If you rent out a house, apartment or room in Ireland, fire safety is not optional paperwork. It is a legal minimum standard, and it applies whether you let one flat or manage a block. This guide sets out what the Housing (Standards for Rented Houses) Regulations 2019 require on fire safety, what changes when a building has several units, and how a fire risk assessment helps you stay on the right side of the law.
What the law says
The Housing (Standards for Rented Houses) Regulations 2019 (S.I. No. 137 of 2019) came into operation on 1 May 2019. They apply to rented houses, including apartments, that are let or available for letting. Holiday homes are exempt. Regulation 10 deals with fire safety, and it treats a single house differently from a house in a multi-unit building.
Separately, if you have control of a building, you also have duties under section 18(2) of the Fire Services Acts 1981 and 2003 to take reasonable measures to guard against the outbreak of fire and to protect people if one occurs. Landlords who employ or contract staff, such as caretakers or cleaners, also have duties under the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005.
Single rented houses
For a rented house that is not part of a multi-unit building, the standard is a suitable fire detection and alarm system and a fire blanket. These must be in good working order when the tenancy starts and kept that way.
Apartments and other multi-unit buildings
A multi-unit building is a building that contains two or more houses sharing a common access, which covers most apartment blocks and houses converted into flats. The requirements are higher:
- Inside each unit: a mains-wired smoke alarm, a fire blanket and an emergency evacuation plan.
- In the common areas: a fire detection and alarm system and emergency lighting.
- Maintenance: the detection and alarm system and the emergency lighting must be maintained in line with current NSAI standards. In practice that means I.S. 3218 for fire detection and alarm systems and I.S. 3217 for emergency lighting.
The Department of Housing also publishes a Guide to Fire Safety in Flats, Bedsits and Apartments, which is a useful reference for existing buildings.
A practical landlord checklist
- Confirm whether your property is a single house or part of a multi-unit building.
- Test every smoke alarm and check the fire blanket is accessible, in date and fixed in a sensible place such as the kitchen.
- Walk the common areas. Escape routes should be clear, doors should close properly and nothing should be stored on stairs or landings.
- Check that emergency lighting works and that servicing records exist.
- Make sure there is an emergency evacuation plan and that tenants have been given it.
- Keep dated records of inspections, servicing and any repairs. If something goes wrong, records are your evidence that you acted.
- Give tenants clear information on how to use the safety equipment, and tell them whom to contact about faults.
Why a fire risk assessment is worth it
The Regulations set a minimum. They do not tell you whether your escape routes are suitable, whether a fire door is doing its job or whether a particular layout creates a risk the checklist will not catch. A written fire risk assessment looks at the whole building and gives you a prioritised list of actions, so you know what to fix first and can show that you took reasonable steps. It is especially valuable for older conversions, houses split into flats, student lets and larger blocks.
Safer Solutions carries out fire risk assessments for landlords, property managers and building owners in Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Galway and across Ireland. You can read more about our fire risk assessment service. If your property also has hot and cold water systems, see our guide on Legionella and rental properties.
Watch: fire safety compliance in Ireland
Our short video explains the basics of fire safety compliance for Irish premises. You can find more on our YouTube channel.
Talk to us
Not sure what your property needs? Call 086 275 9728 or send us a message and we will talk you through it. This article is general guidance, not legal advice. Always check the current Regulations and your own circumstances.