Carbon monoxide alarm installation in Kensington and Chelsea

The Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (Amendment) Regulations 2022 came into force on 1 October 2022 and significantly extended landlord obligations across England, including all of Kensington and Chelsea. Previously, CO alarms were only required in rooms with solid-fuel burning appliances — the 2022 amendment extended this to every room containing any fixed combustion appliance, which in practice means gas appliances.

For the typical Kensington and Chelsea rental property this means: a CO alarm in the room housing the boiler (usually a combi boiler in a kitchen cupboard or airing cupboard), a CO alarm in the kitchen if there is a gas hob or cooker, and a CO alarm in any reception room containing a gas fire. A living room with an electric heater does not require a CO alarm — only rooms with gas, oil, or solid fuel appliances are in scope.

Alarms must be in working order at the start of each new tenancy and repaired or replaced as soon as reasonably practicable when a tenant reports a fault. Local housing authorities in Kensington and Chelsea can issue remedial notices and impose fines of up to £5,000 per property for non-compliance. There is no grace period — the obligation applied from 1 October 2022.

Our Gas Safe engineers cover every area of Kensington and Chelsea — Kensington, Chelsea, Notting Hill, Earls Court — and can fit compliant alarms the same day you call, issuing a written compliance record you can keep on file or provide to your letting agent.

The 2022 Regulations accept both mains-powered (230V) and sealed long-life battery CO alarms, provided they meet BS EN 50291-1. For most Kensington and Chelsea properties a sealed 10-year battery alarm is the most practical option — no wiring required, no ongoing battery replacement, and the unit is replaced as a whole at end of life.

Mains-powered alarms with battery backup are preferred in new-builds and HMOs where the installation can be wired into the consumer unit. They are also better suited to interlinked systems where all alarms sound when one detects CO — a requirement in many larger Kensington and Chelsea HMOs under their licence conditions.

CO alarms should be positioned at head height (roughly 1-1.5 metres from the floor) and no closer than 1 metre from any gas appliance. They must not be placed in corners or in direct airflow from extractor fans, which can dilute CO before it reaches the sensor. Our engineers always follow manufacturer placement guidelines and will advise on the optimal position for each room.

If a CO alarm sounds in your Kensington and Chelsea property, the correct response is: open windows and doors, evacuate everyone from the building, do not re-enter, call 0800 111 999 (National Gas Emergency Service), and do not use any gas appliances until a Gas Safe engineer has inspected and cleared the property. Never ignore a sounding CO alarm — carbon monoxide is colourless, odourless, and fatal at high concentrations.