Additional fire safety legislation has been introduced.
Fire safety in a house in multiple occupation (HMOs) has changed. New legislation (Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022) has been introduced which could impact your property.
Please see below for further details. Regulations 9 and 10 relate to all buildings with two or more domestic premises and communal areas.
The law came into force on January 23rd 2023.
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High rise buildings – at least 18 meters in height
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All buildings where the following two conditions are met:
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Split into at least two premises; and
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There are communal parts through which residents must pass to exit the building.
If you are the responsible person for a house in multiple occupation and you let the property by the room, then you are caught by some of the information requirements, though the requirements are relatively minimal.
If you own a property where there is a shop on one floor and a residential premises on the second floor this regulation will apply to the common parts.
If the whole property is let on a joint tenancy, then these requirements do not apply to you. However, as the information provided could be useful in saving lives, there is nothing to stop you also providing this information.
The responsible person for a property is the person who is responsible for the safety of the building. This will be the person who has control over the communal parts of a building.
For example, in a block of flats the responsible person will usually be the freeholder as they have the controlling interest in the communal parts. Similarly, in a room only HMO set up, the landlord will be the responsible person as they retain control over the common parts.
A responsible person must display fire safety instructions prominently in communal areas. The instructions must include the following:
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how to evacuate a building, (e.g. stay put or simultaneous evacuation)
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how to report a fire to fire and rescue, (e.g. use of 999 or 112, the correct address to give to the fire and rescue service, etc.) and
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any other instruction that tells residents what to do when a fire has occurred.
In addition, the responsible person must provide a copy of the instructions:
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to all residents within the building within 12 months of the start of the regulations;
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to a new resident as soon as reasonably practicable after they move in; and
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to all residents every 12 months.
The responsible person must also provide information about fire doors in the building, whether or not they are within the individual dwelling or the communal parts. The information must include that:
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all fire doors are to be kept closed when not in use,
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residents or their guests should not tamper with any self-closing devices, and
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residents should immediately report any fault or damages to the fire doors to the responsible person.
The information must be given to all existing occupiers within 12 months of when the regulations commence and to all new occupiers as soon as reasonably practicable after that resident moves in.
Furthermore, the information must be given every 12 months as a refresher.
This information should be provided in a clear, easy to understand format to all occupants as soon as reasonably practical after they occupation or whenever the above information changes.
A copy of this information must also be displayed in a conspicuous part of the building. A good place to put this would on the notice board alongside your contact details for a HMO.
Where a property is 11 metres in height or more (typically at least 5 storeys), then additional responsibilities are triggered.
The responsible person must perform checks of 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.
In both cases, the checks should ensure the doors fully close into the frame, overcoming the resistance of any latch or friction with the floor.
Government guidance recommends that the checks be made by:
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opening the door fully, then letting it go; then
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opening the door to around 15 degrees and letting it go.
Basements are not included when calculating the height of the building.
A significant amount of further information and checks are required for high-rise residential buildings. This will usually be the responsibility of the freeholder however and should not apply to most PRS landlords.
If you are the freeholder of a high-rise residential building you should seek specialist advice to ensure you have complied with the requirements.
Government introduces landmark reforms to deliver fairer private rented sector for tenants and landlords.
The Renters (Reform) Bill, introduced into Parliament on 17 May 2023, will deliver a fairer, more secure, and higher quality private rented sector for both tenants and landlords.
Eleven million tenants across England will benefit from safer, fairer and higher quality homes thanks to a once-in-a-generation overhaul of housing laws.
The Renters’ (Reform) Bill delivers the government’s 2019 manifesto commitment to abolish Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions which will empower renters to challenge poor landlords without fear of losing their home.
The new Bill also protects over 2 million landlords, making it easier for them to recover properties when they need to – so they can sell their property if they want to, move in a close family member, or when tenants wilfully do not pay rent. Notice periods will also be reduced where tenants have been irresponsible – for example breaching their tenancy agreement or causing damage to the property.
To ensure the new tenancy systems works for landlords and tenants, it will be introduced alongside a reformed courts process. For the minority of evictions that do end up in the courts, more of the process will be digitised – reducing delays.
A new Ombudsman will provide quicker and cheaper resolutions to disputes, while a new digital Property Portal will enable landlords to understand their obligations and help tenants make better decisions when signing a new tenancy agreement. This will give confidence to good landlords, while driving the criminal minority out of business.
Housing Secretary Michael Gove said:
Too many renters are living in damp, unsafe, cold homes, powerless to put things right, and with the threat of sudden eviction hanging over them. This government is determined to tackle these injustices by offering a new deal to those living in the private rented sector; one with quality, affordability, and fairness at its heart. Our new laws will support the vast majority of responsible landlords who provide quality homes to their tenants, while delivering our manifesto commitment to abolish Section 21 ‘no-fault’ evictions. This will ensure that everyone can live somewhere which is decent, safe and secure – a place they’re truly proud to call home.
Tenants will also be given the legal right to request a pet in their home, which the landlord must consider and cannot unreasonably refuse. Landlords will be able to require pet insurance to cover any damage to their property.
The government will also bring forward legislation as part of the Bill to:
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Apply the Decent Homes Standard to the private rented sector for the first time, giving renters safer, higher quality homes and remove the blight of poor-quality homes in local communities. This will help deliver the government’s Levelling Up mission to halve the number of non-decent rented homes by 2030.
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Make it illegal for landlords and agents to have blanket bans on renting to tenants in receipt of benefits or with children – ensuring no family is unjustly discriminated against when looking for a place to live.
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Strengthen councils’ enforcement powers and introduce a new requirement for councils to report on enforcement activity – to help target criminal landlords.
The Bill is a key part of the government’s mission to level up across the country and follows the wider housing reforms in the Social Housing Regulation Bill and Building Safety Act. These address the systemic issues identified following the Grenfell Tower tragedy on improving the safety and quality of social housing and how tenants are treated by their landlords.
Ben Beadle, Chief Executive of the National Residential Landlords Association, said:
We welcome the government’s pledge to ensure landlords can swiftly recover properties from anti-social tenants and those failing to pay their rent. Plans to digitise court hearings will also improve the speed at which legitimate possession cases are processed.