Do all internal doors in a let need to be fire doors?

No. It depends on the layout and whether the property is an HMO. The escape route is what determines where certified doors are needed.

Does second-hand furniture need a fire label?

Furniture supplied with a let must meet fire safety regulations, which is evidenced by the permanent label. Unlabelled items should not be supplied.

Landlord property care

Fire safety in a let

Escape routes, doors and the higher standard in shared housing

The short answer

Beyond alarms, a landlord has to keep the escape route usable, provide fire doors where the layout requires them, supply furnishings that meet fire safety regulations, and manage risks such as overloaded sockets and stored bicycles or bins in a common stair. Shared occupancy under an HMO licence brings a materially higher standard, including self-closing fire doors and, in some layouts, emergency lighting.

What the work involves

A walk-through of the escape route from every bedroom to the front door, checking door condition and closers, confirming furnishings carry the fire safety label, and removing combustible storage from common areas.

Rules and responsibilities in Scotland

General fire safety duties sit alongside HMO licence conditions and the Repairing Standard. Common stairs in tenements are subject to council enforcement where items obstruct the escape route.

What commonly goes wrong

Bicycles, prams and recycling bins stored in the common stair, and second-hand furniture with no fire label supplied to a tenant.

What it usually costs

Indicative ranges only, to help you judge a quote. They are not an estimate for your property — only the business doing the work can give you that.

Fire door upgrades — the door, closer, strips and correct ironmongery — cost more than a standard internal door.
Emergency lighting is a design cost as well as an installation cost.
Replacing unlabelled second-hand furnishings is usually the cheapest way to close that risk.

What to do, in order

1Walk the escape route from the furthest bedroom and note anything blocking it.
2Check every door on that route for condition, closing and gaps.
3Confirm all supplied soft furnishings carry the fire safety label.
4Give tenants written fire safety information at the start of the tenancy.
5Reinspect at each visit and after every change of tenancy.

Local detail for the Lothians

Common stair storage is a persistent issue in Edinburgh tenements and the council can require items to be removed.
Student HMOs in Marchmont and Newington are inspected against a fire detection specification well above a standard flat.
Older Edinburgh flats often have original panel doors that cannot be upgraded to a fire door rating without replacement.

When you need a professional

A fire safety consultant should assess anything above a standard single let, and a joiner experienced in certified fire doors should fit them.

Common questions

Do all internal doors in a let need to be fire doors?: No. It depends on the layout and whether the property is an HMO. The escape route is what determines where certified doors are needed.
Does second-hand furniture need a fire label?: Furniture supplied with a let must meet fire safety regulations, which is evidenced by the permanent label. Unlabelled items should not be supplied.

Lothian Property is a property information and professional-introduction service operated by Maybury Scotland Limited. Lothian Property is not an estate agency. Where requested, we may connect homeowners with independent estate agents and other property professionals. How we work.

HMO maintenance and licensing
The extra fire, layout and condition work an HMO licence brings, and the annual rhythm of it.
Furniture and furnishings in a let
Fire labels, wear and tear, and deciding what to supply in the first place.
Alarms in a rented property
Interlinked smoke, heat and carbon monoxide alarms — specification, siting and testing in a let.

Last reviewed 4 September 2026.