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The law

Building Safety Act 2022

It decides who answers for your building's safety, and what leaseholders cannot be asked to pay. The law was passed after the Grenfell Tower fire of June 2017: it makes named people responsible for the safety of higher-risk buildings, sets up the Building Safety Regulator, and protects leaseholders from many remediation costs.

Higher-risk building11 m residential buildingChecked against legislation.gov.uk on .
On this page

In short

  • A higher-risk building is at least 18 metres high or has at least 7 storeys, and contains at least 2 residential units (s.65(1)).
  • It must be registered with the Building Safety Regulator before people live in it (ss.77 and 78), and its accountable persons must assess and manage its building safety risks (ss.83 and 84).
  • Leaseholders are protected in buildings of at least 11 metres or 5 storeys with two or more homes (s.117): under a qualifying lease nothing is payable for cladding remediation, and other remediation charges are capped (Schedule 8 paras 6 and 8).

Your line

Three example buildings against the 11 metre and 18 metre lines. Above the gold 18 metre line, a building with at least two homes is a higher-risk building. Leaseholder protections start at 11 metres or 5 storeys.

Above the gold line, a building with at least two homes is a higher-risk building.Illustrative

Does this apply to my building?

Is my building a higher-risk building?

It is if it is at least 18 metres high or has at least 7 storeys, and has at least 2 residential units (s.65(1)).

How is the height measured?

From ground level to the top of the floor surface of the top storey; storeys below ground are not counted (Higher-Risk Buildings (Descriptions and Supplementary Provisions) Regulations 2023, regs 5 and 6).

Are any tall buildings left out?

Yes: a building that consists entirely of, for example, a care home, a hospital or a hotel is not a higher-risk building for these duties (same regulations, reg 8).

My building is under 18 metres. Does any of this apply?

The leaseholder protections apply from 11 metres or 5 storeys (s.117). Fire safety law applies to every block of flats.

Fire Safety Act 2021 and Regulations 2022

What you need to do

For a higher-risk building:

  1. Register the building with the Building Safety Regulator before it is occupied. The principal accountable person applies (s.78) on GOV.UK (page last updated 25 Mar 2025).

  2. Send the key building information within 28 days of applying to register, and report any change within 28 days of learning of it (Higher-Risk Buildings (Key Building Information etc.) (England) Regulations 2023, regs 20 and 21).

  3. Assess and manage building safety risks: every accountable person, for the parts they are responsible for (ss.83 and 84).

  4. Prepare a safety case report: the principal accountable person (s.85).

  5. Keep the building's information to the required standard, often called the golden thread (s.88).

  6. Have a residents' engagement strategy: the principal accountable person (s.91).

  7. Apply for a building assessment certificate within 28 days of a direction from the regulator (s.79(2)).

The detail

Who is an accountable person?

Anyone who holds a legal estate in possession in any part of the common parts, or who is under a repairing obligation for them (s.72).

Principal accountable person
Who is the Building Safety Regulator?

The regulator named in Part 2 of the Act. Since 27 January 2026 the Act names it as “the Building Safety Regulator” (s.2(1), as substituted by SI 2026/20).

What can a leaseholder be charged?

Under a qualifying lease: nothing for cladding remediation (Schedule 8 para 8).

Nothing for a defect if the landlord was responsible for it or is associated with the developer (para 2); nothing if the lease was worth less than £175,000, or £325,000 in Greater London (para 4). Other charges are capped at £10,000, or £15,000 in Greater London; £50,000 for a lease worth over £1 million up to £2 million; £100,000 over £2 million (para 6). No more than a tenth of the cap can be charged in one year (para 7).

What is a qualifying lease?

Broadly, a long lease of a flat that was the leaseholder's main home on 14 February 2022, where they owned no more than three UK homes (GOV.UK FAQ, last updated 18 Dec 2023).

What changed and when

  1. 28 April 2022: the Act is passed.
  2. 28 June 2022: the leaseholder protections in Schedule 8 come into force.
  3. 6 April 2023: accountable persons (ss.72 and 73) and registration (s.78) come into force; the GOV.UK guidance on applying to register followed on 12 April 2023.
  4. 1 October 2023: occupying an unregistered higher-risk building becomes an offence (s.77, SI 2023/993).
  5. 16 January 2024: the duties in ss.79, 83, 84, 85, 88 and 91 come into force (SI 2024/40).
  6. 27 January 2026: the Building Safety Regulator is set up as its own body (s.2(1), SI 2026/20).

Penalties

  • If a higher-risk building is occupied while it is not registered, the principal accountable person commits an offence, unless they have a reasonable excuse. On conviction in the Crown Court the penalty is up to two years in prison, a fine, or both (s.77(1) to (3)).
  • An accountable person who, without reasonable excuse, breaks a relevant duty in a way that puts people at critical risk of death or serious injury commits an offence, with the same maximum penalty (s.101).

How Golden Ledger helps

When your council sends you a letter, Golden Ledger keeps one clear record of your building, which your council reviews. It helps you confirm your building's height, describe its external walls and fire safety measures, and upload documents such as your fire risk assessment and any EWS1 form. See when your council has reviewed your submission. Golden Ledger does not register buildings with the Building Safety Regulator or send anything to it for you.

Sources and checked date

Checked against legislation.gov.uk on . What has changed

General information, not legal advice. Golden Ledger shows which rules and funding routes may apply, based on your answers. A qualified professional should confirm them. Golden Ledger does not enforce the law, is not the Building Safety Regulator and does not give legal advice. Your council reviews what you send. Fire safety law is enforced by your fire and rescue authority. In higher-risk buildings, the Building Safety Regulator also enforces the duties in Part 4 of the Building Safety Act 2022.

Got a letter from your council?

Enter the code to claim your building. It is free for owners.