Carbon Monoxide Alarm Law for London Landlords: The 2022 Amendment Explained

What Changed in October 2022

The Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (Amendment) Regulations 2022 came into force on 1 October 2022, significantly expanding obligations for private landlords and social housing providers across England, including every London borough. The original 2015 regulations applied only to solid fuel appliances such as open fires and wood-burning stoves. The 2022 amendment extended the carbon monoxide requirement to all rooms containing a fixed combustion appliance, which in London most commonly means gas boilers, gas fires, and oil-fired boilers.

Which Rooms Require a CO Alarm

A carbon monoxide alarm must be installed in any room that contains a fixed combustion appliance, with the exception of gas cookers. In practice, this means:

• Boiler cupboards and utility rooms — where a wall-hung or floor-standing gas boiler is located
• Living rooms with a gas fire — decorative or functional gas fires require a CO alarm in the same room
• Bedrooms with a gas fire — common in older London properties converted into flats
• Any room with a solid fuel burner — wood burners and open fires still fall under the original 2015 obligation

Gas cookers are explicitly excluded from the 2022 regulations, meaning a kitchen that contains only a gas hob or range does not legally require a CO alarm under this legislation. However, installing one is still strongly recommended as good practice.

Alarm Types: What Counts as Compliant

The regulations do not prescribe a specific alarm standard by name, but MHCLG guidance directs landlords to use alarms that comply with British Standard EN 50291. Compliant alarms are available in three main formats:

• Battery-operated units — the most common type in London rental conversions. Sealed ten-year lithium battery models are widely preferred because they do not require battery replacement during a typical tenancy.
• Mains-powered with battery backup — required in some building specifications and preferred where the alarm must be interlinked with smoke detection.
• Combination smoke and CO alarms — acceptable provided both functions meet the relevant British Standards (BS EN 14604 for smoke, BS EN 50291 for CO).

Placement matters. CO alarms should be mounted at head height when sleeping or seated, typically 1 to 3 metres from the appliance and away from direct airflow. Do not install them directly above a boiler where heat may cause nuisance trips.

Landlord Obligations at the Start of Each Tenancy

Landlords must ensure alarms are in working order on the first day of each new tenancy. For existing tenancies that were running before 1 October 2022, the obligation to install alarms in rooms with fixed combustion appliances applied immediately from that date. The working-order check at tenancy start is a landlord duty; ongoing testing during the tenancy becomes the tenant's responsibility, mirroring the smoke alarm regime.

Tenant Rights and Remediation Process

If a landlord fails to install a CO alarm where required, a tenant can report the matter to the local authority. Under the 2022 amendment the enforcement authority is the London borough council. Once notified, the council must issue a remedial notice requiring the landlord to install the alarm, usually within 28 days. If the landlord does not comply, the council can arrange installation itself and recover the cost, plus a financial penalty of up to £5,000.

Tenants also have the right to request that a faulty alarm identified at the start of tenancy is repaired or replaced before they move in. Where a CO alarm activates during a tenancy, the landlord's gas engineer must inspect the suspect appliance promptly. This is not simply a nuisance alarm situation; sustained CO exposure is life-threatening and should be treated as a gas emergency.

Common Compliance Gaps in London Rental Stock

The most frequent compliance failures we encounter in London rental properties are:

• Boilers located in airing cupboards or cupboards under stairs where no CO alarm has been installed
• Victorian and Edwardian conversions where a gas fire remains in a bedroom used as a reception room
• HMOs where the boiler serves a communal cupboard not covered by any individual room alarm
• Older combination alarms past their seven or ten-year end-of-life date still present at tenancy renewal

If you are unsure whether your property is fully compliant, a gas safety inspection combined with a compliance audit from a Gas Safe registered engineer will identify every gap before a letting agent inspection or council enforcement visit.