ADVICE & OPINION
COMPLIANCE
FIRE SAFETY AMENDMENTS
In association with
What the latest amendments to The Building Safety Bill mean
for the installation and commissioning of fi re safety systems.
By Conor Logan Technical Director, Colt www.coltinfo.co.uk
Act responsibly or face he y financial and
legal consequences. This is the message the
government is sending to manufacturers, installers
and suppliers of fire safety equipment with its
latest amendments to The Building Safety Bill.
In February, the government tabled 38 pages
of amendments to The Building Safety Bill that
would impose extremely stringent penalties on
manufacturers, installers and others across the
industry who do not comply with the proper
standards and regulations. Although the main driver
for these changes is cladding issues, systems and
products like smoke control, sprinklers and fire
alarms are also included.
The proposals will also see the industry having to
pay to fix historical problems that have arisen due
to a lack of competence or care when installing and
commissioning systems and products. Building
owners and landlords will be able to take legal action
against manufacturers who used defective products
on a home that has since been found unfit for
habitation or if installers were found to have acted in a
way that caused a building safety risk; this power will
stretch back 30 years and allow recovery where costs
have already been paid out.
However, it is not only manufacturers and installers
who could be punished retroactively. For developers
not seen to be working responsibly by employing
unfit contractors, the government will be able to
block planning permission and building control signo
on developments, e ectively preventing them
from building and selling new homes. Landlords who
are linked to an original developer that still owns a
building over 11 metres tall will also be required to
14 APRIL 2022
pay in full to fix historic building safety issues in the
property.
In an e ort to completely absolve leaseholders of
the responsibility for paying to fix defective building
safety equipment, building owners who are not linked
to the developer, but who can a ord to pay, will also
be required to do so.
COMPLIANT CHOICE
In this, there is a second message to developers,
building owners and operators – save yourselves a
costly lesson and work with compliant manufacturers
and installers from the start. Colt were the first UK
smoke control company to be certified to both IFC
SDI 19 and SDI 05, standards developed by the SCA
and awarded to Colt in recognition of our experience
and skill and an installer and servicer of both smoke
control systems and fire curtains.
To avoid any potential issues with installation
quality, we would recommend that anyone
employing a smoke control company ask to see these
certificates, as well as proof of Quality Assurance (ISO
9001) and Health and Safety accreditations.
Talking about the changes, Michael Gove, Secretary
of State for Levelling Up, said: “It is time to bring this
scandal to an end, protect leaseholders and see the
industry work together to deliver a solution. These
measures will stop building owners passing all costs
on to leaseholders and make sure any repairs are
proportionate and necessary for their safety.
“All industry must play a part, instead of continuing
to profit whilst hardworking families struggle. We
cannot allow those who do not take building safety
seriously to build homes in the future, and for
Service
those not willing to play their part, they must face
consequences.
“We will take action to keep homes safe and to
protect existing leaseholders from paying the price for
bad development.”
These amendments prepare the ground for the
creation and launch of an industry levy scheme for
the purpose of improving safety in buildings and
raising standards.
SCHEME PRINCIPLES
The principles of the scheme management are
outlined below. The bill is now at Committee stage in
the House of Lords following its second reading, so
it is making significant progress. More amendments
will probably follow, but the key points at this stage
include:
The Defects Liability Act is extended to 30 years,
covering cladding products for 30 years and
building products and systems for 15 years.
A relevant defect is defined as anything done
or not done that creates a building safety risk.
As mentioned previously, this includes any
installation or commissioning errors as well,
regardless of whether they were deliberate or not.
A building safety risk is defined as making or
potentially making a dwelling uninhabitable
through structural collapse or spread of fire. Note,
not building regulation requirements.
Within this, there is the creation of a Building
Liability Order, Remediation Order and a
Remediation Contribution Order.
Liability in relation to products is focused on
manufacturers, installers and suppliers and is
defined as failure to comply with the construction
product regulations.
In addition to remediation costs, provision is
made for loss and expense for those a ected by
the defect.
The intention of all these changes is to prevent
unfit products being used and to put an end to
incompetent and dangerous installation practices.
The Bill will also help to ensure robust maintenance
programs for all building safety equipment and will
hold building owners and operators responsible if
they fail to keep systems operational.
We at Colt welcome these changes and hope to see
them established into law soon. If this goes through,
some significant powers are created, along with
significant liabilities for the construction industry;
there are certainly some companies that will struggle
to meet the new standards.
/www.coltinfo.co.uk
