REVEALED: London Landlords Are Routinely Missing Deadlines To Address Serious Fire Hazards

VICE has identified 21 tower blocks – defined by the fire brigade as residential buildings of more than four storeys – where enforcement notices have been issued against councils or housing associations in the last three years. Notices are issued only in the most serious cases of fire safety hazards, and landlords are required by law to take action. The records suggest that potentially life-threatening risks are regularly left for several months before being addressed. In more than 75 percent of cases, inspectors were only able to confirm work had been carried out after the deadline for compliance had passed.

Landlords issued with enforcement notices include the Kensington & Chelsea Tenant Management Organisation (KCTMO), which manages Grenfell Tower, where at least 17 people lost their lives after a huge blaze broke out in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

The company was issued with two enforcement notices after a fire at Adair Tower in October of 2015, which required 16 residents to be taken to hospital. Inspectors discovered a series of problems at the two buildings, including dangerous substances, a failure to signpost escape routes and the lack of an adequate emergency plan, and KCTMO agreed to carry out remedial work. Fire brigade records show extensions to the initial deadline were required in both cases, and confirmation that the work had been carried out was only obtained after the due date. KCTMO did not respond to a request for comment.

A number of other councils and housing associations have also received several enforcement notices. Four tower blocks managed by Hammersmith & Fulham council have been the subject of enforcement notices in the last three years. They include Poynter House, a 22-storey tower in Shepherd's Bush, where inspectors identified a series of failings in relation to maintenance, staff training and risk assessment. Of the three notices where the date for compliance has passed, fire brigade records show work was only completed after the deadline. Hammersmith & Fulham council confirmed this information was correct but declined to comment further.

Genesis Housing Association is one of the largest social landlords in London and has received enforcement notices in relation to four tower blocks across the city. In February this year the company was notified of problems at Pioneer House in Camden, including a "failure to provide a suitable method of giving warning in case of fire" and lack of "clearly indicated emergency routes".

In the wake of the fire at Grenfell Tower, Genesis Housing Association issued a statement. "In light of this tragic incident, it is only natural that some questions will be asked about whether the fire safety plans in place in some of our own multi-storey tower blocks are as thorough as they should be," it said, reassuring residents that safety is taken "extremely seriously".

In relation to enforcement notices received, the association said: "Since 2015, which is when three of these notices were served, we have appointed an external specialist fire company who have completed comprehensive fire risk assessments of all our properties. In the case of Pioneer House, the compliance deadline was extended to 8 June 2017 and the fire service has confirmed that all remedial works were completed to a satisfactory standard by this date."

We still don't know the cause of the fire at Grenfell Tower, or how it was that the flames were able to spread so quickly. Fingers have been pointed at cladding fitted to the building in 2016. Residents have reported that the fire alarm failed to sound. Whatever the cause of the disaster, we do know that residents gave repeated warnings about the potential for tragedy – warnings which appear to have been ignored.

On at least ten separate occasions, the Grenfell Action Group of residents blogged about concerns in relation to fire safety. Last November, the group said: "It is a truly terrifying thought but the Grenfell Action Group firmly believe that only a catastrophic event will expose the ineptitude and incompetence of our landlord." Interviewed by BBC News last night, one resident said: "This accident need never have happened if people had listened to what we were saying."

It wasn't just residents who feared this could happen. There have been calls for a review of fire safety in tower blocks since a blaze at Lakanal House in Southwark which killed six people in 2009 and, at the time, was the UK's worst ever tower block fire. Theresa May's new chief of staff and former housing minister Gavin Barwell is now facing criticism for failing to initiate the review, despite it already having been delayed for several years.

Since news of the Grenfell Tower fire broke, there have been plenty of claims that something will be done. Theresa May has ordered a public inquiry. In response to suggestions that last year's refurbishment could have allowed the fire to spread, the government has ordered checks to be carried out on buildings that have undergone similar work. Several London councils have announced reviews of tower blocks to ensure residents are safe.

There have been similar claims before. Nevertheless, as the London Fire Brigade's records show, serious failings are still regularly discovered at tower blocks across the capital and, in many cases, landlords are slow to respond. There were numerous warnings that another tragedy could happen, and the UK has some of the strictest fire regulations in the world. But warnings and regulations are of little use if they are ignored.

In February this year, nearly eight years after the Lakanal House tragedy, Southwark Council was fined £570,000 after pleading guilty to breaching fire regulations. Accepting the verdict, the local authority urged "all landlords to ensure their homes are safe so a tragedy like Lakanal is never repeated". The fire brigade said it hoped "lessons are learned". As the full extent of the tragedy at Grenfell Tower becomes clear, it is increasingly evident that no lessons have been learned at all.

@mark_wilding / @joshua_gordon