Ignore new fire safety regulations at your peril, HMO property managers warned

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Property managers have been urged to get up to speed with new fire safety rules and regulations that put more responsibility on them to protect tenants in HMOs.

As part of the Fire Reform White Paper, the Fire Safety Act will ensure all blocks of flats are properly assessed for fire safety risks and the Fire Safety (England) Regulations will help people feel safe in their homes.

Grenfell Inquiry

It paves the way for meeting many of the remaining Grenfell Tower Inquiry recommendations and aims to deliver fire safety improvements in multi-occupied residential buildings by making sure fire and rescue services have the information they need to plan their response to a fire and by imposing a minimum frequency for checks on all fire doors in mid and high-rise blocks of flats.

The government has launched a new consultation on its plans to support residents who would find it difficult to evacuate a building. It includes a proposal known as Emergency Evacuation Information Sharing which would require someone to be responsible for fire safety in their building, who could also assess the needs of the most vulnerable residents and consider what might reasonably be done to mitigate any risks to fire safety. 

Risking lives

HMOs sometimes hit the headlines for not considering residents. Last year, landlord Thirunaukkarsu Kulandaisamy, of Littleover, who risked his tenants’ lives at an HMO by failing to protect them from a fire, narrowly avoided jail. Firefighters discovered the power to the fire alarms was switched off, fire doors were inadequate, tenants did not have any means of escape and the emergency lighting was not working. 

Sean Hooker, head of redress at Property Redress Scheme, says a good number of property managers are not ready, or have yet to even start, their preparations. “Hopefully this White Paper process…will help the smooth implementation of the new regime,” he says. “Ignoring these changes will lead to claims for redress and in the extreme cases, a criminal prosecution – so do not take these responsibilities lightly.”

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