BROKER RISK MANAGEMENT
WEEKLY PRACTICE TIP
Carbon Monoxide Detector Requirement
BACKGROUND: The California legislature has found that, according to the American Medical Association, “carbon monoxide is the leading cause of accidental poisoning deaths in the United States. The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that carbon monoxide kills approximately 500 people each year and injures another 20,000 people nationwide. Experts estimate that equipping every home with a carbon monoxide device would cut accident-related costs by 93 percent.”
NEW LAW: As a result, the California legislature enacted a new law, entitled “The Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Prevention Act of 2010,” requiring that single-family dwelling units which have a “fossil fuel burning heater or appliance, fireplace, or an attached garage,” have a carbon monoxide detection device (CMDD”) installed by July 1, 2011.
The law also makes the same requirement by January 1, 2013 for all other existing residential dwelling units which have a “fossil fuel burning heater or appliance, fireplace, or an attached garage.” These include any “duplex, lodging house, dormitory, hotel, motel, condominium, stock cooperative, time-share project, or dwelling unit in a multiple-unit dwelling unit building or buildings.”
SOME DETAILS:
- The CMDD can be battery operated or hard-wired and must meet ANSI and UL standards. In addition, the State Fire Marshal will develop a certification and decertification process to approve and list CMDD’s. No CMDD’s which are not on the State Fire Marshall’s list can be sold or distributed in the state.
- “Fossil fuel” is defined in the law to mean “coal, kerosene, oil, wood, fuel gases, and other petroleum or hydrocarbon products, which emit carbon monoxide as a byproduct of combustion.”
- The law requires landlords or their agent to maintain CMDD’s in rental dwelling units, and permits the landlord or their agent to enter that dwelling unit to install, repair, test, and maintain the CMDD.
- Once installed in rental units, tenants will be responsible to notify the owner of inoperable or deficient CMDD’s.
- A violation is punishable by a maximum fine of $200 for each offense; but the law requires that a property owner receive a 30-day notice to correct prior to the imposition of the fine.
TRANSFER DISCLOSURE STATEMENT: The TDS and Mobil Home TDS (“MHTDS”) have been revised to add a disclosure regarding whether there is a CMDD in the property. The CAR versions of the TDS and MHTDS with this change are available with the November, 2010 forms release.
PRACTICE TIPS:
1. Because there is a check box in Section II.A of the TDS regarding whether there is a CMDD in the property, and because there will be publicity of this new law, the public will be fully aware of this new requirement. So, even though this requirement doesn’t go into effect until July 1, 2011 for single family dwellings, sellers may want to start installing these safety devices now.
2. Likewise, fully expect buyers to start having a heightened desire to have such a device in the home.
3. After the respective implementation dates (July 1, 2011 for single family residences, January 1, 2013 for all other residential dwelling units), sellers must be in compliance, and listing agents should discuss with the seller installing the CMDD as required prior to marketing the property, if they had not done so already.
DO NOT FORWARD TO CLIENTS. This Weekly Practice Tip is for the exclusive use of clients of Broker Risk Management and their agents. It may not be reproduced or distributed without the express written consent of Broker Risk Management. The advice and recommendations contained herein are not necessarily indicative of standards of care in the industry, but rather are intended to suggest good risk management practices.
© Copyright Broker Risk Management 2010 11/05/10