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Am I required to have railings on my steps? |
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This is a question for which there is no one answer but perhaps we can offer some useful information.
If your new steps are going to be installed on a new home for which you need a certificate of occupancy, the question should be addressed to the local code enforcement official where you are building.
There is no universal "building code" in all the areas of Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts where THE STEP GUYS install steps. In most cases, on single family residences, if your step is a 2 riser or less, no railing will be required. In some locations a 3 riser step will be required to have railings and in nearly all locations 4 riser steps and up will be required to have full railings. HOWEVER, this is not universal. The local code enforcement official is empowered to interpret the code as he/she sees fit and their decision is final.
If your step is being installed on a house in which you already live the same general requirements apply. Another interested party in the "Are railings required?" question in this situation is the provider of your homeowners insurance. Each year we receive more calls from homeowners wno have been notified by their insurance company that they need to have railings installed or face the risk of having their coverage canceled. |
