Fire safety in communal areas, stairwells, corridors, bin stores, lift lobbies, and external common areas, is the landlord's responsibility, not the tenants'. While tenants are responsible for fire safety within their own demise (their flat or room), the common parts of a building are a landlord liability from the moment a building is divided into separate residential units.
The regulatory landscape was transformed following the Grenfell Tower fire: the Fire Safety Act 2021 (FSA 2021) clarified that the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 applies to the structure, external walls, and common parts of multi-occupied residential buildings; the Building Safety Act 2022 (BSA 2022) then imposed additional 'building safety case' obligations on higher-risk buildings (18m+ or 7+ storeys). Both regimes are in force and enforced in 2026.
Who is the Responsible Person for fire safety?
The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (as amended by the Fire Safety Act 2021) places fire safety duties on the 'Responsible Person', the person who has control of premises or has responsibility for a workplace or building:
- Freeholder or building owner: In a block of flats, the freeholder (or right-to-manage company) is typically the Responsible Person for the structure, external walls, and common areas
- Managing agent: Where a managing agent manages the building under contract, they may share or take on the Responsible Person role, check your management contract
- HMO landlord: The landlord of an HMO is the Responsible Person for the whole building including common areas and individual rooms
- Leaseholder landlord: If you own a flat and sub-let it, you are the Responsible Person for your flat's internal common parts, but not typically the building-level common areas (that falls on the freeholder)
- There can be more than one Responsible Person for a building, they must cooperate and coordinate their fire safety obligations
Fire risk assessment: who needs one and what it must cover
A fire risk assessment (FRA) is mandatory for all non-domestic premises and for the common parts of any residential building containing two or more sets of domestic premises. As of the FSA 2021, this includes:
- All blocks of flats regardless of height
- Purpose-built HMOs and converted HMOs
- Houses converted to bedsits or self-contained flats
- Any property with shared corridors, stairwells, or communal facilities
- The FRA must be conducted by a 'competent person', for buildings of any complexity, this means a qualified fire risk assessor (preferably a member of the Institute of Fire Safety Managers or similar body), not a general inspection by the landlord
- The FRA must be reviewed annually or whenever there is a significant change (building works, new occupants, change of use, following a fire incident)
What the fire risk assessment must cover (FSA 2021)
The Fire Safety Act 2021 extended FRA scope to explicitly include:
- The building's structure and external walls, including any cladding, balconies, and external walkways attached to those walls
- All common areas: entrance lobbies, corridors, stairwells, lift shafts, plant rooms, bin stores, bike stores, and any shared communal space
- Flat entrance doors, the FSA 2021 specifically added flat front doors to the scope of the FRA. These form part of the compartmentation strategy and must be assessed and maintained accordingly
- Communal fire doors throughout the building
- Evacuation strategy: whether the building uses 'stay put' (simultaneous evacuation not required) or 'simultaneous evacuation', this must be clearly documented and communicated to residents
- Fire detection and alarm systems in common areas
- Emergency lighting in escape routes
Fire door obligations for communal areas
Fire doors are the single most regulated element of communal fire safety. Following amendments to the Fire Safety Order by the FSA 2021 and subsequent guidance:
- All communal fire doors (those that form part of the fire compartmentation strategy) must be checked at least every 3 months, quarterly checks are now a regulatory expectation, not just best practice
- Flat entrance doors must be checked annually as part of the FRA, and more frequently where the FRA identifies a risk
- Fire doors must be self-closing, where self-closers are missing, broken, or propped open, this is a reportable and immediate-action deficiency
- Intumescent strips and smoke seals must be intact around door frames, deteriorated seals are a common FRA finding requiring prompt repair
- Where fire doors are over 20 years old, replacement rather than repair is typically recommended by assessors
- Keep a fire door inspection log, building inspectors and fire authorities look for documented inspection and maintenance records, not just physical compliance
Higher-risk buildings: Building Safety Act 2022 obligations
The Building Safety Act 2022 creates a separate, more onerous regime for 'higher-risk buildings' (HRBs), residential buildings of 18 metres or more in height or with 7 or more storeys:
- Building Safety Case: The Accountable Person (typically the freeholder or RMC) must prepare a Building Safety Case demonstrating how building safety risks are managed on an ongoing basis
- Building Safety Manager: Large or complex HRBs must appoint a named Building Safety Manager responsible for day-to-day safety management
- Resident engagement strategy: The Accountable Person must have a documented strategy for engaging with residents on safety matters and must respond to residents' safety concerns
- Registration with the Building Safety Regulator: All HRBs must be registered with the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) as the Building Safety Regulator, registration is already open and mandatory
- Golden thread of information: A digital record of all building safety-related information (design, construction, maintenance, assessments) must be maintained and made available to the Regulator and residents
Resident information duties
A distinctive feature of both the FSA 2021 and BSA 2022 regimes is the duty to share information with residents:
- Residents must be told the outcome of fire risk assessments relevant to their safety, not just that an assessment has been done, but what was found and what action is being taken
- The evacuation strategy (stay put or simultaneous evacuation) must be clearly communicated to all residents and prominently displayed in common areas
- Where a fire alarm test is planned, residents must be notified in advance
- For HRBs, residents must be provided with fire safety instructions relevant to their demise, including the action to take on discovering a fire and the escape route from their flat
- Failure to provide required information is a breach of the Fire Safety Order, local fire authorities can issue Enforcement Notices, Prohibition Notices, and prosecute
Enforcement and penalties
The Fire and Rescue Authority (FRA, confusingly the same acronym as fire risk assessment) is the enforcement body for the Fire Safety Order. Enforcement action takes several forms:
- Alterations Notice: Requires the Responsible Person to notify the FRA before making alterations to the building
- Enforcement Notice: Requires specific remediation by a set date, typically the starting point for non-compliance found at inspection
- Prohibition Notice: Immediately prohibits or restricts use of all or part of the premises where there is serious and imminent risk to life
- Prosecution: Breach of the Fire Safety Order is a criminal offence carrying an unlimited fine and/or up to 2 years' imprisonment
- Civil liability: Where a fire causes injury or death and the Responsible Person has not complied with their obligations, civil damages claims can follow alongside criminal prosecution
Frequently asked questions
Does my block of flats need a fire risk assessment?+
Yes. Every residential building containing two or more sets of domestic premises (i.e. any block of flats, converted house with self-contained flats, or large HMO) must have a fire risk assessment covering the common parts. Since the Fire Safety Act 2021, this must also cover the structure, external walls, and flat entrance doors. The FRA must be carried out by a competent person and reviewed at least annually.
As a leaseholder who rents out my flat, am I responsible for communal area fire safety?+
No, communal area fire safety is primarily the freeholder's (or right-to-manage company's) responsibility. As a leaseholder-landlord, you are responsible for fire safety within your flat's demise (smoke alarms, clear escape routes within the flat, and your flat's entrance door if it forms part of the building's fire compartmentation). However, you should ensure the freeholder has a current FRA and that required remediation is being carried out, because you cannot safely let your flat if the building's common areas are non-compliant.
How often must fire doors in communal areas be checked?+
Communal fire doors (doors that form part of the building's fire compartmentation strategy, including those between shared corridors and stairwells) must be checked at least quarterly. Flat entrance doors must be checked annually as part of the fire risk assessment. Checks must cover: self-closer function, intumescent strips and smoke seals, frame and door leaf integrity, ironmongery, and correct 'fire door keep shut' signage. All checks must be recorded.
What is 'stay put' and when should a building evacuate simultaneously?+
'Stay put' is the traditional fire strategy for blocks of flats: in the event of a fire in another flat, residents in their own flat are safer remaining in place behind fire-resisting compartment walls than evacuating through smoke-filled corridors. However, if the building's fire compartmentation has been compromised (cladding failures, missing fire stopping, damaged fire doors), stay put may not be safe and a simultaneous evacuation strategy may be needed. The fire risk assessor determines the appropriate strategy, if yours has not addressed this explicitly, commission an updated assessment.
I manage an HMO, what fire safety obligations apply to my communal areas?+
As an HMO landlord, you are the Responsible Person for the whole building including all communal areas. You need: (1) a fire risk assessment covering the full building; (2) interlinked fire detection and alarm in all rooms including bedrooms (Grade D LD2 minimum, local authority HMO conditions may require Grade A); (3) fire doors on all rooms leading to escape routes, self-closing and maintained quarterly; (4) emergency escape lighting in corridors and stairwells; (5) clear evacuation procedures communicated to all occupants; and (6) an up-to-date fire safety log. HMO licensing conditions from your local authority may impose additional fire safety requirements beyond these baseline rules.
This page is drafted against the legislation below. Always check the current text of the law before acting.
- HMO licensing (GOV.UK)