{"id":6682,"date":"2024-11-05T08:10:15","date_gmt":"2024-11-05T06:10:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/fire-in-your-rental-apartment-who-is-liable\/"},"modified":"2024-11-05T08:10:15","modified_gmt":"2024-11-05T06:10:15","slug":"fire-in-your-rental-apartment-who-is-liable","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/en\/fire-in-your-rental-apartment-who-is-liable\/","title":{"rendered":"Fire in your rental apartment: who is liable?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em>Who is liable if a fire breaks out in your rental apartment or house? Is it the tenant or landlord? Here&#8217;s all the information in a row.  <\/em><\/p>\n<p><!--kg-card-begin: html--><\/p>\n<h2>1. Tenant and landlord responsibilities<\/h2>\n<p><!--kg-card-end: html-->  According to the <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/codex.vlaanderen.be\/PrintDocument.ashx?id=1029963&amp;geannoteerd=true\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Flemish Housing Decree<\/a><\/span><strong>As a tenant<\/strong> as well as <strong>a landlord<\/strong>, you are obliged to insure against fire and water damage:     <\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>(re)renting a rental property as a primary residence.<\/li>\n<li>have a lease that started after Jan. 1, 2019.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><!--kg-card-end: html--><\/p>\n<h2>2. Landlord responsibilities<\/h2>\n<p>  Every home in Flanders must meet the smoke detector requirement. The smoke detector requirement does not apply if the building has an automatic fire detection system with a central station.   <\/p>\n<h3>2.1. Verplichte rookmelders <\/h3>\n<p>  As a landlord, you are required to purchase and install one smoke detector per floor in all homes. For basements and attics: Install at least one smoke detector if:   <\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>there is a technical installation* there.<\/li>\n<li>Whether you have direct access to it and can enter it normally and immediately. E.g. You enter the space through a hatch or (fold-out) ladder.  <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;  One smoke detector is sufficient for a common basement area in which there are several individual basements. For apartments: Install at least one smoke detector per each shared space containing a technical installation*. For student rooms: Install at least one smoke detector per (student) room.    <\/p>\n<h3>2.2. Wat valt er onder de term &#8220;technische installatie&#8221;? <\/h3>\n<p>  *A technical plant is a plant with electrical power or a plant that produces heat and is permanently connected to the building. Technical installations are:   <\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>boilers.<\/li>\n<li>charging points.<\/li>\n<li>inverters.<\/li>\n<li>elevator machines.<\/li>\n<li>home batteries.<\/li>\n<li>ventilation units.<\/li>\n<li>fuse boxes.<\/li>\n<li>heat pumps.<\/li>\n<li>air conditioners.<\/li>\n<li>water softeners.<\/li>\n<li>boilers.<\/li>\n<li>photovoltaic systems.<\/li>\n<li>&#8230;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;  Technical installations are not:  <\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>modems.<\/li>\n<li>gas meters.<\/li>\n<li>light points.<\/li>\n<li>switches.<\/li>\n<li>water meters.<\/li>\n<li>outlets.<\/li>\n<li>household appliances.<\/li>\n<li>&#8230;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>2.3. Verplichte brandblussers <\/h3>\n<p>  As a landlord, you are required to provide fire extinguishers in the common parts of the apartment or house if the building:  <\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>older than 1994.<\/li>\n<li>consists of more than 2 building levels.<\/li>\n<li>is greater than 100 m\u00b2.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>3. Tenant responsibilities<\/h2>\n<p>  As a tenant, you are required to replace the batteries of <strong>smoke and CO detectors<\/strong> in a timely manner and arrange periodic inspection of <strong>fire extinguishers<\/strong>. Want to know more about where best to place smoke detectors and what checks exist? You can find out <a href=\"https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/nieuwe-wetgeving-rookmelder\/\">in this article<\/a>.    <\/p>\n<h2><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-3586\" src=\"https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/Verantwoordelijke-brand-in-appartement-rookmelder-batterijen-1024x576.png\" alt=\"Responsible fire in apartment - smoke detector batteries\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/Verantwoordelijke-brand-in-appartement-rookmelder-batterijen-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/Verantwoordelijke-brand-in-appartement-rookmelder-batterijen-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/Verantwoordelijke-brand-in-appartement-rookmelder-batterijen-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/Verantwoordelijke-brand-in-appartement-rookmelder-batterijen-1536x864.png 1536w, https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/Verantwoordelijke-brand-in-appartement-rookmelder-batterijen.png 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/h2>\n<h2>4. Who is liable?<\/h2>\n<p>  Liability depends on the cause of the fire. The general rule is that the tenant is liable for fire or water damage unless he\/she proves that the fire occurred through no fault of his\/her own:   <\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>for force majeure: lightning strike.<\/li>\n<li>for defects in the property that are the responsibility of the landlord: outdated electrical system.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><!--kg-card-begin: html--><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><!--kg-card-begin: html--><\/p>\n<h2>5. Prevent fire<\/h2>\n<p>  Fortunately, we have  <a href=\"https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/brand-voorkomen-doe-je-zo\/\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">helpful tips for preventing fires<\/span>.<\/a><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-1892\" src=\"https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/pexels-anete-lusina-4790469-1024x684.jpg\" alt=\"responsible\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/pexels-anete-lusina-4790469-1024x684.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/pexels-anete-lusina-4790469-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/pexels-anete-lusina-4790469-768x513.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/pexels-anete-lusina-4790469-1536x1025.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/pexels-anete-lusina-4790469-2048x1367.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><!--kg-card-end: html--><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;  Sources:  <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tijd.be\/netto\/verzekeren\/brandverzekering-ook-verplicht-voor-huurders-en-verhuurders\/10091961.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Times<\/a>,  <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vlaanderen.be\/woningkwaliteitsnormen\/brandveilige-thuis\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Flanders<\/a><\/p>\n<p><b>Would you like to cite this article as a source? Then use: <\/b><\/p>\n<p><em>C. (2024, Nov. 5). Fire in your rental apartment: who is liable? Apartment.com. Consulted on (date XX\/XX\/202X), from https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/verantwoordelijke-brand-huurappartement\/ <\/em><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>Related articles:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/hoe-voorkom-je-co-vergiftiging\/\">How do you prevent CO poisoning?<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/kosten-voor-huurder-of-verhuurder\/\">Are costs for tenant or landlord: Who pays what?<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/huurwoning-regels-volgens-wetgeving\/\">Rental property rules Flanders: what is allowed and what is not allowed?<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Who is liable if a fire breaks out in your rental apartment or house? Is it the tenant or landlord? Here&#8217;s all the information in a row. 1. Tenant and landlord responsibilities According to the Flemish Housing DecreeAs a tenant as well as a landlord, you are obliged to insure against fire and water damage: [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":6022,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1127,1128],"tags":[1179,1670,1672,1674,1673,1124,1123,1129,1130,1671],"class_list":["post-6682","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-rent","category-rental","tag-advice","tag-fire-liability","tag-fire-rental-apartment","tag-fire-rental-house","tag-fire-rental-property","tag-legal","tag-legislation","tag-rent","tag-rental","tag-responsibility-fire"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6682","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6682"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6682\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6022"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6682"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6682"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.appartement.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6682"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}