Interlinked Smoke & Heat Alarms Scotland

Due to the new Fire Safety and Smoke Alarm Regulations, every home in Scotland must have interlinked smoke & heat alarms by February 2022. Being interlinked means if one alarm goes off, they all go off. You may not always hear the alarm closest to the fire, especially if you’re somewhere else in the house. An interlinked system will alert you immediately. If you are a homeowner or landlord, it's your responsibility ensure to that your home or property meets the new standards. This page summarises the most important alarm requirements and helps you to calculate what you need to meet the requirements. Please be aware: Only products from the same brand and product range interlink with each other.

By February 2022 every Scottish home will need to have:
1 x SMOKE ALARM in the room you spend most of the day, usually your living room or it could be your office if you work from home.
1 x SMOKE ALARM in every circulation space on each storey, such as hallways and landings
1 x HEAT ALARM in the kitchen
All smoke and heat alarms should be mounted on the ceiling and be interlinked. If you have a carbon-fuelled appliance, like a boiler, gas fire or gas hob you must also have a CARBON MONOXIDE DETECTOR. This does not need to be interlinked with the fire alarms but in order to be compliant with the legislation, battery powered alarms need to come with long life tamper proof batteries, which means you can’t remove the batteries for the lifetime of the product.

If you chose to fit BATTERY POWERED ALARMS, they must be sealed tamper-proof units and have long-life lithium batteries, which can be up to 10 years. If you also need a carbon monoxide alarm and it is battery-operated, it must have a sealed (tamperproof) battery for the duration of its lifespan. You may be able to fit these types of alarms yourself and they do not need an electrician. If you chose MAINS POWERED ALARMS, they must be fitted by a qualified electrician and must be replaced every 10 years. You may also need to redecorate after fitting them.
Further you need to ensure, that each alarm complies with the following standards: Smoke: BS EN14604:2005 | Heat: BS 5446-2:2003 | Carbon monoxide: British Kitemark EN 50291-1
Please be aware: The Nest Protect System does not meet the standard, as they don't meet the requirements for a heat alarm under the relevant British Standard.