June 1st, 2013

Saskatoon landlord fined over non-functioning smoke alarms

According to a report on CBC news a Saskatoon landlord has been fined for not having working smoke alarms in parts of a property where there was a fire.

Landlord Jack Grover was in court at the start of the month where he pleaded guilty to failing to maintain two smoke alarms on one side of a duplex.

Alarms on the other side of the building were working when a fire broke out in 2012.

A 60-year-old man died in the fire.

Grover was fined a total of $1,000 for the two violations.

Cindy Yelland, a lawyer for the City of Saskatoon, stated: “It shows the importance of fire safety and fire prevention and that maintaining smoke alarms is an important thing,”

Grover was also before the courts in 2005 following a fire in a rental property he owned at the time.

He was found guilty of an obstruction of justice charge for falsifying records relating to smoke detector maintenance.

Two children died in the 2005 fire.

We all know the benefits of investing in income properties in Saskatchewan. Landlords and investors all need to make sure you know your responsibilities.

We’ve had some devestating fires here and there have been other examples such as in British Columbia and in Ontario.

Keeping your tenants and your property safe needs to be on the top of your list.

To discuss this and other landlord issues go to the Saskatchewan landlord forum.