How to deal with smoke alarm that has been tampered with

[Fareed Fityan]

Hi,

I'm a new landlord and a tenant in one of my units has clearly tampered with the smoke alarm. The wires are exposed and cut. Now the lease doesn't state anything about smoke alarms but it does mention smoking is prohibited. My question is is it still my responsibility to replace the smoke alarm that has been damages by the tenant?

Thanks,

Fareed

[Christopher Phillips]

Originally posted by @Fareed Fityan:

Hi,

I'm a new landlord and a tenant in one of my units has clearly tampered with the smoke alarm. The wires are exposed and cut. Now the lease doesn't state anything about smoke alarms but it does mention smoking is prohibited. My question is is it still my responsibility to replace the smoke alarm that has been damages by the tenant?

Thanks,

Fareed

 Yes. As a landlord you're responsible for making sure you comply with local codes. You can always give them a first pass this time, but next time you can take it out of their security deposit for repairs. It will also be ground for breaking their lease if they do it again.