door of my property which my landlord has refused to fix until April. The door is broken and in the event of a fire in our kitchen area, we could not escape due to the awkward design of the house. We cannot get out of the house from that front door as handle is broken. Please advise.

Please can you point me to the relevant legislation and guidance for Freeholders (some of whom are also landlords) of a small block of 12 separate flats. About 50% of the flats are let as rental properties. Could you also let me know if the Freeholders should be commissioning a regular fire risk assessment (if yes how often) and does this legally need to be undertaken by external professionals?

Hello, I have two properties that are currently tenanted. Previously the both had fire service installed battery operated smoke alarms installed. I have arranged to have new ones connected to the main in both properties this week. My question is - should the co2 alarm also be mains connected? Kind Regards Dawn

We are buying a leasehold flat. The landlord completed the fire risk self assessment. However he named us as the responsible person. Is this correct? While I am aware that he can appoint a responsible person to assess the communal are, I do believe he should still be named as the responsible person. Can you please advise on this. Thank you for your assistance.