Managing new fire safety (England) regulations
January 23rd 2023 sees one of the most important changes to lettings compliance for years. New fire safety regulations will apply to both social and private rental sectors, introduced in response to the Grenfell tragedy in 2017.
The Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 will mainly affect landlords, building owners and managers – collectively called ‘responsible persons’. The changes are designed to reduce injury or death from fire and is a legal requirement.
From 23rd January 2023, there’s a new requirement to undertake annual checks of flat entrance doors and quarterly checks of all fire doors in common parts, where the residential building is more than 11 metres in height.
In addition, responsible persons must provide residents in all multi-occupied residential buildings with two or more sets of domestic premises with information relating to the importance of fire doors. This part of the new regulations encompasses HMOs (houses in multiple occupation) and properties let by the room, as well as dual-purpose buildings where there is a shop on the ground floor, a residential property over and shared common parts, such as entrances and exits.
While understanding what is now required of social landlords, property managers and building owners is one thing, implementing the changes is another. Viewber has been anticipating The Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 for some time and has developed a set of fire safety services specifically designed to help responsible persons meet their compliance obligations.
Our services concentrate on the frequent property visits now required to ensure fire safety is upheld in line with the law. A local Viewber can be booked to carry out the following checks on your behalf:
- 5-point fire door and exit safety checks, looking for notable gaps, damage to seals and any potential issues with doors closing.
- Smoke and CO2 alarm tests, completing audible and visual checks with photographic evidence and follow-up notes.
These two services are offered on a stand-alone basis or can be conducted together during one visit for a comprehensive fire safety inspection. In addition, our fire safety services can be combined with some, or all, our other property visit offerings for the best use of a Viewber’s time and your money, including:
- Tenancy Verifications & Welfare Checks
- Post Repair Inspection Reports
- Property or Asset Condition Visits and Checks
- Viewings, Floorplans and Photography
As an important recap, we’ve answered the most common questions pertaining to The Fire Safety (England) Regulations below:
Q: When do the new regulations take effect?
A: The Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 start from 23rd January 2023.
Q: Who is classed as a responsible person?
A: This is the person who is responsible for the safety of a building and who controls the common parts. This could be the freeholder of a block of flats, a managing agent charged with running the building, a landlord who self-manages a HMO or a letting agent’s property manager who is employed by the landlord.
Q: I manage a HMO – what changes apply to me?
A: You will have to provide tenants with fire safety instructions and provide information on fire doors in the property. This must cover an evacuation strategy, what to do in the event of a fire, who to report a fire to and what to do with fire doors when living in the property.
Q: How high does a building have to be for additional regulations to apply?
A: Regulations in addition to the fire safety instructions outlined above apply if a building is 11 metres in height or more – this roughly equates to five storeys or more.
Q: What are the additional tall building regulations?
A: If your building is 11 metres or taller, the responsible person must perform checks on the fire doors in the communal parts of the building at least every three months. In addition, flat entrance doors should be checked at least every 12 months.
Q: My building is below 11 metres, do I still have to perform fire safety checks?
A: The new regulations do not replace previous fire door safety standards – they are in addition to. The Fire Safety Act 2021 has clarified that any residential building containing two or more sets of domestic premises are within the scope of the Fire Safety Order. General fire precautions in buildings of less than 11 metres should still be in place. These include making sure all fire doors – including flat entrance doors – are capable of providing adequate protection, and providing residents with information on fire doors.
Viewber can provide enough personnel to ensure all quarterly and annual checks are completed on time and in accordance with the new Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022. Contact us for an immediate start, with no contract or minimum visit requirement.
