dad died as result of fire were housing association liable

[astonsmummy]

in march my dad died as result of house fire through effect of smoke it was a ha house but old smoke alarm not working, all houses on estate had been fitted with mains powered smoke alarms, they didnt get access to dads house so he was missed out. are the housing association liable as it may be bought up at the inquest, could we sue them

[Ethel]

Why couldn't the HA get access?

What started the fire?

Was the original smoke alarm working, except for the battery? If so, who was responsible for changing the battery?

[Kim A]

when I worked for a housing association, the tenancy agreement stated that the tenant was responsible for regularly checking the fire alarm was working and for replacing the batteries when they ran out. As a housing association property is considered to be a private home, these things are usually the responsibility of the tenant. Of course, if a tenant checked the fire alarm, as most people do on a regular basis, and found it wasn't working even with a change of battery, then maintenance staff would investigate and repair or replace as necessary. It might help to check to tenancy agreement as and any associated paperwork, as this normally states very clearly what the tenant's responsibilities are. Tenants are normally responsible for decoration and keeping the place in clean, good order, plus for mending simple things like taps, door latches, locks etc and for replacing things that they damage.