The Freeholder's Fire Safety Duties

Freeholders of residential buildings — whether individual landlords or institutional investors — carry statutory fire safety duties that have become significantly more demanding in recent years. The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, the Fire Safety Act 2021, and the Building Safety Act 2022 together create a comprehensive framework of obligations that freeholders must understand and meet.

The Responsible Person Role

Under the RRO 2005, the responsible person for the common parts of a residential building is the person who has control of the premises — typically the freeholder. As responsible person, the freeholder must carry out or commission a suitable and sufficient fire risk assessment, implement its findings, and maintain appropriate fire safety measures.

The Fire Safety Act 2021

The Fire Safety Act 2021 amended the RRO 2005 to clarify that fire risk assessments for multi-occupied residential buildings must include the external walls of the building — including the cladding and insulation — and the flat front doors. This significantly extended the scope of fire risk assessments for residential blocks and placed new obligations on freeholders to assess and address external wall fire safety.

The Building Safety Act 2022 — Accountable Person Duties

For higher-risk buildings — those over 18 metres or 7 storeys containing at least two residential units — the Building Safety Act 2022 places additional duties on the freeholder as the accountable person (or principal accountable person where multiple accountable persons exist). These include:

• Registering the building with the Building Safety Regulator by the required date
• Producing a building safety case and keeping it up to date
• Submitting a building safety case report to the BSR when required
• Appointing a building safety manager
• Maintaining the golden thread of building information
• Engaging residents through the mandatory resident engagement strategy
• Reporting prescribed notifiable events to the BSR

What Happens if Freeholders Fail to Comply?

The consequences of failure to comply with fire safety duties are severe. Under the RRO 2005, the fire service can serve enforcement notices, prohibition notices and prosecute for criminal offences carrying unlimited fines and imprisonment. Under the Building Safety Act, the Building Safety Regulator has similar powers, including the power to prosecute for failure to register or comply with building safety duties.