Building Safety Act 2022 UK: Duties & Compliance
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The Building Safety Act 2022 reshaped how higher-risk residential buildings in England are designed, built, and managed. Brought in following the Grenfell Tower tragedy and the subsequent Hackitt Review, it introduced a fresh regulatory framework overseen by the Building Safety Regulator, which sits within the Health and Safety Executive.
If you own, manage, develop, or lease a building that falls within scope, the Act creates a web of duties that touch on registration, risk assessment, resident engagement, and financial liability for historical defects. This guide walks through the main obligations in plain English, explains who carries legal responsibility at each stage of a building's life, and flags the areas where professional input is usually needed.
It is written for freeholders, leaseholders, directors of resident management companies, developers, and property professionals trying to make sense of a genuinely complex piece of legislation.
Overview
The Building Safety Act 2022 is primary legislation that applies mainly to England and was passed in response to systemic failures identified in the wake of Grenfell. It creates a new category known as 'higher-risk buildings', which generally covers residential structures of at least 18 metres in height or seven storeys, containing two or more residential units.
For buildings in scope, the Act sets out a gateway system running through planning, construction, and occupation, with the Building Safety Regulator acting as gatekeeper at each transition. The legislation also reshapes who carries the can when things go wrong.
It introduces the concept of the 'Accountable Person' and, where there are multiple, a 'Principal Accountable Person' who bears overall duties for safety in occupation. Alongside these structural changes, the Act extends limitation periods for certain historical defect claims, introduces remediation orders and remediation contribution orders, and gives qualifying leaseholders protection from many cladding-related costs. It sits alongside the Fire Safety Act 2021 and the updated Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 rather than replacing them.
Key steps
- Work out whether your building is in scope. The higher-risk definition turns on height and number of storeys, along with the presence of residential units. Measure carefully, as the counting rules for storeys exclude certain rooftop plant and below-ground levels. Get a specialist to confirm borderline cases before you assume you are outside the regime.
- Identify the Accountable Person and Principal Accountable Person. Responsibility usually sits with whoever owns the relevant parts of the structure or holds repair obligations under the lease. Where more than one party has duties, one must be designated Principal Accountable Person. Getting this wrong can expose directors and freeholders to enforcement action, so clarity at the outset matters.
- Register the building and prepare a safety case. Higher-risk buildings in occupation must be registered with the Building Safety Regulator, and key building information submitted. You will then need a safety case report that sets out the fire and structural risks and how they are being managed, backed by evidence rather than assertion.
- Put a resident engagement strategy in place. The Act requires residents to be given information about safety decisions and a route to raise concerns. This is not a one-off document but an ongoing process, with mandatory information to share and timeframes for responding to complaints about safety matters.
- Plan for ongoing compliance and remediation funding. Review leases, insurance, service charges, and developer agreements to understand who pays for remedial works. Leaseholder protections, remediation contribution orders, and the Developer Remediation Contract regime all affect how costs can lawfully be recovered.
Common questions
If you're dealing with this kind of situation, a call with an experienced legal adviser can help you work out the right next step — from £89.
Common questions
Q Which buildings fall within the higher-risk category?
In broad terms, a higher-risk building in occupation is a structure in England with at least two residential units that is either 18 metres or more in height, or has seven or more storeys. Certain buildings such as hospitals and care homes fall within the construction regime but are treated differently once occupied. The counting rules for storeys and height are technical, so a professional assessment is usually sensible for anything close to the threshold.
Q Who is the Accountable Person?
The Accountable Person is the individual or organisation that owns or has repairing obligations for the relevant common parts of a higher-risk building. Freeholders, head lessees, and resident management companies can all find themselves in this role depending on the lease structure. Where several Accountable Persons exist for one building, the one responsible for the structure and exterior is usually the Principal Accountable Person and carries the lead duties.
Q What are the leaseholder protections under the Act?
Qualifying leaseholders of flats in relevant buildings are protected from paying service charges for cladding remediation linked to historical safety defects, and their exposure to non-cladding costs is capped depending on the value of their flat. Protection depends on factors such as the lease being the leaseholder's main home or meeting ownership tests on a specified qualifying date. The detail is intricate, so individual leases should be reviewed carefully.
Q Has the limitation period for defect claims really changed?
Yes. The Act extended the period for bringing claims under section 1 of the Defective Premises Act 1972 to 30 years for historical dwellings and 15 years going forward, and added a new cause of action for building product failures. This opened up potential claims against original developers and contractors that would previously have been time-barred, though success still depends on the usual evidential and causation hurdles.
Q What are gateways in the new construction regime?
The Act introduces three gateways for higher-risk buildings. Gateway one sits at planning, gateway two is a hard stop before construction can begin, and gateway three must be cleared before occupation. At each point the Building Safety Regulator needs to be satisfied that safety requirements are being met, with documentary evidence, and construction cannot lawfully proceed without sign-off.
Q Do small landlords need to worry about the Act?
If you own a single flat or a small block under the height and storey thresholds, the higher-risk building regime probably does not apply to you directly. However, other parts of the Act, including the extended limitation periods and wider reforms to building control and competence, can still be relevant. Fire safety duties under separate legislation continue to apply regardless of size.
Q What happens if duties under the Act are breached?
Enforcement options include compliance notices, stop notices on construction work, and criminal prosecution for serious failures. Remediation orders and remediation contribution orders can also be sought through the First-tier Tribunal to require works or payment towards them. Penalties can be substantial, and directors of corporate freeholders or management companies can face personal liability where consent or neglect is proved.
If you're dealing with this kind of situation, a call with an experienced legal adviser can help you work out the right next step — from £89.
Sources
This guide is based on primary UK law and official guidance.
- LegislationBuilding Safety Act 2022 (legislation.gov.uk)legislation.gov.uk
- Guidance · UK GovBuilding Safety Regulator (HSE)hse.gov.uk
- Guidance · UK GovGuidance on higher-risk buildingsgov.uk
Legal helpline
Unsure how the Building Safety Act affects you?
The rules around higher-risk buildings, Accountable Persons, and leaseholder protections are dense, and the right answer often depends on lease wording and building specifics. An experienced legal adviser can talk you through the key duties and options based on what you describe on the call.
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Legal disclaimer
This article is for general information only. It is a tool to help you find your way — not legal advice, and not a substitute for speaking to a qualified adviser about your situation.