Building Safety Act – Don’t forget to register your higher-risk building

For those responsible for higher-risk buildings (“HRBs”) – being a building with at least two residential dwellings and 18+ metres or over 7 storeys in height and which can include student accommodation – time is running out to register your building with the Building Safety Regulator (“BSR”).

All HRBs must be registered by 30 September 2023. It will be an offence if residents occupy an unregistered HRB after this deadline.

The registration should be made by the principal accountable person (“PAP”) or the PAP can authorise someone else to make the application. Such authorisation must be made in writing.

The initial steps for registration are to complete the registration application including paying a fee of £251. It is important to note that a HRB cannot be registered if the fee is not paid.

The information to be submitted at registration includes:

• the building’s name, address and postcode;
• a summary of the building including its height in metres, number of floors and residential units, and year of completion; and
• the names and contact details of the PAP and accountable persons (“APs”).

There is a separate obligation on PAPs to provide the BSR key building information (“KBI”), including (but not limited to):

• use of the building;
• description of the materials used in the composition of the external walls, insulation and roof;
• building information such as the number of staircases and type of energy; and
• a list of fire and smoke control equipment, along with a description of the evacuation strategy which is in place.

The KBI is to be provided in electronic form within 28 days of the submission of the application to register the HRB.

It is likely that PAPs may have difficulties locating some of the required information, especially in relation to older buildings. Furthermore, it is expected that specialists may need to be consulted to advise on various matters. Therefore, PAPs should ensure they are acting now to submit their registration(s) by 30 September 2023 to avoid committing a criminal offense.

If you have questions about the Building Safety Act, the Building Safety Fund or any cladding and/or building safety issues, please contact Brenna Baye or any other member of our Building Safety and Cladding Team.

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