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Smoke alarms and other fire safety equipment

Fire safety equipment in buildings includes

  • smoke alarms,
  • fire detectors,
  • automatic fire extinguishing systems,
  • smoke extraction equipment, and
  • various items of first-aid fire extinguishing equipment.

Fire safety equipment is required to be, for example, suitable for its intended purpose and reliable in operation.

The building owner is responsible for smoke alarms

The obligation to purchase and maintain smoke alarms lies with the building owner, while the resident is responsible for testing them and reporting any need for repairs. In accommodation and care facilities, the operator will remain responsible for the purchase and maintenance of smoke alarms . The changes that came into force at the beginning of 2026 primarily affect housing companies and rental property companies.

The objective of the Rescue Act is to ensure compliance with obligations concerning smoke alarms and to clarify the regulations.

The building owner, such as the housing company, will be responsible for ensuring that each flat in a block of flats has a sufficient number of functioning smoke alarms . If all flats have identical smoke alarms of the same age, maintenance can most often be carried out in a proactive and planned manner. This will reduce, for example, night-time maintenance alarms caused by exhausted batteries.

The occupant is obliged to immediately notify the owner of the building of any faults in the smoke alarm, such as battery exhaustion, or if the occupant has otherwise noticed that the smoke alarm is out of order.

Device requirements to remain unchanged

The legislative amendments on smoke alarms do not involve changes to the device requirements for smoke alarms or any extension to the obligation to purchase smoke alarms, for example for the general premises of residential buildings. 

The obligation to purchase and maintain smoke alarms for homes can be fulfilled with conventional battery-powered smoke alarms or mains-powered smoke detectors in accordance with the building regulations. The Rescue Act does not require mains-powered smoke detectors or various remotely readable smoke alarms. 

Read more:

Ministry of the Interior Decree on the Placement and Maintenance of Smoke Alarms, in Finnish
Government Decree on the Technical Properties of Smoke Alarms, in Finnish
Smoke alarm requirements, placement and maintenance
Homes have too few working smoke alarms, in Finnish
Carbon monoxide alarms