Smoke Alarms In Rental Properties

It’s been five years since smoke alarms became compulsory in rental properties in March 2018.

➡ For all rental properties, it’s mandatory to have working smoke alarms.

➡ There must be a smoke alarm within 3 mm of each bedroom or one every room where a person sleeps.

➡ Alarms installed after 01/07/16 must be hard-wired or have long-life batteries.

🔴 If landlords don’t meet their obligations, they could face financial penalties of up to $7,200.

🔴 And if tenants don’t meet their obligations, they could face financial penalties of up to $4,000.

➡ Landlords must ensure that all their rental properties meet the smoke alarm requirements to safeguard their tenants.

➡ They should also keep a record of smoke alarm maintenance and testing to demonstrate compliance with regulations.

The best practice is to document the following information and include it in all new tenancy agreements or your ingoing condition reports.

1️⃣ The number & location of each smoke alarm in the property.
2️⃣ At least one alarm per storey/level.
3️⃣ Confirming alarms are within 3 metres of all bedrooms.
4️⃣ The date the smoke alarms were last checked and by whom.
5️⃣ Type and the expiry date if they are a ten-year alarm

🚩 While most rental properties in New Zealand will be compliant, there are still some landlords who continue to ignore this law.

Not only that but if your property doesn’t have smoke alarms (or they’re not compliant) you could invalidate your insurance in the event of a claim as a result of a fire.

Remember, smoke alarms save lives. 

Watch the smoke alarms video to understand your responsibilities under the 2016 Smoke Alarm Regulations

Testing Smoke Alarms

Unfortunately, testing smoke alarms is outside the scope of expertise of a property manager.

However, as a service to our clients, when doing routine inspections, we will check that all smoke alarms are present and press the test button.

All Ways Property is not qualified to and cannot test or check if;

• The decibel sound levels are correct.
• The alarms are functioning %100 correctly.
• Alarms have expired.
• That alarms are maintained to and meet all manufacturers’ instructions.
• Alarms meet all the NZ Fire Safety Regulations.

In a bureaucratic world of compliance and legislation, we strongly recommend independent smoke alarm testing to keep you safe. (to protect butt)

🟢 For this reason and for better risk management, we have chosen Smoke Alarm Testing Services (SATS) as our smoke alarm service provider.

🟢 They have a very reasonable annual fee of $114, incl. GST covers unlimited visits to the property throughout the year, including testing between new tenancies and discounts for landlords servicing three or more rental properties.

Visit www.sats.co.nz.

Making life easier for landlords is what we do, want to chat

Drop me an email or call 027 249 8295.