Tenants - public sector and council

Interlinked alarms

Every home in Scotland needs interlinked fire alarms. They are alarms that talk to each other - so when one goes off, they all go off.

You can read the full guidance on the gov.scot website.

Every home now needs to have:

• 1 smoke alarm in the room you spend most of the day, usually your living room
• 1 smoke alarm in every circulation space on each storey, such as hallways and landings
• 1 heat alarm in the kitchen

All smoke and heat alarms should be mounted on the ceiling and interlinked.

If you have a carbon-fuelled appliance, like a  boiler, fire, non-electric heater or flue you must also have a carbon monoxide detector. This does not need to be linked to the fire alarms.

Social landlords are carrying out a programme of work to make sure interlinked fire alarms are in place. Speak to your landlord if you are waiting for interlinked fire alarms to be installed.

Electrical inspections

Electrical problems are one of the most common causes of home fires.

From March 2022, every landlord in Scotland has to carry out an electrical inspection of all the installations, fixtures, and fittings in a property.

During an inspection, an electrical contractor will:

• test all the electrical appliances in the home
• make sure all the wiring is safe
• make sure electrical circuits aren't overloaded
• check for fire hazards
• check for risks of electric shock

These inspections have to be carried out at least once every 5 years.

If repairs are needed

If you are a public sector or council tenant, you have the 'Right to Repair'.

This means any small urgent repairs (up to £350) that might affect your safety or your health have to be carried out by your landlord quickly.

Some of the repairs covered under the Right to Repair are for fire safety. For example, your landlord has to repair:

• unsafe power or lighting sockets or electrical fittings
• loss of electric power or gas supply
• a blocked flue to an open fire or boiler

Visit the Scottish Government website for more information on the Right to Repair.