The Fire Safety Act

The Fire Safety Act is set to come into effect late 2021 or early 2022. The act will replace the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 and hopes to better explain the responsibilities of each party in regard to fire safety.

The Fire Safety Act is that the duty holder, in properties, will be a managing agent or landlord must ‘manage and reduce the risk of fire’ posed by the structure of the property. Which includes and is not exhaustive, the following : external walls, balconies, windows and entrance doors.

Under the new act, fire and rescue services will be authorised to take enforcement action and hold building owners to account if they are not compliant.

This Act will be coupled with the Building Safety Bill, which is expected to be passed in 2022 to create a whole new regulatory system for safety conditions in residential properties.