‘NEW-BUILD HOMES NOT FIRE SAFE’, BBC investigation finds
Houses developed by Persimmon Homes and Bellway Homes have potentially dangerous fire safety issues, BBC Watchdog Live has found.
New-builds constructed by the firms were sold with missing or incorrectly installed fire barriers, which are designed to inhibit the spread of fire.
In some cases, it’s thought a lack of fire barriers contributed to the spread of fires that have destroyed homes.
Persimmon Homes and Bellway Homes both said they were addressing the issue.
Building Regulations require that by law new homes are built with fire protection measures to delay the spread of fire and allow crucial time for escape.
In many new builds, particularly timber-framed buildings, fire barriers are a vital part of this fire protection.
The barriers are used to form a complete seal between different areas of a home, and without them, experts say, fire and smoke can spread five to ten times faster.
Read the full news item here: ‘New-build homes not fire safe’, BBC investigation finds