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Landlord Alert - New Carbon Monoxide alarm requirements coming

The government is pondering beefing up mandatory alarm requirements which landlords have to meet in England.

Until now private landlords have to fit one battery operated smoke alarm per storey and a Carbon Monoxide alarm where there is a solid fuel appliance such as a stove or fire.

However, the government has suggested that it is revising the requirements and now a draft of the amended regulations has been published - likely to come into effect in October.

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Well known property law expert David Smith, a partner in the litigation team at JMW Solicitors, says: “The main change for private landlords is to up the Carbon Monoxide alarm requirement. CO alarms will now be required where there is any fitted combustion appliance other than a gas cooker. 

“This will mean that gas and oil fired boilers - which did not previously need to have a CO alarm -  will now need one. In practice, this means that almost all rental properties, other than those that have entirely electric heating, will need a CO alarm of some sort. 

“These CO alarms can be battery operated and do not need to be wired in.

“In addition there is a new provision requiring a landlord to repair or replace a non-working smoke or CO alarm ‘as soon as reasonably practicable’ if a tenant or their representative reports it as not working.”

Smith says there are transitional provisions in place so any tenancy that is new from 1 October 2022 will need to comply with the new CO alarm requirements. 

He continues: “These will not apply to statutory periodic tenancies arising from an existing tenancy that started before that date or to renewals where the landlord and tenant and tenancy terms are essentially the same. 

“So these changes will only kick in for entirely new tenancies at this stage.

“Enforcement remains by local authorities serving a remedial notice and then issuing a penalty of up to £5,000 if that is not complied with.

“The regulations are also being amended so that their scope is no longer limited to the private rented sector and all social landlords will need to comply as well. The same transitional provisions will apply to social landlords so they will only be obliged to deal with these changes for new tenants rather than engaging in a programme to fit CO and smoke alarms in their entire stock.”

Smith adds that there is also now an obligation for the Secretary of State to carry out a publish a periodic review of the regulations. The first one is due before October 2027.

Finally, a reminder that this change is for England only - Wales has its own smoke and carbon monoxide alarm provisions coming into effect in July as part of the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016.

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  • George Dawes

    Thank god I replaced my gas hob with electric induction and the gas fire with an electric one

    The boilers outside so the chance of anyone getting poisoned by carbon monoxide is zero

    But still I have to have these alarms …smh , don’t you just love red tape ?

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    What a song and dance about what procrastinating with about 350 words /14 paragraphs to tell us that.
    Most of us Landlords have been required to have them for years. I think with all the Big issues, outrageous costs and Regulation’s bestowed on LL’s yet you see fit to treat us like morons with this big long Article.
    Could you not simply say, Landlords will be required to have Monoxide detectors costing £20. There you are finished.

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    All my properties have smoke alarms & carbon monoxide alarms. I like to sleep at night not worry about someone dying in my properties for the sake of a few pounds.

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    Couldn’t agree more but we were doing it already.
    It strange that Regulation’s are introduced years after they were most needed. for example when there was old fashioned Boilers chucking away, now we have modern room sealed Boilers ?.

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    If your gas appliances have room sealed flue, you most definitely do not need a co monitor.

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    Depends on what local regulations stipulate.

     
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    Common sense would say that you would not need a co monitor, but what has common sense got to do with any of this, just put one in and keep the plebs happy

     
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    Modern gas boilers are designed to create lower air pressure inside the boiler housing, so it's all but impossible for them to leak CO. Presumably govt haven't bothered to find that out!

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    It's landlord monstering !

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    Thought this was the law already ?

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    Private houses are not required to have smoke or carbon monoxide alarms. Why is it a requirement for rental properties? Just another excuse to bash the landlord.

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    They don’t care if a landlord dies. There are only concerned if a tenant dies. We don’t matter. 🤔🤔

     
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    Non story, most sensible landlords do it already.

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    Those of us who don't need to do it - new, sealed boilers - have to do it to cover those with old boilers, who probably won't do it anyway!

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    Edwin, correct but when gas engineer comes to do your annual check he won’t he won’t give you the Cert’ if you haven’t got one, also if they do a Service they they expect one to be present and usually have some on board their van for a modest price. They must have different remit to us.

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