FIRE SAFETY IN COMMERCIAL PROPERTY – WHERE DO WE GO POST-GRENFELL?

FIRE SAFETY IN COMMERCIAL PROPERTY – WHERE DO WE GO POST-GRENFELL?

The Grenfell Tower tragedy brought the issue of fire safety to the forefront of everyone’s attention. The devastating events highlighted the need for the Government to more tightly control the construction, operation, management and use of both commercial and residential properties in the UK. This session will cover the fast-moving changes to the legislation, guidance and policy around fire safety for commercial properties, but also provide some key reminders on the overall regulatory environment and the impact of lease drafting on the liability position. The talk will take a practical look at the following key areas:

  • The basic fire safety requirements applying to commercial property, in particular the Fire Safety Order 2005
  • Recent changes to the Building Regulations, the new Fire Safety Bill and other initiatives tightening requirements for landlords and developers
  • The Government’s current and proposed consultations, dealing with potential further changes to the regime
  • Mechanisms to allocate responsibility for fire safety between landlords and tenants and how this impacts on liability should an incident occur
  • Court cases highlighting the continued increase in average fines for any breaches
  • Real-world case studies looking at the particular difficulties in dealing with liability in multi-let or mixed-use buildings

Rebecca Roffe, Partner at CMS UK

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