What should be on a home safety checklist for seniors?

Check each room for trip hazards, lighting, grab bars and handrails. Then check fire risks: the stove, heaters, smoking and smoke alarms. Add carbon monoxide alarms, a medicine review and an emergency plan. The checklist on this page covers those 10 areas.

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Home safety guide

Home safety checklist for seniors

A home safety checklist for seniors goes room by room and fixes what causes falls and fires: loose rugs, dark stairs, missing grab bars, old smoke alarms and heaters too close to things that burn. CDC says more than 1 in 4 older adults falls each year. Tick the list below on screen or print it.

Every item comes from CDC, NFPA, CPSC or another primary source listed below. Updated October 19, 2026.

Why does a home safety check matter for older adults?

Falls and fires are the two big risks at home, and both rise with age. CDC says more than 1 in 4 older adults falls each year, and fewer than half tell their doctor. Falls are also the most common cause of traumatic brain injury in this age group.

Fire risk climbs with age too. The U.S. Fire Administration says that in 2023, adults 65 and older were 2.5 times as likely to die in a fire as the general population. For people 85 and older it was 3.4 times.

Fixing the home works. A 2023 Cochrane review of 22 studies with 8,463 older people found that reducing fall hazards at home cut the rate of falls by 26 percent. For people at higher risk of falling, the drop was 38 percent.

What should an older adult who lives alone add?

Living alone can mean nobody is there to notice a fall, a smoke alarm or a pot left on. Ready.gov says to build a support network and practice the plan with them. NFPA says to keep a phone and emergency numbers nearby.

If the person lives alone

Source: Ready.gov, NFPA, FDA, Safe at Home checklist

A support network of family, friends or neighbors has practiced the emergency plan together.
Someone in that network checks in on a regular schedule.
A phone is kept within reach day and night.
A wearable emergency button is in use, if falls are a worry.
There is a plan for the stove: a timer while food simmers, bakes or roasts, and a monitor or shut-off device if burners get forgotten.

How can older adults stay safe from fire?

Put smoke alarms in every bedroom, outside each sleeping area and on every level, and test them monthly. Plan two ways out of every room and practice twice a year. Stay in the kitchen while frying or boiling. Keep space heaters 3 feet from anything that can burn. If someone smokes, smoke outside.

Working smoke alarms cut the risk of dying in a home fire in half (NFPA). NFPA notes that most fatal fires happen while people sleep, and smoke can deepen sleep instead of waking you. So a strobe or bed shaker alarm matters for anyone with weak hearing.

· Cooking is the number one cause of home fires and home fire injuries (NFPA).
· Space heaters and heating stoves caused 73 percent of home heating fire deaths from 2020 to 2024 (NFPA).
· Smoking materials are the leading cause of fire deaths (NFPA).

If a fire starts, get out, close the door behind you and call 911 from outside. NFPA says a fire can leave as little as 1 or 2 minutes to escape. If a pan catches fire, here is how to put out a grease fire.

Who does a professional home safety assessment for seniors?

Three kinds of help are common. An occupational therapist can assess the home and the person together and suggest changes. Area Agencies on Aging run or link to home modification programs. The Red Cross and some fire departments do home fire safety visits, and the Red Cross visits include free smoke alarm installation.

· Occupational therapists. They look at the person and the home together. The Cochrane review's authors call their support important for many people living at home.
· Area Agencies on Aging. The Administration for Community Living says some have programs, or link to services, that help older people get home changes made. They coordinate services that help older adults stay home.
· The Red Cross and fire departments. The Red Cross offers home fire safety visits with free smoke alarm installation. NFPA's Steps to Safety program uses fire and EMS staff for home visits on fire and fall safety.

How do you request a home safety assessment?

Call the Eldercare Locator at 1-800-677-1116 to find the local Area Agency on Aging, and ask about home modification help. Ask the doctor about occupational therapy. For fire safety, contact the local Red Cross or call the fire department’s non-emergency number and ask for a home safety visit.

Call the Eldercare Locator at 1-800-677-1116. You can call, text or chat online. Ask for the local Area Agency on Aging, then ask it about home safety or home modification help.
Ask the doctor about occupational therapy. Medicare Part B covers medically necessary outpatient occupational therapy when a doctor or other provider certifies the need. After the deductible, you pay 20 percent of the approved amount.
For fire safety, sign up for a Red Cross home fire safety visit, or call the fire department's non-emergency number and ask whether it does home safety checks.
Before anyone visits, go through the checklist above and note what you could not fix.

Test alarms monthly and practice the escape plan twice a year, as NFPA advises. Redo the whole list after a fall, a hospital stay, a new medicine or a move.

Where Stovyn fits

We make Stovyn, a stove monitor, so the kitchen is the one room on this list where it applies. A thermal sensor above the cooktop reads each burner. If one is left on, Stovyn beeps at the stove, alerts a phone, then texts the people you chose if nobody responds. It is not a smoke or CO alarm. It does not call 911 or shut the stove off. Most items on this checklist matter more, and many cost nothing. Stovyn Standard is $99 and Pro is $199. It is a pre-order and ships December 20, 2026.

See Stovyn Stove safety for parents

Frequently asked questions

Does Medicare pay for a home safety assessment?

Medicare Part B covers outpatient occupational therapy when it is medically necessary and a doctor or other provider certifies the need. Medicare describes it as help with daily activities like dressing or bathing. You pay 20 percent of the approved amount after the deductible. Ask whether a home visit can be part of that care.

Can the fire department check an older adult’s home?

Often, yes. Local Red Cross chapters offer home fire safety visits with free smoke alarm installation. NFPA’s Steps to Safety program uses fire and EMS staff for home visits in some areas. Call your fire department’s non-emergency number and ask.

How often should smoke and CO alarms be tested?

Once a month, using the test button, NFPA says. Replace smoke alarms when they are 10 years old. Replace CO alarms when the maker’s instructions say to.

What temperature should the water heater be for an older adult?

CPSC urges everyone to set water heaters to 120°F. It says most adults get third-degree burns from 150°F water in 2 seconds. Even at 120°F, a 5 minute exposure could cause them, so test the water by hand first.

Does Stovyn replace a smoke alarm or a medical alert device?

No. Stovyn is a stove monitor. It reads the heat of each burner and alerts people when one is left on. It is not a smoke alarm or a carbon monoxide alarm. It does not call 911, detect falls or shut the stove off.

Sources

All links checked October 19, 2026.

This page is informational and does not replace a professional assessment or medical advice. Program details and Medicare rules come from the linked sources in October 2026 and may change. Stovyn is a monitoring device, not a certified safety device, and does not replace smoke alarms or CO alarms.

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Home safety checklist for seniors

Why does a home safety check matter for older adults?

What should be on a home safety checklist for seniors?

1. Entrances and outside

2. Living areas and floors

3. Stairs and steps

4. Kitchen

5. Bathroom

6. Bedroom

7. Lighting

8. Medicines and health

9. Fire and carbon monoxide

10. Emergency plan