Holiday Let Fire Safety Rules: What You Must Do

Fire Safety Guide

Fire safety for a holiday let is not complicated, but there are clear things you are expected to have in place. Here is what the rules ask of you, in order, and how to meet them.

1. Carry Out and Record a Fire Risk Assessment

This is the foundation of everything else. As the Responsible Person under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, you must assess the fire risks in your property, decide what precautions are needed, and act on them. Since 1 October 2023, under Section 156 of the Building Safety Act 2022, you must also record the assessment in full, however small the property. See our guide on whether you need a fire risk assessment for the detail.

2. Fit the Right Fire Detection

You need enough working detection to give guests early warning. For a typical holiday let that means:

• Smoke alarms on every storey and in escape routes, ideally mains-powered and interlinked so that when one sounds, they all sound;
• A heat alarm in the kitchen;
• A carbon monoxide alarm in any room with a gas or solid-fuel appliance, such as a boiler, gas fire, open fire or wood burner.

Domestic detection is usually specified to the BS 5839-6 standard. Test the alarms between guest stays and keep a simple record.

3. Keep Escape Routes Clear and Usable

Guests do not know your property. They must be able to find their way out quickly, including at night. Make sure every bedroom leads to a final exit, that routes and exits are kept clear, that final exit doors open easily from the inside without hunting for a key, and that routes are usable in the dark.

4. Use Fire Doors Where They Are Needed

Fire doors buy time by holding back fire and smoke, particularly to higher-risk rooms and on the route out. Where fire doors are fitted they should close fully into the frame and be kept free of wedges and hold-open devices.

5. Provide Simple Firefighting Equipment

A fire blanket in the kitchen is sensible for most holiday lets. If you provide extinguishers, they must be suitable and maintained, but the priority message to guests is always to get out and call 999, not to fight the fire.

6. Stay on Top of Gas and Electrical Safety

Gas appliances must be serviced every year by a Gas Safe registered engineer, and you must hold a current Gas Safety Record. Your electrical installation should have a satisfactory Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR), and the appliances you provide should be checked regularly for damage. Any open fire or wood burner needs its chimney swept at the right frequency for the fuel.

7. Tell Your Guests What to Do

Government guidance is clear that guests should be told what to do if a fire occurs. A short fire action notice, the property's full address for a 999 call, and a simple guest fire safety pack covering escape routes and the assembly point all help. This is one of the easiest duties to meet and one of the most often missed.

8. Keep Records and Review

Keep your written fire risk assessment, your alarm test records, gas and electrical certificates and sweep certificates together. Review the assessment at least annually, and whenever you change the property or how it is used.