Are smoke detectors required for the hearing impaired in hotels and motels?
Yes. The Smoke Detector Act (425 ILCS 60) requires that: “every hotel shall be equipped with operating portable smoke-detecting alarm devices for the deaf and hearing impaired of audible and visual design, available for units of occupancy. Specialized smoke detectors for the deaf and hearing impaired shall be available upon request by guest in such hotels at a rate of at least one such smoke detector per 75 occupancy units or portion thereof, not to exceed 5 such smoke detectors per hotel. Incorporation or connection to an existing interior alarm system, so as to be capable of being activated by the system, may be utilized in lieu of the portable alarms. Operators of any hotel shall post conspicuously at the main desk a permanent notice, in letters at least 3 inches in height, stating that smoke detector alarm devices for the deaf and hearing impaired are available. The proprietor may require a refundable deposit for a portable smoke detector not to exceed the cost of the detector”.
