Landlord’s Responsibilities
Landlords must install and keep in proper working order, sufficient alarms for detecting smoke, heat and carbon monoxide within any property that they rent out to tenants. Additionally, any alarm within the property must be repaired or replaced once a landlord has been informed it has become faulty. Landlords should keep a formal record of when alarms are installed or replaced. A copy should also be placed within any information pack located in the property for the tenant's information.
A landlord has ultimate responsibility to ensure the property is compliant, even when someone, such as an agent, has been engaged to act on their behalf.
Tenants should regularly test alarms and must report any faults to the landlord. Tenants will also be responsible for repairing or replacing alarms if they have been damaged by any person living at or visiting the property. Tenants have a duty to permit reasonable access to a landlord, or persons authorised by the landlord to inspect the property and carry out any necessary work.
Specific Requirement for Alarms & Installation
A landlord must have within the property a minimum of:
- 1 x smoke alarm installed in the room which is most frequently used by the occupants for general daytime living purposes (normally the living room/lounge), and in every circulation space (halls, stairs, landing or corridor)
- 1 x heat alarm installed in every kitchen
- 1 x carbon monoxide alarm installed in any room or circulation space of the property which contains:
- A flue (including a chimney of an open fire that has not been put beyond use) and/or a fixed combustion appliance.
- Fixed combustion appliance includes a fixed apparatus where fuel of any type is burned to generate heat and includes boilers, fires (including open fires), heaters and stoves fueled by solid fuel, oil or gas, but excludes a gas cooker or a gas oven.
Location of Heat and Smoke Alarms
The layout and design of a property will determine where the alarms should be located but the following guidelines should be followed:
- In an open plan lounge room which contains a kitchen, one heat alarm can cover the whole room provided it can be located where it is no more than 7.5 meters from any point in the room.
- If the heat alarm is more than 7.5 meters from any point in the room then a smoke alarm must also be installed.
- Where the proximity of an open fireplace would make a smoke alarm impracticable, a heat alarm may be fitted.
They must be installed and maintained in accordance with British Standards BS 5839-6(b).
Location of Carbon Monoxide Alarms
Carbon monoxide alarms (mains wired or sealed battery) can be either ceiling or wall mounted depending on the manufacturer’s instructions. They do not need to be interlinked. They must be installed and maintained in accordance with British Standards BS EN 50292(c). All Battery Powered Alarms should be tamper-proof units with long life batteries. All Mains Wired Alarms must be installed by a competent electrician who should be registered with a recognised electrical trade body.
Alarms in Communal Areas of Flats/Apartments
The Private Tenancies Regulations do not cover alarms located in communal or common areas within an apartment block or flats. These areas are subject to Building Control Regulations and appropriate advice should be sought.