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Fire safety works

Fire doors

Fire door sets with closers, intumescent strips and smoke seals, fitted and recorded.

  • Free site visit and measured survey
  • Built to the council’s HMO standards
  • Certificates and photos at handover
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Newly fitted fire door with intumescent strips, smoke seals and overhead closer
In short: An HMO fire door is a certified door set, usually rated FD30S, that holds back fire and smoke for about 30 minutes when closed. It needs the right frame, intumescent strips, smoke seals, three hinges and a self-closer, and it only works if it is fitted to the manufacturer’s instructions.

What do fire doors include?

  • Survey of which doors need upgrading
  • Certified FD30S door sets or door leaves
  • Intumescent strips and smoke seals
  • Overhead or concealed self-closers
  • Correct gaps, hinges and ironmongery
  • Thumb-turn locks on bedroom doors
  • Signage where required
  • Installation record and photos

When do landlords need it?

  • Doors to rooms off the escape route that are not fire doors
  • Damaged or badly fitted existing fire doors
  • Licence conditions about doors and closers

What rules apply in each UK nation?

The law differs between England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, and councils publish their own HMO standards on top. These are the points that usually matter for this work.

England

  • Fire precautions follow a risk assessment; the LACORS Housing – Fire Safety guide (2008) is guidance, not law, but many councils base their standards on it.
  • Mandatory HMO licence for 5 or more people in 2 or more households (since October 2018); councils can add additional licensing for smaller HMOs.
  • Smoke alarms on every storey with living accommodation and CO alarms by fixed combustion appliances (other than gas cookers) are required by law.
  • The Fire Safety Order 2005 applies to the common parts of HMOs, enforced by the fire and rescue authority.

All HMO rules for England

Wales

  • Fitness for human habitation rules require mains-powered, interlinked smoke alarms on every storey and CO alarms where there is a gas, oil or solid-fuel appliance.
  • Mandatory licence for HMOs with 3 or more storeys and 5 or more people in 2 or more households; Wales did not adopt England’s 2018 change.
  • Council HMO standards and the fire risk assessment set detection, fire doors and escape routes.
  • Councils such as Cardiff and Swansea run additional licensing for HMOs outside the mandatory scheme.

All HMO rules for Wales

Scotland

  • The tolerable standard requires interlinked smoke alarms in the main living room and circulation spaces and a heat alarm in the kitchen; licensed HMOs must meet the council’s higher standard.
  • Every HMO needs a council licence: 3 or more people who are not all from one or two families, sharing basic amenities. Licences last up to 3 years.
  • Councils set HMO fire standards through licence conditions, often including emergency lighting in larger HMOs.
  • Landlords must also be on the Scottish landlord register, renewed every 3 years.

All HMO rules for Scotland

Northern Ireland

  • The NIFRS HMO Fire Safety Guide (July 2026) usually expects Grade D1 interlinked detection in smaller shared houses and a Grade A system with more than 6 occupants or over 200 m².
  • A licence is needed where 3 or more people forming more than two households live as their main home and pay rent; the NI HMO Unit at Belfast City Council licenses for every council.
  • Doors on protected routes are typically FD30 or FD30S, self-closing on three hinges; emergency lighting is required in HMOs of 4 or more storeys.
  • Licences usually last 5 years, and landlords must also register with the NI landlord registration scheme.

All HMO rules for Northern Ireland

How much do fire doors cost?

UK typical budget ranges. See local pages for regional guides.
ItemUK typicalPer
FD30S fire door leaf into an existing frame, with seals, closer and hinges, fitted£300 – £600door
New FD30S fire doorset with frame, fitted£600 – £1,300door

Typical time on site: 1–3 working days. Your fixed price follows a site visit; use the guide-price tool for a figure for your house.

How the job runs

  1. Free site visit and measured survey.
  2. Itemised written quote and programme.
  3. Works with one point of contact and photo updates.
  4. Handover with certificates, drawings and photos.

Questions about fire doors

What is an FD30S door?

A fire door tested to resist fire for about 30 minutes, with smoke seals (the S). It needs the right frame and fitting to work.

Can I just add strips to an old door?

Only if the door itself is capable of the rating, which most standard internal doors are not. A certified door set is usually the reliable route.

Do bedroom doors need closers?

Doors onto the escape route are usually expected to self-close. The fire risk assessment sets which doors.

Do you record what was fitted?

Yes. You get a schedule of doors with photos and product details for your records and the council.

Related services

Where we work

Choose a nation and area for local rules, postcodes and regional prices.

England

Wales

Scotland

Northern Ireland

Planning HMO works?

Free site visit, then a fixed written quote itemised against your council’s standards.

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