The Connexion has reported that by 2015, every home in France should be fitted with a smoke alarm according to a new law.

Responsibility for equipping a home with a smoke alarm will lie with the person living in the home, except in the case of French holiday cottages or gites where the landlord will be in charge of making sure that the device is working correctly.

Holiday home landlords, tenants and homeowners who neglect to fulfil these new regulations by 2015, are likely to face an additional 5,000 Euros on there insurance premium in the event of a fire.

It is reported that there are around 800 fatalities from fires in France every year, with only 2 per cent having smoke alarms in their homes. This is a poor figure compared to the UK, where 89 per cent of homes are equipped with a smoke detector. Meanwhile, in Norway almost every home is equipped – with 98% of homes fitted with the device.

Damien Meslot the UMP’s deputy, has been championing the law for the past five years. He said of the new legislation: ”Smoke alarms will save the lives of hundreds of people every year.”

The revised law was supported by a large MP majority, bar the Communist Party, who commented that the responsibility in standard rented accommodation should lie with the landlord, not the tenant.

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