Accountable Person

Section 72 of the Building Safety Act 2022 defines an accountable person for a higher-risk building as a person who holds a legal estate in possession in any part of the common parts, or a person who does not hold a legal estate in any part of the building but who is under a relevant repairing obligation in relation to any part of the common parts. Where a higher-risk building sits on commonhold land, the commonhold association is the accountable person for the building. There can be more than one accountable person for a single building where responsibility for different common parts is split between different landlords or lessees.

Where a building has more than one accountable person, section 73 identifies a principal accountable person: the accountable person who holds a legal estate in possession in the structure and exterior of the building, or who is under a relevant repairing obligation in relation to those parts. In practice this is typically the freeholder or a management company for the building. The accountable-person provisions of the Act came into force on 6 April 2023, alongside the wider regime for registering and managing higher-risk buildings.