Tower Hamlets HMO Fire Safety: Alarm Requirements, Fire Doors and Risk Assessments

Fire safety is the area where Tower Hamlets HMO licence conditions are most prescriptive, and where a breach carries the most serious enforcement consequences. Fire-safety failures can lead to enforcement under both the Housing Act 2004 and the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 — two separate enforcement regimes, each with its own penalties.

Interlinked Fire Detection

Licensed HMOs must meet the fire detection requirements in their licence conditions and fire risk assessment. Where alarms are interlinked, activation of one detector sounds the others in the system; the licence conditions specify the required arrangement.

Your fire risk assessment should identify detector locations and types based on the property's layout and occupancy, including where smoke or heat detection and carbon monoxide alarms are required. It should also specify the appropriate alarm system for the property.

Fire Doors

The fire risk assessment and licence conditions should identify where fire doors are needed and the standard required. Where fitted, keep them in working order and do not wedge or prop them open.

Escape Routes

Keep escape routes — corridors, stairways and exit paths — clear of obstructions. The fire risk assessment should identify whether emergency lighting is needed in common areas and along escape routes.

The fire risk assessment should confirm that the escape route leads to a suitable final exit and identify any door hardware that could delay escape.

Fire Risk Assessment

The fire risk assessment covers the building's fire hazards, the people at risk, the existing fire safety measures, and what additional measures are needed. It should follow PAS 79 standards and be carried out by someone competent in fire risk assessment for residential HMO properties.

The assessment must be:

• Completed before the licence application (it's one of the required documents)
• Reviewed periodically — annually, and whenever the property layout, fire safety measures or occupancy changes
• Available for inspection by the council's housing officers or the fire service

Monthly Alarm Testing

HMO licence conditions require monthly testing of all interlinked smoke and carbon monoxide alarms. Keep a log of each test: date, which devices were tested, whether they sounded correctly, and any faults found and remedied.

Keep the log with your ongoing compliance records so you can show the testing schedule and any faults remedied. The council may inspect under Section 239 of the Housing Act 2004 after giving at least 24 hours' written notice.

The Enforcement Side

Operating an HMO without adequate fire safety measures can trigger enforcement under both housing and fire safety legislation. The council can serve Improvement Notices (£884.00 enforcement charge per notice) or Prohibition Orders under Part 1 of the Housing Act 2004. The fire service can take action independently under the Fire Safety Order.

The Tower Hamlets Landlord Licensing Guide includes a fire safety compliance section within the annual compliance tracker — covering alarm testing schedules, fire door inspection points, and fire risk assessment review dates for the full licence term.

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