Legislation, Regulations & Guidance
Latest
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A government pledge signed by five insurance brokers will stop the sharing of commissions with parties who place or arrange buildings insurance for blocks with identified fire safety issues that are over 11 metres or four storeys.
The pledge also introduces a cap of 15% on the premium that brokers take to compensate for their work in arranging the insurance. A recent Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) report on broker remuneration found that this amount can be as high as 60% of the cost of the premium paid by leaseholders.
To read more, click here.
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Today (26th October 2023), the Levelling-Up and Regeneration Bill received Royal Assent.
The measures in the Levelling-Up and Regeneration Act will support communities and local authorities to transform their local areas, complementing government investment in projects that will help regenerate left behind areas, and seeks to speed up the planning system, hold developers to account, cut bureaucracy, and encourage more councils to put in place plans to enable the building of new homes.
The Act also contains two amendment to the Building Safety Act, under the Leaseholder Protections legislation, dealing with circumstances where leaseholders may partly-own other properties, and for leaseholder who have extended their lease and no longer satisfying the criteria for a qualifying lease at the qualifying time (before 14th February 2022). The Lords amendments put forward are:
- Lords Amendment to insert a new clause after Clause 214: Nonqualifying leases under the Building Safety Act 2022
Amendment 242 seeks to secure parity between qualifying and non-qualifying leaseholders
under the Building Safety Act 2022, extending protection to three properties for all
leaseholders and excluding from the calculation of the number of properties those where 50%
or less is owned by an individual.
Lords Amendment to insert a new clause after Clause 214: Qualifying leases under the Building Safety Act 2022
Amendment 243 seeks to address the issue whereby a lease which qualifies for the
leaseholder protections under the Building Safety Act 2022 ceases to qualify where it is
‘extended’ (because a ‘lease extension’ is actually a surrender of the existing lease and the
grant of a new one) or, in certain cases, varied. The new section is intended to apply to a
qualifying lease whenever the variation, surrender or regrant occurred and notwithstanding
any agreement that would disapply the section to a particular qualifying lease.
- Building Safety Act
- Lords Amendment to insert a new clause after Clause 214: Nonqualifying leases under the Building Safety Act 2022
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Housing secretary Michael Gove has announced a 30-month transition period before the new second staircase guidance must be followed in England.
Announcing the intended transitional arrangements for the policy in a statement on Tuesday 24th October 2023, Michael Gove said this period will begin from the date the government publishes and confirms the changes to Approved Document B – the government’s building guidance covering fire safety.Housebuilders will then have 30 months from this date, during which new building regulations applications can conform to the guidance “as it exists today, or to the updated guidance”.
In July, Mr Gove confirmed that the government will impose a requirement for second staircases on all new buildings in England that are 18 metres or taller, lowered from the 30 metres proposed when the initial consultation on the policy launched. He said this followed “confirmation from expert bodies that they support this threshold”.
After the two-and-half-year transition period, Mr Gove said “all applications will need to conform to the new guidance”.
Any approved applications that do not follow the new guidance will have 18 months for construction to “get underway in earnest”. If not, they will have to submit a new application following the new guidance.
“Sufficient progress, for this purpose, will match the definition set out in the Building (Higher-Risk Buildings Procedures) (England) Regulations 2023 and will therefore be when the pouring of concrete for either the permanent placement of trench, pad or raft foundations, or for the permanent placement of piling has started,” Mr Gove said.
He added that the transitional arrangements will ensure that projects which already have planning permission with a single staircase, “the safety of which will have been considered as part of that application”, can continue without further delay if they choose.
Mr Gove said: “I want to be absolutely clear that existing and upcoming single-staircase buildings are not inherently unsafe. They will not later need to have a second staircase added, when built in accordance with relevant standards, well maintained and properly managed.
“I expect lenders, managing agents, insurers and others to behave accordingly, and not to impose onerous additional requirements, hurdles or criteria on single-staircase buildings in lending, pricing, management or any other respect. Those who live in new buildings over 18 metres can be reassured that those buildings are already subject to the additional scrutiny of the new, enhanced building safety regime.”
Mr Gove added that the Building Safety Regulator is working to agree the design details that will go into Approved Document B “rapidly” and said he will make a further announcement soon.
- Building Safety Act
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On Tuesday 17th October, the Government laid the Higher-Risk Buildings (Keeping and Provision of Information etc) (England) Regulations 2023 in Parliament.
The Regulations set out what information will constitute the golden thread to be kept for occupied buildings and who the information should be shared with.
A copy of the regulations can be found here.
The regulations set out the golden thread information that the people responsible for an occupied higher-risk building (the accountable persons) need to keep, and what information they need to provide to others (including residents) of the building. The regulations also set out the limited exemptions to sharing the information on the basis of security, commercial confidentiality and data protection sensitivities.
These Regulations also make small amendments to the Higher-Risk Buildings (Key Building Information etc.) Regulations 2023 and the Higher-Risk Buildings (Descriptions and Supplementary Provisions) Regulations 2023. This is to clarify what part of the building an accountable person is responsible for when there are multiple accountable persons for the same higher-risk building, and to remove the exclusion of certain types of military premises.
The golden thread of information will contain the evidence and information needed to identify and manage building safety risks. The golden thread information will enable accountable persons to demonstrate they understand the building and the steps required to keep it safe. Without information about a building, including risk assessments and details of safety features and arrangements, accountable persons cannot be confident they are meeting their obligations under the Building Safety Act, or demonstrate this to others. This is the final set of regulations currently planned for the higher-risk building regime.
- Building Safety Regulator
- Golden Thread & Safety Management Systems
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All existing high-rise residential buildings in England should have officially been registered by 1 October 2023. You are still able to use the registration service to register new in-scope buildings in line with current guidance.
Principal Accountable Persons (PAP) were given six months from April to register all high-rise residential buildings in England, that are 18 metres or higher or seven storeys or more with at least two residential units with the BSR.
Those responsible for registering buildings who have missed the deadline could now face significant sanctions, including prosecution.
If you have yet to complete the registration process, register here.- Building Safety Regulator
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TPI HSE webinar (24th January) ‘Building Safety Regulator TPI Member Q&A Session – Occupied Buildings'
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Welcome from the Chief Inspector of Buildings & Building Safety Health Check Panel Discussion - ARMA Conference 2023
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TPI Advice Note: Fire Safety Management in Flats
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Building Safety Act 2022