Under the Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (Amendment) Regulations 2022 all landlords of private and social housing must ensure a smoke alarm is fitted on every floor of their property where there is a room used wholly or partly as living accommodation.
Since October 2015, private sector landlords have been required to comply with the Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (England) Regulations 2015. These regulations have now been expanded and the Government has clarified that from 1 October 2022, the regulations will not only apply to private landlords, but also to social housing.
The Regulations state that all rented properties in England must provide a carbon monoxide alarm in rooms where there is any type of fixed combustion application, including gas fires, boilers and wood burners (excluding gas cookers) from 1st October 2022. Landlords and agents must take immediate action to ensure these alarms are installed in all properties. Furthermore, landlords are required to replace or repair any non-working smoke and carbon monoxide alarms as ‘soon as reasonably practicable’ once a tenant reports this issue. Any landlord found to be in breach of these regulations could be fined a penalty of up to £5,000 by the local housing authority.
Overall, we find this to be a welcome reform as we view that tenants from both the social housing and private-rented sectors should equally receive sufficient legal protections. Therefore, we view this as a necessary step to ensuring safer homes exist for tenants. If you find that your landlord has failed to install smoke and carbon monoxide alarms in your property or repair them from the 1st October, contact Duncan Lewis’ experienced housing team for advice today.
Our housing team is ranked and recommended in the most recent editions of the prestigious legal directories, the Legal 500 and Chambers, which recognises the team’s skills and knowledge “in a range of social housing matters, including defence against possession and rent arrears proceedings”, as well as, “disrepair, discrimination and anti-social behaviour claims, as well as matters relating to homelessness applications and tenancy successions."
About the authors: Mohammad Haris Qureshi is a caseworker who assists the team in a wide range of housing matters. Contact him for advice via email at MohammadQ@Duncanlewis.com or via telephone on 020 3114 1299.
Mohammad works under guidance of housing director Manjinder Kaur Atwal who is a recommended as a leading individual in housing law by the Legal 500 guide, and Chambers and Partners, and has more than 13 years’ experience tackling a wide variety of housing and property law dispute cases. Contact Manjinder for advice via email at manjindera@duncanlewis.com or via telephone on 020 3114 1269.