FREE Smoke Alarms for Private Landlords

LONDON - Sept. 3, 2015 - PRLog -- Invest In Buy To Let (InvestInBuyToLet.com), the leading UK Buy To Let property investment specialists are offering private landlords who own rental properties in England the chance to get their hands on free smoke and CO alarms.

New regulations requiring landlords to install smoke and carbon monoxide alarms in their properties have been laid in Parliament and are expected to come into force, subject to Parliamentary approval, on 1 October 2015.

Under the new proposed measures, from October 2015, landlords will have to ensure working smoke alarms are installed on every floor of their property and test them at the start of every tenancy.

Landlords that fail to install working smoke and carbon monoxide alarms will face a civil penalty of up to £5,000 if they don’t comply.

The regulations are part of wider government steps to ensure there are sufficient measures in place to protect public safety, while at the same time avoiding excessive regulation which would push up rents and restrict the supply of homes, limiting choice for tenants.

Under the new measures, landlords will be under a duty to install and initially test alarms, but it remains the tenant’s responsibility to test them regularly.

Figures show people are at least four times more likely to die in a fire in the home if there is no working smoke alarm. The Fire Kills campaign, run jointly by government and the fire and rescue authorities, urges every household to test their smoke alarms when they change their clocks and then at least monthly.

The move will help prevent up to 26 deaths and 670 injuries a year.

The measure is expected to take effect from October 2015, and comes with strong support after a consultation on property condition in the private rented sector.

Fire Minister Penny Mordaunt is spearheading this initiative along with England’s 46 fire and rescue authorities who are expected to support private landlords in their own areas to meet their new responsibilities.

The minister praised the work of the Chief Fire Officers Association in helping bring forward the new rules to require landlords to install smoke alarms in their properties.

“Landlords have a duty of care to their tenants –and with people at least four times more likely to die in a fire in a home where there is no working smoke alarm, this is an important measure to ensure this is met,”stated Mordaunt in March of this year.

“The announcement of the change in legislation and the funding will greatly help to improve the safety of families and prevent dozens of people from losing their lives to fire each year.

While the cost to landlords is small, it will also go a long way to increasing tenants’confidence of their landlords and reducing the devastating impact and losses house fires can cause.

A 10-year sealed alarm costing around £15, which is a small price to pay for protection of tenants and property and possessions.”said Home Safety Lead at the Chief Fire Officers Association Mark Cashin.

Invest In Buy To Let director Selvan Saha said: “I came across this new legislation purely by accident but it’s an important regulation that needs attention. Most responsible landlords would already have smoke alarms fitted in their properties but it’s always useful to know changes in the law. Being landlords ourselves we felt that we ought to further promote what the various government agencies are doing in getting the message across and play our part too. This is why we have setup our own initiative to make landlords aware of their obligations and help them get free smoke alarms.”

Shane Hindocha, the other director of Invest In Buy To Let, continued: “Being a landlord is becoming very regulated; keeping abreast of changing regulations is important. We spend a lot of time educating our clients; not just on how and what property to buy, but also changes in legislation which may affect their real estate investments.”

Based out of offices in London by St Paul’s Cathedral and Royal Victoria in the Docklands, Invest In Buy To Let source buy to let properties to suit their clients’goals, take their clients through the reservation, guide them to exchange and completion, ensure that the property is tenanted and then take all the pressure away by managing the property for them. Invest In Buy To Let service experienced landlords as well as new investors looking to build a property portfolio. Most investors come to InvestInBuyToLet.com (http://www.investinbuytolet.com/) without a plan. With 20 years of property investment experience behind them, InvestInBuyToLet show their clients how they can attain financial freedom or fund their retirement with a starting deposit of just £25,000.

To apply for your free smoke and CO alarms, visit www.investinbuytolet.com/free-smoke-alarms