Smoke and Carbon monoxide Alarm

A Landlords Guide to: The Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (SCOTLAND) Regulations 2015

Introduction

The legislation introduced in October 2015 has helped to standardise and clarify the responsibilities of landlords when it comes to installing smoke and carbon monoxide (CO) alarms by a qualified electrician to protect their residents. Existing rules meant that owners of property built prior to June 1992 were not legally obliged to have smoke alarms installed. The updated legislation ensures that ALL rental properties and their residents are adequately protected against fire and carbon monoxide, and our guide is intended to help you interpret these rules.

Why has this change been made?

The legislation is part of a wider effort to increase fire and carbon monoxide safety across the UK. The statistics below, drawn from a variety of sources, highlight why the government has been so keen to redress the imbalance between protection levels for private tenants versus the rest of the housing sector.

Smoke alarm coverage in privately rented accommodation stands at 83%. This is the lowest of any housing type.Source Official Impact Assessment conducted by government prior to announcement of legislation.

Between April 2013 and March 2014, 97 people died and 1900 were injured in domestic fires affecting properties where no smoke alarm was present.Source: Fire Statistic Great Britain 2013-14

The risk of a CO related incident occurring in the private rental sector is three times greater than the risk for other housing types.Source: Gas Safety Trust Carbon Monoxide Incident Report 2012

A study of 1758 emergency department patients displaying symptoms that could be associated with CO poisoning found that only 16% had a CO alarm installed in their home.Source: BMJ (formerly British Medical Journal) Article 2012

Who does the legislation apply to?

The Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (England) Regulations 2015 apply to all Landlords within England bar a few exceptions. Those exempt from the legislation include:

• Landlords sharing accommodation with their tenants
• Landlords granting a right of occupation for a term of 7 years or more
• Landlords who are registered providers of social housing

Responsibility for the enforcement of the legislation lies with the relevant local housing authority, and breaches of the guidance can be punished by a fine of up to £5000.

How will this affect me?

Many landlords already provide excellent protection by installing smoke alarms throughout their properties. However, carbon monoxide detectors have not necessarily been considered part of a landlord’s duty of care in the past. The statistic that residents of rental properties are three times more likely to suffer a CO related incident than a homeowner highlights how important the provision of CO alarms is, and the new legislation is intended to redress this imbalance.

Different types of properties are affected to different degrees. Under the previous regulations, some types of properties were assessed to different standards in terms of smoke alarms. Whilst this may still hold true, especially for HMOs which come under greater scrutiny, there is now a universal baseline in terms of smoke and CO alarm protection. The table below breaks down the consequences of the legislation and identifies best practice for a range of common property types:

Property Type	Effect of Legislation	Best Practice
Assured Tenancy / Assured Shorthold Tenancy(Pre 1992 construction)	Legal responsibility to ensure CO alarms are installed. Must provide smoke alarms on every floor.	An interconnected system of longlife or mains smoke alarmsthroughout property. CO alarms present in all high risk rooms.
Assured Tenancy / Assured Shorthold Tenancy(Post 1992 construction)	Legal responsibility to ensure CO alarms are installed.
HMO1 or 2 Story. Individual floor area of no more than 200sqm	Legal responsibility to ensure CO alarms are installed.	A fire risk assessment to identify an appropriate mains poweredinterconnected smoke alarm system. CO alarms present in all high risk rooms.
HMO3 Stories or higher	Legal responsibility to ensure CO alarms are installed.	A fire risk assessment to identify an appropriate fire alarm systemwith a central panel. CO alarms present in all high risk rooms.

Where exactly should I install the alarms?

The new rules make the provision of both smoke and carbon monoxide detectors compulsory, but don't explicitly state exactly where landlords should site them. At present the legislation dictates that a landlord must ensure:

"a smoke alarm is equipped on each storey of the premises on which there is a room used wholly or partly as living accommodation"

"a carbon monoxide alarm is equipped in any room of the premises which is used wholly or partly as living accommodation and contains a solid fuel burning combustion appliance"

These two directives allow you to accurately calculate the amount of detectors required relative to the types of rooms on each floor, but fail to give guidance as to the exact placement or the type of smoke detector.

There are, however, a few general pieces of advice we can offer to help you establish the best locations for your alarms and the most suitable type of detector. It is impossible to offer advice that covers all eventualities, but these rules of thumb should give you a solid foundation from which to decide where to install your alarms.

Smoke alarm placement tips-

• If you only have one alarm per floor, cover any downstairs hallways with optical smoke alarms and any landings on subsequent floors with ionisation smoke alarms. This setup plays to the strengths of each sensor type to ensure a quick response to any fires without causing unnecessary false alarms.
• Make sure the alarms are audible from any bedrooms.
• Site your smoke alarms at least 30cm from any walls. This avoids the ‘dead air’ zone where smoke can take longer to reach sensors.
• Avoid placing alarms within 30cm of any light fittings or obstructions on the ceiling.
• Consider installing an additional heat alarm in the kitchen, but never rely on this to protect an entire floor as heat alarms are only effective over a short distance.

Carbon monoxide alarm placement tips-

• Site your alarms more than 2 metres, and ideally less than 4 metres away from any appliances.
• If wall mounting your detector, ensure the device is roughly 1.5m from ground level.
• Site your alarms at least 30cm from any walls, and avoid placing them near to doors and windows.
• Make sure the alarms are audible from any bedrooms.

Whilst it is ultimately up to you as an individual to consider the best placement for any alarms within your properties, we hope the guidance above will help you make those decisions.

Who is responsible for maintaining the alarms?

In basic terms, landlords must ensure that alarms are provided and working, but routine maintenance and testing then falls to the occupants of the property. Should the alarms develop a fault or expire during a tenancy it remains the responsibility of a landlord to replace them.

The legislation states that a landlord must make certain that:

"checks are made by or on behalf of the landlord to ensure that each prescribed alarm is in proper working order on the day the tenancy begins if it is a new tenancy"

Once the alarms have been established as working, whether a new tenancy or a tenancy overlapping the introduction of the legislation, many landlords ask tenants to sign a document confirming that alarms have been tested in their presence. This can also be used to clarify for the benefit of the tenants that the duty of maintenance falls to them from that point forwards.

What happens if I don’t comply?

Local housing authorities across England now have the power to serve remedial notices to any landlord they have “reasonable grounds to believe” is not in compliance with the regulations. Failure to take appropriate remedial action within the specified timeframe (usually 28 days) will leave you open to a fine of up to £5000 per property.

electricians

The Future of Power

SOLAR POWER 

It took just 10 minutes for Kevin Arthur to be persuaded that the tiny square of red glass on his fingertips was the future of solar power.

He had only recently been involved in a solar energy start-up company and was keen to try his hand at something new.

We would still be in the lab if it wasn't for the Technology Strategy Board – they listened to us when nobody else would – and their faith in our technology is seeing fruition right now – we are world leaders in our field - Kevin Arthur, CEO of Oxford Photovoltaics

 

But that was before he met the charismatic Oxford Universityphysicist Dr Henry Snaith and saw his remarkable solar cells.

 

‘I went into the room a sceptic and came out a believer,' says Kevin, the Chief Executive Officer of Oxford Photovoltaics.

We have been on the most amazing journey with them [Technology Strategy Board] - Kevin Arthur

 

Four years later – with a range of Technology Strategy Board fundings under their belt the two of them were heading up one of the UK's most promising young green electrical companies.

The incredible journey

‘We would still be in the lab if it wasn't for the Technology Strategy Board – they listened to us when nobody else would – and their faith in our technology is seeing fruition right now – we are world leaders in our field,' added Kevin.

 

‘We have been on the most amazing journey with them. In the beginning – on that day in that room just four years ago – Henry showed me a solar cell technology that was low-cost, easy to produce and which could be printed on the surface of glass. 

 

‘The idea gripped me straight away. You mixed up the stuff and printed it on glass. That meant it could be used in the glass skins of commercial buildings - a massive market. I was really excited by the opportunity!'

Unlike conventional silicon solar panels which use rare earth metals and toxic materials, Henry's photovoltaic cells, developed at the Photovoltaic and Optoelectronic Device Group in Oxford University's Physics Department, use cheap, abundant and environmentally friendly materials - Kevin Arthur

 

By November 2009, Kevin already had more than 20 years' experience in the semi-conductor industry and two promising university spin-outs under his belt. He wanted a new challenge. 

 

‘I was entrepreneur in residence at Imperial College when I was phoned by Isis Innovation – Oxford University's technology transfer arm - who asked if I wanted to be chief executive officer of another solar start up.

 

‘I'd already done solar with a university spin-out called QuantaSol so I told them ‘no thanks,' but by the end of that meeting with Henry  I had changed my mind,' explained Kevin. 

 

Low cost solutions for the environment

‘Unlike conventional silicon solar panels which use rare earth metals and toxic materials, Henry's photovoltaic cells, developed at the Photovoltaic and Optoelectronic Device Group in Oxford University's Physics Department, use cheap, abundant and environmentally friendly materials.

 

‘The technology works by printing a microscopic layer of ‘solid-state dye sensitised solar cells' on ordinary glass. The cells are sealed with a thin layer of glass.

 

‘A layer of cells is just one or two thousandths of a millimetre thick (one or two microns) and can be made in a range of colours and transparencies,' said Kevin.

 

‘In contrast, the equivalent traditional product – amorphous silicon solar cells often found in calculators – are black or brown and the process of making them transparent severely reduces their already low efficiency. 

 

‘These new solar cells are more efficient, more stable, thinner and use lower cost materials,' says Kevin. ‘They make beautifully clear coloured glass,' he added.

 

‘They work at much higher temperatures than existing technology which tends to lose efficiency above 25ºC. They also work well with diffuse light – making them suitable for building facades.

 

Harnessing the power of the sun

‘In 2009, the cells were working at five per cent efficiency, which meant it was converting five per cent of sunlight into electricity.

 

‘That isn't enough for a commercial product which typically works at 15 to 20 per cent efficiency but it was more than enough to show me that the invention had potential. I was hooked,' said Kevin.

All we could think was ‘Amazing! In one step, the Technology Strategy Board has got our company up and running! We could hardly believe it was true! - Kevin Arthur

 

He spent 11 months working on a business plan to allow Oxford Photovoltaics to licence the technology to glass manufacturers and processors. But money was hard to find and the company needed cash before Isis would release the patents.

 

Then in September 2010, Kevin learnt about Innovate 10 Launch Pad – a business competition run by the Technology Strategy Board for ‘disruptive' inventions and business ideas.

 

The prize was £25k and the chance to pitch for an additional £75k in front of 2,000 people at the Design Centre, Glasgow.

 

There was one catch. Kevin discovered this potential funding source late in the day and the deadline for submitting his video entry was noon the next day.

 

‘To make it worse I had a board meeting at 10am. The whole thing is a bit of a blur now. But on that fateful day, I got up at 4.30am, found my video camera, got a tripod from the loft and wrote a two minute script which I stuck to the back of the office door at home.

 

‘Time was ticking, I was on my own and I'd never edited a video before. But I did it and it's still on YouTube. It looks pretty reasonable.

 

‘We got the initial £25k prize in the Energy category and then we had this chance to increase it to £100k at the event itself where we did a short presentation. We beat three other guys and suddenly we had the money to build the company.

 

One step to success with the Technology Strategy Board

If we hadn't got the £100k from the Technology Strategy Board we wouldn't have been able to licence the patents and we wouldn't be here now. But we did. They did - Kevin Arthur

 

‘All we could think was ‘Amazing! In one step The Technology Strategy Board has got our company up and running! We could hardly believe it was true!

 

‘If we hadn't got the £100k from the Technology Strategy Board we wouldn't have been able to licence the patents and we wouldn't be here now. But we did. They did.

 

‘The next day we hit the road and we started pitching to anybody who would listen,' said Kevin.

Once again, the Technology Strategy Board helped us realise our dreams, this time with a £250k grant under the Smart scheme - Kevin Arthur

 

The company took control of the patents, landed £700k from the clean technology investment specialists MTI Ventures and a syndicate of Angel investors and moved to Begbroke Science Park near Oxford in April 2011.

 

Now they faced a new challenge - to go from creating small prototypes to A4 panes of solar power glazing.

That £250k was extremely important because it extended the range of the funding we brought in, and kept us focused on tight timescales and milestones. It gave us more runway - Kevin Arthur

To do that they needed to build the company's research and development capacity. ‘Once again, the Technology Strategy Board helped us realise our dreams, this time with a £250k grant under the Smart scheme.

 

‘That £250k was extremely important because it extended the range of the funding we brought in, and kept us focused on tight timescales and milestones. It gave us more runway,' explained Kevin.

It is yet another British company that is at the forefront of technologies that just a few years ago we would have thought impossible -Kevin Arthur

 

Since then the investment has kept coming. By July 2013, Oxford PV and its 14 employers had secured £4.2m in funding, including an award from the European Commission Seventh Framework Programme for Research.

 

By summer 2013, an improved version of the cell achieved more than 15 per cent efficiency, a level similar to commercial products.

 

‘The technology at our fingertips to change the world'

It's taken less than four years for Oxford PV to go from the lab to one of the UK's most promising green companies, and we did it with the Technology Strategy Board behind us who not only helped us financially but gave us the credibility for other, future investments - Kevin Arthur

 

The first revenues are expected by 2016 while the first office blocks that generate electricity from their windows could follow a few years after that. ‘Imagine that. And it is yet another British company that is at the forefront of technologies that just a few years ago we would have thought impossible,' said Kevin.

 

‘We think the added cost of doing this is 10 per cent on top of the cost of the glass. But this technology pays for itself in less than 10 years,' he added.

 

‘It's taken less than four years for Oxford PV to go from the lab to one of the UK's most promising green companies, and we did it with the Technology Strategy Board behind us who not only helped us financially but gave us the credibility for other, future investments." 

 

‘Henry believes that we have the technology at our fingertips to change the world – and we're determined to prove that he's right.'