Is Asbestos Reporting Needed Right Now?

[EmbraFella]

I have inherited an office building and the tenant's head office is after an asbestos report. Now I'm pretty sure there is none in the building, and the tenant has been in for literally decades. Also, if a report has been done, I've yet to find it.

A bit of googling and I understand the requirement for one when signing a new tenant, selling the property or undertaking any refurb but none of that is planned.

Question is, am I legally obliged as a duty holder to bring in a specialist surveyor and have a management report done asap, or can I simply say my policy is to recognise there may be asbestos present and will call in a specialist as and when required?

 

[BubbaWY]

I would think as owner of the premises you should have an asbestos register which either identifies areas where there is/could be asbestos or states the premises is asbestos free.

How old is the building?

 

[EmbraFella]

I would think as owner of the premises you should have an asbestos register which either identifies areas where there is/could be asbestos or states the premises is asbestos free.

How old is the building?

Yer, I wasn't asking if I should or not, of course I should. The question is whether I need to have a survey done as a matter of urgency to comply with legistlation, or if it can wait until there is need for one.

As for how old, around 250 years. It was bought by my late father in the 80s. I can be pretty certain there is no asbestos present as he wouldn't have bought it if there was. He certainly wouldn't have allowed it's use during refurbishment. However, that's hardly a legal defense.

 

[IanSuth]

Yer, I wasn't asking if I should or not, of course I should. The question is whether I need to have a survey done as a matter of urgency to comply with legistlation, or if it can wait until there is need for one.

As for how old, around 250 years. It was bought by my late father in the 80s. I can be pretty certain there is no asbestos present as he wouldn't have bought it if there was. He certainly wouldn't have allowed it's use during refurbishment. However, that's hardly a legal defense.

You might be surprised at all the places asbestos hides and can be found in a survey.

My old school started doing refurb works expecting asbestos lagging in the heating tunnels but also found the white glazed bricks those tunnels were made with contained asbestos mixed in the clay so any hole drilled needed to be done in full ppe. (those tunnels were constructed 1895)

 

[Alyson Dyer]

Old artex contains asbestos
Old vinyl floor tiles (and/or the adhesive) contains asbestos
Don’t ask how I know…..

 

[EmbraFella]

Thanks everyone.

But no one has answered my question.

 

[JEREMY HAWKE]

If you have this stuff on your site you might have to bite the bullet and get a proper company in
Back in the day when my Dad was alive we took a real chance on dumping guttering and down pipes and I would never do it again

 

[pentel]

Who is responsible for asbestos report and management should be covered in the lease.

From https://www.hse.gov.uk/asbestos/duty.htm#who

The dutyholder is the owner of the non-domestic premises or the person or organisation that has clear responsibility for the maintenance or repair of non-domestic premises, for example through an explicit agreement such as a tenancy agreement or contract.

 

[EmbraFella]

So the answer to my query is that a management report is needed, but it can be done by the duty holder without the need of involving external surveyors. Samples can be taken and analysed by accredited labs. HSE gives guidance about what the report should contain.

 

[pentel]

but it can be done by the duty holder without the need of involving external surveyors

Correct, providing the duty holder is competent in this field. It is usually more cost effective to have an external surveyor carry this out rather than gain the competencies required to do the jo correctly.

 

[John P Rogers]

The government website says

”If you do not have a plan to deal with asbestos and put it in action, you could face:
a fine of up to £20,000
imprisonment for up to 12 months”
www.gov.uk/who-is-responsible-for-asbestos-found-in-my-commercial-property

When we provide internet leased lines now, part of Openreach‘s conditions are that the surveyor has to see the asbestos register before they put in a line to the building. Most customers don’t have one in place, but before contractors do ay work there really needs to be one.

 

[Solvelaw]

https://www.hse.gov.uk/asbestos/duty.htm - I am sure you have seen this?

 

[Adam Fox]

In short, yes, you legally must have an asbestos management survey report for your building.

The regulations actually state that you have to have an asbestos management plan not survey, however the survey is the only way to develop an asbestos management plan.

Hope this helps.

Feel free to reach out if you need any more help.

Adam