Well, maybe not so much a story as a point of note.
As the lockdown restrictions are lifted I imagine many of the readers of these articles will be clamouring for the release of the outside world. The sun has returned, shops and restaurants have reopened, and we are teased with the opportunity to socialise with people outside of our households in our gardens.
I often used to joke that the British were an easy nation to please:
simply gather them round a fire
During Winter: a log fire; during Autumn: a bonfire; and during Spring and Summer a barbeque.
Given the salivating scents wafting toward me whilst drafting this article, I can tell that this remains a fairly accurate hypothesis.
With leasehold properties there remain however often unconsidered factors which individuals may fall foul of, and end up in breach of lease for, when engaging in these cornerstones of society activities – meaning that it is not quite so simple as ‘let’s just do it’.
With internal fires:
Leases will often contain a catch-all clause as to general obligations toward legislation and regulations. As such, leaseholders will likely need to be aware of any local authority rules governing which fuels and materials can be burnt, at which times and ensure that any flue / fireplace / chimney etc is compliant with current regulations in place.
With external fires:
Leaseholders will likely need to be aware of nuisance and annoyance provisions, as whilst one neighbour may enjoy the residual ashen scent, another neighbour may be fairly sensitive toward their flat suddenly changing smell and being compelled to keep their windows shut (often not an appealing outcome particularly as the days get warmer and people are still working from home).
Finally, and wherever the fire:
Leaseholders will need to be live to the non-vitiating of insurance clauses. Few leaseholders will have actually considered their policy wording and whether there are provisions as to where a fire can be sited, or which safety measures need to be adhered to.
Whilst gathering round a fire is so ingrained into society it has become an activity in itself, it nonetheless remains a dangerous risk to people and property.
In my view there is no exhaustive list to all the considerations which individuals should have when enjoying the simple pleasure of an open fire, but hopefully, this has provided some food for thought on how to potentially avoid breaching your leases as a byproduct.
For me, I will finish my cup of tea and continue to mumble my way through Billy Joel’s ‘We Didn’t Start the Fire’ waiting to sing proudly the one or two lines I actually know, whilst looking forward to my first barbeque of the season where I will inevitably begin rehearsing the old lyric that “Hawaiian shirts are always in fashion!”
