Singapore Expats

We've just noticed our rented property doesn't have any smoke alarms.

Does anyone know if there are fire safety regulations for private rental properties? We are very new to Singapore so have no idea. I tried to google it, but not getting any useful information. I wouldn't be surprised either way, just curious. Thanks.

Almost all houses in Singapore consist of concrete and steel, with very little stuff present that could catch fire (not even roof beams are made of wood - because of potential termite attack).
If you add a lot of burnable stuff (e.g. wood furniture, textiles) to your place, why don't you install appropriate safety measures yourself?
We have a portable, battery-operated smoke detector in the kitchen (gas stove!), which our landlord provided, so these things are available.

Thanks for the reply. Our place actually has a lot of wood in its structure - doors, floors, stairs, built in wardrobes, even wooden features in the ceilings. Most of our furniture is wood too, plus we have hundreds of books, etc. I understand that you are saying there is a low risk of fire, but it doesn't seem impossible either, especially when you consider gas hobs and possibly dodgy wiring.

My question was more around whether or not there were any regulations about fire safety. Perhaps it is not seen as a major risk, thus no regulation. But on the other hand Singapore seems to be keen on regulations, which is why I was curious. Either way - yes to smoke detectors!

Myself, I tend to be proactive. Why dither because the landlord didn't provide? Buy 'em and Bob's yer uncle. "Then" question the authorities or what-have-you. You are doing it the way tobacco smokers do. Keep questioning the laws, but still smoking, opting to wait until they get cancer before deciding to do something about it. When It's too late! I reckon, though, the only regulation is you carry insurance if you want too. The gamble is yours (and the landlords).

HDB regulations do insist that you carry fire insurance on the building itself, but not on the contents therein. I reckon if a dwelling is still mortgaged then the financier would require building insurance as well at least until the dwelling unit is paid for. After that? Yours/Landlords gamble isn't it.

bethnalgreen wrote:Thanks for the reply. Our place actually has a lot of wood in its structure - doors, floors, stairs, built in wardrobes, even wooden features in the ceilings. Most of our furniture is wood too, plus we have hundreds of books, etc. I understand that you are saying there is a low risk of fire, but it doesn't seem impossible either, especially when you consider gas hobs and possibly dodgy wiring.

My question was more around whether or not there were any regulations about fire safety. Perhaps it is not seen as a major risk, thus no regulation. But on the other hand Singapore seems to be keen on regulations, which is why I was curious. Either way - yes to smoke detectors!

There is no regulation on smoke alarm on private dwelling. HDB apartment fire insurance yes.
Commercial building, yes even up to sprinklers and fire extinguishers per sq metre distance. It is regularly inspected by Fire Officer.

I would be incline to install, one or two location whereby potential fire will occur.Smoke alarm is only for you to get yourself out quickly in the event of fire but will not save your books. Fire extinguishers is an option. Get a home content insurance on top of it

sundaymorningstaple wrote:Myself, I tend to be proactive. Why dither because the landlord didn't provide? Buy 'em and Bob's yer uncle. "Then" question the authorities or what-have-you. You are doing it the way tobacco smokers do. Keep questioning the laws, but still smoking, opting to wait until they get cancer before deciding to do something about it. When It's too late!.

Hmmm, I don' t believe I said that I didn't buy smoke alarms. Or that I was 'questioning' authorities. I was just wondering about what, if any, regulation exists here. I thought I made that clear in my original post, perhaps not. It's just a banal question that occurred to me when I noticed there were none in our place. I've never encountered a home without them before, which made me wonder; not enough to risk my life, just enough to post a topic on a forum.

So, I gather that there are no set fire regulations for private accommodations, some for HDBs and loads for commercial buildings. Thanks!

beppi wrote:Almost all houses in Singapore consist of concrete and steel, with very little stuff present that could catch fire (not even roof beams are made of wood - because of potential termite attack).
If you add a lot of burnable stuff (e.g. wood furniture, textiles) to your place, why don't you install appropriate safety measures yourself?
We have a portable, battery-operated smoke detector in the kitchen (gas stove!), which our landlord provided, so these things are available.

Even though there appears to be little chance of a fire breaking out, you never know where a fire can stem from and many people still leave cluttered papers lying around.

However, I agree, if you get a portable smoke detector installed this should be all you need depending on the size of the appartment. If it is a larger appartment, instal one in the kitchen and one in the bedroom for best results.

portable smoke detector installed this should be all you need depending on the size of the appartment. If it is a larger appartment, instal one in the kitchen and one in the bedroom for best results.

Though they will not put out the fire, so invest in one or two extinguishers, a fire blanket and first aid kit too. Such a long time ago

Once you've bought them, tell the landlord and present the receipt and see if he/she will pay for them - possibly not, but it's a small price to pay for the safety of the family.

I've never lived in a rented property with a working smoke alarm in the UK - perhaps it's the law there now, but it wasn't back in the 80s and 90s when I was renting. I don't think it's the law here right now, but there's nothing to say that it won't become a law one day.

As far as I know, there's no regulation of people who claim to be electricians or even those who work with gas, so you are a bit on your own here in Singapore and if you want something like smoke alarms, it is just a case of sorting it out yourself I'm afraid and if you've got a good landlord then they might pay up, but if not, there's probably not a lot you can do about that - you'd have to get something like that written into your contract next time around.

BigSis wrote:Once you've bought them, tell the landlord and present the receipt and see if he/she will pay for them - possibly not, but it's a small price to pay for the safety of the family.

I never bring my landlord any receipts for anything... because... I have a good deal on the rent... a back and forth thing... I do all the maintenance, excluding 4 named items, and I never bother her... she gets a place kept up... in exchange, I have my good deal.

Strong Eagle wrote:

BigSis wrote:Once you've bought them, tell the landlord and present the receipt and see if he/she will pay for them - possibly not, but it's a small price to pay for the safety of the family.

I never bring my landlord any receipts for anything... because... I have a good deal on the rent... a back and forth thing... I do all the maintenance, excluding 4 named items, and I never bother her... she gets a place kept up... in exchange, I have my good deal.

True - we don't really bother ours with a lot of stuff, we just get on with it - like painting, which I usually do myself.

Actually I just thought after I'd posted that - a lot of contracts have a clause in them where the tenant has to pay the first $100 or so of repairs, so the OP's landlord might not be required to pay for something like that anyway if the cost is less than $100.

bepppi wrote:Almost all houses in Singapore consist of concrete and steel, with very little stuff present that could catch fire

Last month there was an incident in our condo where the fridge caught alight and the entire interior was ruined. Cost to repair around $20k and the tenants couldn't stay in the apartment.

BigSis wrote:I've never lived in a rented property with a working smoke alarm in the UK - perhaps it's the law there now, but it wasn't back in the 80s and 90s when I was renting. I don't think it's the law here right now, but there's nothing to say that it won't become a law one day.

The laws in the UK are strict when it comes to providing furnished accommodation. Some family members couldn't let their house through an agency because none of their furnishings were fire retardant (they were moving to Aus for a 1 year contract in the mid / early 90's), but I don't think they were required to have a smoke alarm.

carteki wrote:

bepppi wrote:Almost all houses in Singapore consist of concrete and steel, with very little stuff present that could catch fire

Last month there was an incident in our condo where the fridge caught alight and the entire interior was ruined. Cost to repair around $20k and the tenants couldn't stay in the apartment.

BigSis wrote:I've never lived in a rented property with a working smoke alarm in the UK - perhaps it's the law there now, but it wasn't back in the 80s and 90s when I was renting. I don't think it's the law here right now, but there's nothing to say that it won't become a law one day.

The laws in the UK are strict when it comes to providing furnished accommodation. Some family members couldn't let their house through an agency because none of their furnishings were fire retardant (they were moving to Aus for a 1 year contract in the mid / early 90's), but I don't think they were required to have a smoke alarm.

Perhaps it's different for furnished places - we always rented unfurnished.