Landlords should be aware that the reforms regarding fire safety in tenanted properties are gathering pace and landlords will ignore these at their peril. 

It is clear that the 2005 Fire Safety Order makes it a legal requirement for landlords to carry out a risk assessment in the common parts of HMO’s and buildings containing flats and to provide whatever safety measures are necessary.

These new requirements are reasonably complex using definitions such as FD30 to relate a fire door and FD30s if the door requires a cold smoke seal. Fire alarm requirements also vary between those required for an escape route and those within individual flats.