What are the reasons for this?
The health risk of inhaling asbestos fibres is well documented. It is claimed that more people die of asbestos related illnesses than road traffic accidents in the UK and its latent affects are generally 15 – 50 years from initial exposure.
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An asbestos survey will identify any asbestos and give advice on whether it needs removal, treatment or just recording. The purpose is therefore to remove any risks to staff and contractors where asbestos doesn’t need to be removed but may for instance be drilled into during building works.
What buildings are affected?
Asbestos fibres are present in many products used in building construction or refurbishment up to 1999 when its use was stopped.
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Asbestos materials have frequently been added to older/period buildings and exist in hundreds of different materials such as, fire retardant boards, lagging, sprayed coatings and textured ceiling coatings, to name a few.
What is the procedure?
An asbestos survey needs to be carried out by a qualified asbestos surveyor and a report produced. The survey report will identify asbestos presence and then give a risk analysis/ advice to what should be done next i.e manage the risk, repair or remove for example.
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The surveyor takes small samples of likely Asbestos Containing Materials (ACMs) which are then sent to a accredited UKAS laboratory for analysis and the results included in the AMS. The surveyor can also make assumptions where access is not possible.
What happens if we don’t have an AMS?
You are at risk of heavy fines. A major retailer was recently fined £1 million for failing to protect customers, staff and maintenance workers from potential exposure to asbestos at two of its stores.
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There is also the health risk to you, your staff and contractors and accordingly the risk of legal action or health examination for many years to come in the event of anyone being exposed to asbestos fibres. If you are selling or letting a building then solicitors are increasingly asking for an AMS to be produced and so not having one can delay a transaction and increase the risk of the deal collapsing. If you are buying a building without an AMS you may be taking on an expensive obligation if asbestos is present.
What is the likely cost of asbestos removal?
It tends to be fairly expensive as it needs to be removed by licensed contractors.
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For example, where asbestos had previously been incorrectly removed in a 6ft x 4ft boiler room which then needed ‘cleaning’ to remove remaining asbestos dust, the cost was £2,000.
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