New smoke alarm rules: what you need to know

Laws forcing households to install interlinked smoke alarms across Scotland from February will not be delayed, the Scottish Government announced.

The government has faced repeated calls to postpone the scheme after concerns were raised about public awareness, affordability and even shortages of alarms.

But in a statement on January 19, Housing Secretary Shona Robison said the government will press ahead with the legislation which could “save lives”.

With so many questions surrounding the scheme, here’s what you need to know about the plans and how they affect homes across the country.

The change in the law means that by February 1 every home will need to have: one smoke alarm in the room you spend most of the day, usually your living room; one smoke alarm in every circulation space on each storey, such as hallways and landings; one heat alarm in the kitchen; All smoke and heat alarms should be mounted on the ceiling and be interlinked which means if one alarm goes off, they all go off.

For those with carbonfuelled appliances, such as a boiler, fire, heater or flue, homeowners must also have a carbon monoxide detector. This does not need to be linked to the fire alarms.

The legislation was introduced in response to the Grenfell Tower tragedy in 2017.

Ms Robison told MSPS the alarms will “support greater fire safety and prevent avoidable death”.

Figures released from the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service show there were 44 deaths due to house fires in Scotland between 2020-21.

Ms Robison said the alarms come at an “expected average cost of around £220 and sometimes less”. However, there will be an extra cost associated if a tradesperson is needed to fit the appliances.

Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife told the housing secretary the “figures are often far, far higher”.

There have been reports of supply shortages impacting on the availability of the alarms.

Ms Robison said she was “aware there have been challenges in meeting this demand exacerbated by global supply shortages of component parts and in the supply of suitable tradespeople to carry out work in people’s homes”.

She added that the legislation makes allowance for the “reasonable amount of time needed in this situation”.

The Scottish Government provided £1.5 million of funding to Care and Repair Scotland and the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service to support those who own their own home who are at high risk of fire or who are elderly or disabled.

Care and Repair has dealt with just short of 2,500 inquiries about fire alarms since September last year.

Private landlords should already have interlinked smoke alarms in their homes and social landlords are carrying out a programme of work to make sure interlinked fire alarms are in place.

Local authorities have the duty for ensuring compliance with the new fire safety standards in their local areas.

However, Ms Robison said councils have confirmed they will be taking a “light touch” approach in terms of enforcement.

There will be no penalties for non-compliance and no one will be penalised if they need more time.

For households that still fall short of the standards there are concerns that insurance policies will be invalidated when the new laws come into place.

Ms Robison said this is “not the case” but she encouraged anyone who is “unclear” about their policy terms and conditions in relation to the new law to speak to their insurer.

LEGISLATION: The Scottish Government has announced that there will not be a delay to the new rules regarding smoke alarms.