Building Safety Act 2022

What it does

The Act reshaped building safety in England after Grenfell. Its two big effects for blocks of flats are the higher-risk building regime and the protection of qualifying leaseholders from the cost of historical safety defects.

Higher-risk buildings

A residential building at least 18 metres or 7 storeys tall with at least two homes is a higher-risk building. It must be registered with the Building Safety Regulator and has an accountable person (often the freeholder or RMC) with duties to assess and manage building safety risks, keep a safety case and golden thread of information, run a resident engagement strategy and handle complaints. A principal accountable person carries the registration and reporting duties.

Leaseholder protections

Schedule 8 limits what landlords can charge qualifying leaseholders for historical safety defects, and bans charges for cladding remediation. Landlords must provide certificates about their net worth and the building’s history. Leaseholder-owned freehold companies are treated differently in some respects, so check how the rules apply to your company before you charge or refuse to charge.

Status

In force in stages since 2022. Wales is developing its own regime, so most higher-risk building duties apply only in England.