Electrical Contracting News (ECN) May 2016 | Page 48

SPECIAL FEATURE

FIRE DETECTION & SECURITY

UNRAVELLING THE REGS
Rex Taylor of Kidde Safety makes sense of the latest – sometimes complicated and contradictory –
requirements for smoke and carbon monoxide alarms in housing, with some fresh opportunities for installers.

W

ith occupants
at least four
times more
likely to die in
a house fire
where there
is no working
smoke alarm,
new measures aim to help prevent up to
26 deaths and 670 injuries a year. The
Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm
(England) Regulations 2015 apply to
all private rented premises in England
occupied on or after 1st October last
year. In essence, the new Regulations

call for a smoke alarm on each floor
where there is accommodation and a
carbon monoxide alarm in any habitable
room with a solid fuel appliance. The
landlord, managing agent or other
representative must check that alarms
work at the start of each tenancy and
replace any that do not, highlighting the
need for long term reliability.

Code of practice
The new Regulations do not specify the
type, location or power source of smoke
alarms. However, these aspects are

covered in the Code of Practice BS58396:2013. British Standards take the form
of guidance and recommendations, and
are not in themselves mandatory, although
they are used as a benchmark in housing
standards, legal or insurance claims and
other situations. The latest, 2013 edition
of BS5839, Part 6 – Code of practice for
the design, installation, commissioning
and maintenance of fire detection and
fire alarm systems in domestic premises
– covers both new and existing homes,
whether for single families or HMOs
consisting of self-contained units. It lists
the minimum Categories – effectively,

in which areas smoke/heat alarms are
required – recommended for different
types of housing.
For most existing, as well as new
houses up to three storeys and individual
flats, the Code recommends Category
LD2, which means smoke alarms in any
areas where fires might start, such as
living rooms, heat alarms in all kitchens
and smoke alarms in all escape routes.
In contrast, the 2015 rental Regulations
generally match Category LD3 with smoke
alarms in escape routes only. This is
similar to Building Regulations Approved
Document B, although that does call for

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