Fire safety regulations 2022 explained for flat owners

If you are looking for fire safety regulations 2022 explained in plain terms, the starting point is the responsible person. In a block of flats near Reigate town centre, that role usually falls to the freeholder or the managing agent. The new fire rules for flats apply to any building containing two or more dwellings with shared parts. A converted Victorian house split into leasehold flats carries the same legal weight as a taller purpose-built block. Height does not remove the duty.

These block of flats fire duties in Reigate require the responsible person to record the fire risk assessment in full, rather than keeping partial notes. They must also identify themselves to every resident so people know who to ask when something looks wrong. If your managing agent has not mentioned these duties at all, your next step is to write to them directly and ask how they are meeting their obligations as the responsible person. Silence does not remove the requirement.

The front door of your flat is part of the shared fire protection system. Flat entrance door check requirements now place a specific duty on the responsible person to inspect these doors in buildings over eleven metres tall. In shorter buildings, including most converted houses around Reigate, the responsible person still needs to confirm that each door resists fire adequately, even if the exact inspection schedule differs.

A specialist firm carries out the actual inspection, checking seals, hinges, gaps and closers. You do need to let someone in to do it, because the door cannot be assessed from the hallway alone. Leaseholder fire safety obligations include cooperating with these checks. If you own a leasehold flat, your lease almost certainly requires you to allow access for statutory inspections. Refusing entry leaves the responsible person unable to meet their legal duty, which affects the whole building.

Doors in shared corridors, stairwells and lobbies protect escape routes. A communal fire door quarterly inspection applies to buildings over eleven metres in height. For lower blocks, the responsible person must still arrange regular checks, though the law does not fix the interval at three months. The frequency depends on how heavily the doors are used and what the recorded fire risk assessment recommends.

The managing agent or freeholder arranges this work. A specialist firm inspects the doors and reports back on any faults. Residents do not organise these checks themselves, but they should report damaged doors or broken closers immediately. If you want to understand how often the wider assessment needs updating, read more about [how often to review a fire risk assessment](/who-needs-what/how-often-reviewed). Keeping communal doors working is one part of maintaining compartmentation across the building.

Every resident in a block of flats must receive fire safety information for residents. This includes instructions on how to evacuate, what the fire strategy for the building is, and how the fire doors work. The responsible person must provide this when someone moves in and again whenever the information changes. It is not optional.

If you have never received anything, write to your managing agent or freeholder and ask for the current evacuation plan and fire safety instructions. They are required to supply them. This information helps you understand whether your building follows a stay-put policy or a simultaneous evacuation. For details on how those plans are drawn up, see [fire evacuation plans in Reigate](/checks-and-training/fire-evacuation-plans-reigate). Knowing the plan means you will not guess what to do if an alarm sounds.

Will the cost of door checks and resident fire safety information come out of your service charge? Usually, yes. The responsible person passes reasonable costs for statutory compliance through the service charge, subject to the terms of your lease. These are not optional improvements. They are legal requirements, so the expense forms part of normal building maintenance.

Could your buildings insurance be affected if the block is not meeting these requirements? Yes. Insurers expect the responsible person to comply with fire safety law. If a claim follows a fire and the insurer finds that mandatory door checks were skipped or residents never received evacuation instructions, the policy may not pay out. That exposure falls on the freeholder or management company, but it can delay repairs for everyone. Arranging a proper [fire risk assessment in Reigate](/checks-and-training/fire-risk-assessment-reigate) creates a record that shows the building is being managed correctly.