See also Asbestos - The Facts
You have a duty of care to the people who use and work in your buildings to protect them against exposure to asbestos fibres. If you fail in this duty you may be prosecuted. The legislation is not aimed at achieving removal of all asbestos, in fact in many cases this will be the least favoured option. The legislation sets out to remove the likelihood of exposure to asbestos fibres by having clear records of location and condition, and established management programmes, including regular inspections and updated risk assessments, which prompt required remedial action.
Duty to manage
In May 2004 regulation 4 of the control of asbestos at work regulations 2002 (now covered under the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006) came into force. This places a legal duty on employers to assess the risk of asbestos within their properties and take action to manage it.
The legislation is quite clear, from May 2004 if you own, lease or manage a commercial building you have a legal responsibility to take reasonable steps to establish and record the location and condition of asbestos within the fabric and structure of your building.
The essential requirements of the duty to manage include:
Many insurance companies now require evidence of compliance with regulation 4 prior to policy renewal.
Many commercial buildings have had asbestos in their structure which has lain undisturbed and low risk for decades. Unless major refurbishments or demolition are planned, then the risk will continue to be small but there is a real risk to unsuspecting contractors who may drill or cut the material. It is illegal to put these people at risk…keep your asbestos record up to date… and available.
Northern Asbestos offers a complete solution to the management of asbestos.