HMO Fire Door Compliance London

Why HMO Compliance Needs Its Own Page

HMO work converts differently from general fire-door traffic because landlords usually arrive with licensing pressure, inspection comments or a need to standardise several doors at once. This page focuses on that specific commercial need.

What Usually Needs Checking

In most HMOs, the issue is the whole assembly: FD30S room doors, self-closers where required, smoke seals, hinges, latches, gaps and frame condition. Some openings can be upgraded, while others need full replacement.

Landlord Packages And Next Steps

We can quote single openings or multi-door landlord packages. Send the property type, number of doors, borough and any council or inspector notes you already have.

What "HMO fire door compliance" means in 2026

HMO fire door compliance in London is no longer just about fitting fire doors. From 2025/26 onwards it's a documented system covering five things: the right doors in the right places, certified and traceable ironmongery, code-of-practice installation, a documentation pack, and a quarterly inspection log that's actually being kept. Miss any of the five and your next licensing renewal is at risk.

Doorz London delivers all five as a single integrated service. We're a small specialist company — founder Jaspreet Gondara handles every quote personally and master carpenter K. Sidhu signs off every door — and HMO compliance work is roughly 60% of what we do.

The Doorz London HMO compliance package

Step 1 — Survey

K. Sidhu personally surveys every door in the HMO. For each one we record: certification status (visible plug/label, manufacturer, FD rating), gap measurements, seal condition, closer function, hinge condition, lock/latch state, and frame integrity. The survey produces a written report within 48 hours.

Step 2 — Compliance plan

For each door we recommend one of three routes: retain (compliant already, just needs to enter the inspection log), repair (certified door, fixable defects), or replace (no certification, or beyond repair). Each recommendation has a fixed price attached, so you can plan budget before any work starts.

Step 3 — Door ordering

Doors ordered from BWF-Certifire or BM TRADA suppliers. Lead time 7-10 working days for standard FD30S. We do not "build" fire doors — every door we supply is a tested assembly from a named manufacturer.

Step 4 — Installation

Installed to the current UK code of practice. Three CE/UKCA hinges, certified strips, smoke seals, fire-rated closer, fire-rated latch, fire-rated handle set. Frame made good, paintwork prepped. Tenants kept in residence where possible — a typical 6-bed HMO is a 1-2 day job.

Step 5 — Documentation

Compliance pack delivered within 48 hours: door certificates, installation record per door, photographs of each fitted door, ironmongery list, fire-risk-assessment reference, quarterly inspection template, and first inspection record. The format is the one London councils have repeatedly accepted.

Step 6 — Inspection log

The 2025/26 quarterly inspection log is set up from the day doors are signed off. We supply the template, sign the first inspection ourselves, and explain what each subsequent quarter's check covers. Most landlords run inspections themselves once they've seen the first one done; we also offer paid quarterly inspections — see fire door inspection London.

Where fire doors are required in an HMO

• Every bedroom opening onto the shared escape route (hallway or staircase).
• The kitchen door — kitchens have a higher fire load.
• Utility, boiler and electrical-cupboard doors on the escape route.
• The flat-entrance door, if the HMO is itself a flat off a communal corridor — see flat entrance fire doors.
• Loft-conversion doors in HMOs over two storeys above ground level.
• Doors between a garage and the dwelling.

Bathrooms, en-suites and WCs that open onto the escape route do not usually need fire doors because they're low fire-load rooms — your fire risk assessment is the final word.

What London councils want in the compliance pack

1. Door certificate for each fire door — manufacturer, BWF-Certifire or BM TRADA test reference, FD rating.
2. Installation record per door — date, fitter, ironmongery used, signed.
3. Photographs of each installed door showing gap, hinges, strips and seals.
4. Ironmongery list with CE/UKCA marking confirmed.
5. Reference to the fire risk assessment the work is based on.
6. Quarterly inspection log started from sign-off day.

Doorz London delivers items 1-5 within 48 hours of completion. Item 6 is the template + first record we hand over at sign-off. You handle subsequent quarters or hire us back.

Real HMO package pricing 2026

Prices include surveys, certified doors, all ironmongery, fitting, removal of old doors, frame repair where minor, full documentation pack and the first quarterly inspection record. Volume rates apply on 6+ doors.

HMO compliance failures we see most often — and how to avoid them

1. Painted smoke seals. Decorators paint over the strips. Strips can't expand properly under paint. Replace before licensing inspection — £28-48 per door.
2. Closers disabled. Tenants prop doors open, closers get unscrewed. Reinstate or replace.
3. Non-certified doors. Pre-2018 solid timber doors often look the part but have no test data. Council won't accept them.
4. Missing documentation. Doors are fine but the paperwork was never kept. We can reissue compliance packs for past Doorz clients free of charge.
5. No inspection log. The 2025/26 expectation. Start the log from sign-off day, even retrospectively for older doors.
6. Wrong-rated letter plates / viewers. Invalidate the whole flat-entrance door if non-rated. Swap to fire-rated sleeves.

Borough-specific licensing — we cover all 32

Each London borough runs its own HMO licensing scheme with slightly different conditions. We've delivered compliance work across all 32, so we know the borough-specific nuances — Camden's preference for documented quarterly inspections, Hackney's stricter approach on flat-entrance certification, Croydon's standard documentation pack format, and so on. If you tell us your borough we'll confirm any extra requirement before quoting.

What this package does NOT include

• Fire risk assessment — separate competent person required. We can recommend assessors we've worked with.
• Electrical fire alarm system installation — separate trade.
• Re-decoration of walls beyond what's needed to make good the door installation.
• Removal of non-door compartmentation issues (wall openings, missing closures) — separate quote.