Posts with tag: fire safety

Property Manager Faces Trial After Toddlers Die in Blaze

Published On: July 6, 2018 at 8:56 am

Due to the absence of smoke alarms in a rental property, two children, Logan Taylor, 3 years old and Jake Casey, 2 years old, have died in addition to a property manager facing trial.

As reported, despite smoke alarms being requested by tenants of the property, Emma Taylor and her partner Jamie Casey, Kamal Baines, the Director of Prime Property Estates in Yorkshire had allegedly neglected this request, failing to install these alarms.

Taylor told Leeds Crown Court: “He didn’t seem bothered. As long as he got the rent, he was happy for me to live like that with my kids.”

It is common knowledge that Baines’ firm, which was closed last year, was responsible for the management of over 140 rental properties around the Huddersfield area on behalf of private landlords.

Taylor had apparently enquired about smoke alarms upon moving into the property, due to her eldest son having started a fire in their previous property by putting a tea towel on a gas ring.

According to Prosecutor Allan Compton also commented: “One of the children living in the property who died was autistic. If ever there was an address to prioritise in ensuring alarms were present, it would have been that one.”

The cause of the fire was reportedly concerning an electrical fault that had taken place on the children’s bedroom.

The Court was informed that an upstairs alarm could have provided Miss Taylor with a 5-minute window to save the children.

Furthermore, in October 2015, it was mandatory that smoke alarms were installed on all floors of rental properties.

Miss Taylor had urgently attempted to make her way into her children’s bedroom, however, was unable to avoid the smoke and flames blocking her way. Neighbours who also intervened were unfortunately defeated by the smokes and flames.

Taylor and Casey’s eldest son, Finley has managed to escape the fire.

Baines, aged 51, denies two counts of manslaughter in addition to one offence under the Health and Safety at Work Act.

This trial continues today.

For advice concerning compliance with Fire Safety regulations, in addition to advice on Gas Safety, please visit the Landlord News website

RLA offers online fire safety course for landlords

Published On: September 5, 2017 at 11:46 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Landlord News

Tags: fire,fire safety,fire safety for landlords,RLA

Buy-to-let landlords looking for fire safety guidance following the Grenfell Tower tragedy can access an online fire safety course, launched by the Residential Landlords Association.

This new course will cover different regulation relating to fire safety, including HMO Manager regulations and Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (England) regulations 2015.

Property Types

The course covers different building and property types and all types of legislation that apply, alongside a practical guide to conducting fire risk assessments to protect both tenants and property from fire.

Prices are available from £16 for RLA members and £20 for non-members.

RLA offers online fire safety course for landlords

RLA trainer Carrie Kus, noted: ‘The horrific loss of life following the Grenfell Tower disaster has left the whole nation in shock and landlords from all tenures are now asking if they are doing enough. The legislation relating to fire safety in the private sector is complex and varies depending on the type of building and how it is leased out.’

‘This course takes this complex area and breaks it down making it easy for the average landlord and managing agent to disseminate what they need to do to keep their tenants and their properties safe from fire,’ she continued.[1]

Landlords should also source our free comprehensive guide to Fire Safety, available in our Guides section.

[1] https://www.landlordtoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2017/9/new-online-fire-safety-course-for-landlords

Substantial Fire Risks Uncovered at Blocks of Flats Across the UK

Published On: August 9, 2017 at 8:07 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Property News

Tags: fire safety,Grenfell Tower,Health and safety,tenants

Substantial fire risks that pose a threat to tenants’ lives have been uncovered at blocks of flats across the UK, as fire safety provisions face growing public scrutiny in the wake of the Grenfell Tower fire.

Substantial Fire Risks Uncovered at Blocks of Flats Across the UK

Failings were identified at the tower blocks between 2012 and 2017, including no fire doors and faulty smoke alarms.

Hundreds of other high-rise blocks were also found to have major safety flaws, according to analysis of fire risk assessments by Inside Housing magazine.

It comes after so-called flammable cladding fitted to Grenfell Tower raised serious concerns surrounding fire safety provisions in the wake of the tragedy.

It was widely speculated that materials installed during a 2016 refurbishment aided the rapid and “unprecedented” spread of the blaze that killed at least 80 people.

The disaster has renewed public focus on the state of Britain’s housing supply, particularly social homes, and whether building regulations are stringent enough to guarantee the safety of tenants in high-rise blocks of flats.

Some of the tower blocks found to pose substantial fire risks were located in Southampton, Camden, Guildford, Wigan, Stockport and Hatfield.

It comes as the Government announced an independent review of building regulations and fire safety, which experts said was “long overdue”.

In addition, more than 100 buildings have failed combustibility testing ordered by a Government fire safety panel in the wake of the disaster.

Positively, however, it appears that landlords are doing more to ensure the health and safety of their tenants following the dreadful fire. More than half of landlords have said they are taking action on fire safety in their rental properties.

We have put together a comprehensive guide that explains all of your fire safety responsibilities to protect your tenants and property: /guide-fire-safety-rental-property/

While you must prevent substantial fire risks in your properties, it is also important that you protect the buildings and contents of your investments. Choose Landlord Insurance from Just Landlords to ensure that you receive the widest cover available as standard: https://www.justlandlords.co.uk/landlord-insurance

Camden tenants launch crowdfunding page for fire safety checks

Published On: August 2, 2017 at 9:09 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Property News

Tags: fire safety,Grenfell Tower,landlords,tenants

A crowdfunding page has been launched by worried tenants who are looking to pay for independent fire safety checks to be carried out in their properties in North London.

Over 3,000 residents, including many private sector tenants, living on an estate in Camden, were evacuated during June. This was following concern from fire inspectors, who claimed that four tower blocks were at risk.

Fire Safety

Following the Grenfell Tower disaster, both tenants and firefighters are wary of safety issues in high-rise buildings.

In the instance of the estate in Camden, the London Fire Brigade uncovered a number of fire safety issues inside the blocks of the building. An inspection revealed that blocks were wrapped in extremely flammable cladding.

People living on the Chalcots estate were woken in the night during June and told to leave their flats immediately, due to imminent danger.

Now, some six weeks later, tenants are being asked to return by Camden Council, which claimed the properties are now safe following urgent works.

Fears

However, there are still ongoing fears about external cladding and requirements for internal repairs. These include for gas pipes, largely explaining why a number of residents have refused to go back home.

As such, a group of residents who remain worried about their safety at the Swiss Cottage have decided to appoint a legal firm to assist them to commission their own report.

Paper house in fire on a black background concept

Camden tenants launch crowdfunding page for fire safety checks

Robert Kukaj and Sasha Martin, both with families residing in the towers, set up the online donation page, with a target of raising £3,000. Any funds raised over this amount will be donated to Great Ormond Street Hospital.

Mr Kukaj said: ‘We as residents feel that it is not safe to return to our flats as we have seen evidence that these works have not been done properly and to the right standard. We also felt that these works being signed off by different local authorities does not provide the impartiality that you would have if it was done by an approved inspector with no ties to any local authority or government. It is a lot to ask for granted but worth every penny to put people’s minds at ease and to make sure we are not living in death traps.’[1]

Reassurance

A Camden Council spokesman told the press that they had been working alongside residents to reassure them of the safety of the buildings following advice from London Fire Brigade.

The spokesman said: ‘We want to again reassure residents that building control requirements have been met and independently checked. Additionally, and crucially, the London Fire Brigade have checked the works and are happy that we have met the required standard. We know this has been a difficult time for residents and we will continue to make one to one support and advice available.’[1]

[1] https://www.landlordtoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2017/8/residents-launch-fundraising-page-to-pay-for-independent-fire-safety-checks

Landlords are Taking Action on Fire Safety, Shows Survey

Published On: July 27, 2017 at 8:03 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Landlord News

Tags: fire safety,gas safety,Grenfell Tower,landlord responsibilities

More than half of UK landlords have taken action on the fire safety of their rental properties following the terrible Grenfell Tower fire, shows a new survey.

A study of 500 private landlords found that a third (32%) had checked their fire alarms, while 15% had instructed a professional to carry out a fire risk assessment in the wake of the tragedy.

Landlords are Taking Action on Fire Safety, Shows Survey

Landlords of Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) and flats were among the most proactive over the past four weeks, with fire alarm checks being conducted in 50% of HMOs and 35% of flats. These properties also saw a higher than average number of professional checks, with 39% of HMOs and 22% of flats being visited for assessments.

Other measures taken by landlords included checking construction materials of their properties and contacting the freeholder regarding fire safety checks. 17% of landlords also said that they had installed a carbon monoxide alarm.

The survey, carried out on behalf of Simple Landlords Insurance, was conducted a month after the Grenfell Tower fire in North Kensington.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, landlords in London were the most responsive of all the geographical regions polled. Some 72% reported having taken at least one action following the disaster, compared with just a third in Wales.

However, one area of concern uncovered by the research was gas safety. While every landlord questioned said that they had conducted a gas safety inspection on their property, just 83% said that it had occurred within the last 12 months.

Landlords are legally required to have a Gas Safe-registered engineer check all gas appliances in their properties at least once a year. The majority of the remaining landlords (11%) fell between the 12 and 18-month bracket, while an alarming 4% said that it had been more than three years since their last gas safety check.

A detailed guide to your gas safety obligations can be found here: /landlords-guide-gas-safety/

We have also compiled a thorough and comprehensive guide to fire safety, which can be accessed here: /guide-fire-safety-rental-property/

The Head of Operations at Simple Landlords Insurance, Alex Huntley, comments on the study: “Fire safety is clearly on the agenda for landlords in the UK, with a little over half taking positive action in the last month alone. Landlords have a legal obligation to protect tenants under fire safety regulations, particularly those with large or shared properties.

“Gas safety is also of paramount importance and, although on the whole the survey has shown a positive and responsible response from landlords, they must understand their obligations; fire and gas safety must never be left to chance.”

The findings arrive as the Residential Landlords Association (RLA) calls for change in fire safety guidance.

Rogue landlord in Bradford fined £16,000

Published On: July 11, 2017 at 11:40 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Landlord News

Tags: fire safety,property,rogue landlords,tenants

A rogue landlord with property in Bradford has been ordered to pay close to £16,000 after being guilty of renting out dirty and dangerous flats in the city.

Mr Hasan Kazi was told to pay the cash after pleading guilty to renting out flats in Shearbridge Bradford that were in a terrible state of repair.

Obstructions

Bradford and Keighley Magistrates’ Court heard that Mr Kazi let the properties with fire escapes obstructed and with no safe means of escape. In addition, he failed to maintain fixtures and fittings and failed to provide his name or telephone number.

Mr Kazi managed a building containing 11 flats close to the University of Bradford. He was fined £12,940 for charges relating to condition of these properties, a £170 victim surcharge and £2,700 costs to Bradford Council.

The court heard that an environmental health officer from Bradford Council inspected the flats in July of last year and found several issues, including blocked fire escapes.

Other deficiencies included a smoke detector hanging off, exposed electrical sockets and dangerous light fittings.

Rogue landlord in Bradford fined £16,000

Responsibilities

Councillor Alex Ross-Shaw, Bradford Council’s executive member for regeneration, planning and transport, noted: ‘Anyone renting out property has a serious responsibility to ensure that their tenants are safe and free from health hazards.’[1]

‘They also need to make sure that the property is maintained in good repair and meets the standards required. In this case, not only was the property in a bad state it also put the lives of residents at risk. We will not hesitate to put irresponsible landlords before the courts.’[1]

[1] https://www.landlordtoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2017/7/slum-landlord-order-to-pay-almost-16k-for-filthy-and-dangerous-properties

[2]