Must Read – New law on smoke alarms / S21
Smoke Alarms
With property regulation is constantly changing some for the better some not so… But from tomorrow, 1st October 2015, the new Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (England) Regulations come into effect.
So what’s new? Well smoke alarms will need to be fitted on every floor of every rented property. This is regardless of whether the property has a new or existing tenancy.
There will also be a requirement for alarms to be tested for new tenancies starting on or after tomorrow. Luckily this requirement does not extend to existing tenancies, but does not detract from the requirement to provide smoke alarms in all rental homes.
Landlords and agents should be aware that testing smoke alarms before the 1st October does not meet the requirements of the new regulation…
Any landlords who fail to check smoke alarms on the day a new tenancy begins could face of fine of upto £5,000!
There will also be a requirement to fit carbon monoxide alarms in living spaces where there are solid fuel appliances.
Section 21
There are also some changes to Section 21 which will come into force tomorrow with a review on the following areas:
- when Section 21 notices can be served.
- how long they will be valid for.
- what needs to be served with them.
- potentially a new prescribed Section 21 notice.
Also new retaliatory eviction measures will also be coming into force tomorrow. This will ban landlords from using Section 21 for six months where a local authority has served an Improvement Notice.
With only one day to go and big changes to the smoke alarm regulation along with the new Section 21 laws coming into force tomorrow. It’s clear not everyone is upto speed with their obligations…
We’d be interested in your thoughts?