The Building Safety Act 2022 received Royal Assent on 28 April 2022 and its provisions have been brought into force in phases since then. The Act emerged from the Hackitt Review following the Grenfell Tower fire and fundamentally changes how the safety of high-rise residential buildings is managed, regulated, and enforced in England.
For most private landlords — those owning or letting individual houses and low-rise flats — the Act's most direct practical impact is through the new 'accountable person' framework for blocks over 18m. For landlords of flats in affected buildings, the Act limits the ability to pass remediation costs to leaseholders and creates new routes for enforcement by residents.
What is a 'higher-risk building' under the Act
The Act's most significant new duties apply to 'higher-risk buildings'. These are:
- Residential buildings (or mixed-use buildings with at least 2 residential units) that are at least 18 metres tall or have at least 7 storeys
- The 18-metre / 7-storey threshold is measured from ground level to the top of the highest residential storey
- Buildings below this threshold are not caught by the higher-risk building regime, but are still subject to existing fire safety legislation (Fire Safety Act 2021, Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, and their amendments)
- Purpose-built blocks of flats of 7 or more storeys, towers, and tall mixed-use developments are the primary buildings in scope
- Student accommodation over 18m is also in scope if it meets the residential criteria
The accountable person — who is responsible
Every higher-risk building must have an 'accountable person' (AP) — the entity legally responsible for the safety of the building's structure and common parts:
- The AP is usually the freeholder, head leaseholder, or the resident management company (RMC) — the entity that owns or controls the common parts (structure, external envelope, plant rooms, stairwells, roof)
- If there is more than one AP for a building (e.g. different entities controlling different parts), the Building Safety Regulator designates a Principal Accountable Person (PAP)
- The AP must register the higher-risk building with the Building Safety Regulator (BSR) — registration opened in April 2023. Buildings that were occupied before April 2023 must have been registered by 1 October 2023. New buildings must be registered before occupation
- Failure to register is a criminal offence, and the BSR can prohibit occupation of unregistered buildings
- Individual flat owners and landlords are not normally the AP unless they own the freehold or control the common parts — but they should check their lease and the building's registration status
The Golden Thread of information
The Act requires the AP to create and maintain a 'Golden Thread' of building information throughout the life of the building:
- The Golden Thread is a digital record of all information about the building's design, construction, and safety measures — as-built drawings, fire safety strategies, sprinkler/alarm systems, cladding specifications, and structural calculations
- This information must be stored digitally, kept up to date, and made accessible to residents, the BSR, and emergency services
- For existing higher-risk buildings, the AP must compile the Golden Thread from existing records (which may be incomplete for older buildings)
- For new higher-risk buildings, the Golden Thread must be created from the design stage and handed over on completion
- Individual landlords in affected blocks should be aware that they may be asked to provide documents or information as part of the Golden Thread compilation
Cladding remediation — what landlords must know
One of the Act's most significant practical impacts for landlords is the restriction on passing remediation costs to residential leaseholders:
- Qualifying leaseholders: Residential leaseholders who owned their flat on 14 February 2022 and met the qualifying ownership criteria are 'qualifying leaseholders' protected from certain remediation costs
- Developer-funded remediation: Where the developer or building owner (AP) is a 'relevant landlord', they are liable to fund cladding and fire safety remediation without passing the cost to qualifying leaseholders via the service charge
- Remediation orders: The First-tier Tribunal can make remediation orders requiring building owners to carry out remediation works. A landlord who fails to comply with a remediation order commits a criminal offence
- Remediation contribution orders: The Tribunal can also make contribution orders requiring developers or landlords to contribute to remediation costs even where they were not the original developer
- Ground 6A — new possession ground: A new mandatory possession ground (Ground 6A) was added to the Housing Act 1988 by the Renters' Rights Act 2025. It allows a landlord to recover possession where the property is the subject of a remediation order or contribution order and the works cannot safely be carried out with the tenant in occupation. Notice period: 4 weeks. No 12-month tenancy requirement applies
- Landlords and freeholders of blocks covered by the Building Safety Act should take specialist legal advice on their remediation liability before accepting or contesting remediation orders
Fire safety obligations under the 2021 Act and 2022 Act
Alongside the Building Safety Act 2022, the Fire Safety Act 2021 amended the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 to clarify that flat entrance doors, balconies, and the external walls of residential buildings are within scope of the fire safety order:
- Responsible persons (typically the AP or freeholder) must include flat entrance doors, external walls (including cladding), and balconies in their fire risk assessment
- Buildings of 11 metres or more: the responsible person must maintain a record of residents, carry out monthly checks of lifts and firefighting equipment, and carry out quarterly checks of fire doors
- Buildings over 18 metres: additional obligations include maintaining evacuation plans, creating a residents' engagement strategy, and carrying out a fire risk assessment of the entire building
- The Building Safety Regulator has the power to require the AP of a higher-risk building to produce a 'Building Safety Case Report' showing how safety risks are being managed
- Non-compliance with the fire safety obligations for higher-risk buildings is a criminal offence prosecutable by the Building Safety Regulator
Frequently asked questions
I own a flat in a block that is over 18m — am I the accountable person?+
Almost certainly not. The accountable person is the entity that owns or controls the common parts — the structure, external envelope, stairwells, and plant rooms. For most leasehold flats this is the freeholder, the head leaseholder, or a resident management company. You as an individual flat owner/landlord do not normally own the common parts. Check your lease to confirm. However, you have rights as a resident or leaseholder: you can request information from the AP about the building's safety case, and the AP must have a residents' engagement strategy.
Can my landlord or freeholder pass cladding remediation costs to me as a leaseholder?+
It depends. If you are a 'qualifying leaseholder' under the Building Safety Act 2022 (you owned the flat on 14 February 2022 and meet the ownership threshold), you are protected from bearing the cost of certain remediation works in certain circumstances. The rules are complex and depend on the developer, original building owner, and current freeholder. Take specialist leasehold and building safety advice — many firms now offer free initial consultations for leaseholders facing remediation bills.
What is Ground 6A and when can I use it?+
Ground 6A is a new mandatory possession ground introduced by the Renters' Rights Act 2025. It applies where: (1) the property is subject to a remediation order or remediation contribution order under the Building Safety Act 2022, (2) the works required by the order cannot safely be carried out while the tenant is in occupation, and (3) reasonable steps have been taken to give notice under the order. The notice period is 4 weeks. It is a mandatory ground, meaning the court must grant possession if the conditions are satisfied. The 12-month tenancy requirement that applies to Grounds 1 and 1A does not apply to Ground 6A.
Does the Building Safety Act apply to houses and low-rise flats?+
The specific higher-risk building regime (accountable person, registration, Golden Thread, Building Safety Case) only applies to buildings over 18 metres or 7 storeys. However, broader fire safety obligations under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 and Fire Safety Act 2021 apply to the common parts of any multi-occupancy residential building, including low-rise blocks of flats and HMOs. Landlords of HMOs have specific fire risk assessment obligations regardless of the building's height — these are covered separately.