A landlord has been left in a state of shock after he received a phone call from a loved up couple saying that his house had been burnt to the ground after they forgot to put out their romantic candles!
When he first found his young tenants they seemed like the perfect candidates – employed, clean, pet free and responsible. Yet like all couples they enjoy the occasional amorous evening in featuring wine, a home cooked meal and a scattering of candles.
Unfortunately candles and forgetfulness don’t mix well and after retiring to the bedroom things soon got even smokier when a burning candle caused the whole house to go up in flames! The couple were lucky to escape with their lives and had to break the news to a less than impressed landlord.
Halloween saw a similar series of incidents where properties went up in flames due to tenants forgetting to put out their jack-o-lanterns.
So what can you do to minimise the risk of fire due to forgetful tenants? Below are some of the most effective steps you can take as a landlord:
- Install a smoke alarm
Installing a smoke detector will raise the alarm as soon as a fire breaks out. This will give your tenants time to evacuate the property, call the fire brigade and minimise any fire related damage. According to recent statistics residents living in homes with smoke detectors are four times less likely to die in a house fire. This means that a smoke alarms quite literally means the difference between life and death.
- Provide a fire extinguisher/blanket
Small blazes can quickly turn into fully fledged infernos which means that when it comes to extinguishing a fire, time is of the essence. Investing in a fire extinguisher or blanket will give your tenants the option of putting out a blaze before it escalates. This could save lives and significantly reduce the extent of any damage to your property.
At the end of the day these event highlights the absolute importance of taking out a comprehensive landlord’s insurance policy, no matter how responsible you think your tenants are.
Accidents do happen and if your property should fall victim to a fire having an insurance policy in place to cover the cost of repairs will make the entire process a hundred times easier. A landlord’s insurance policy will also give you the complete peace of mind that no matter what goes on behind closed doors your investment will always be protected.
