The team at 4Site Consulting discuss managerial duties and the risks faced when maintaining a building with a risk of Asbestos exposure.
In these extraordinary times, there are clearly additional considerations that need to be made when appointing contractors to carry out essential maintenance works.
If you are responsible for a block, it is vital that you review all of your contractor’s procedures and safe working methods in respect of COVID-19 risk management.
Though it is, of course, highly important that you continue to take these precautions, COVID-19 is not the only risk that contractors and Property Managers should consider when maintenance work is being carried out on a block.
Indeed, the risk from Asbestos exposure is just as real and should be managed in order to keep safe Contractors, Residents, Property Managers, and any other visitors to the block.
In this article, we discuss the law in regards to managing Asbestos in residential communal areas, situations in which contractors are most at risk, and what Property Managers should be doing…
Firstly, what is Asbestos?
Asbestos is a naturally occurring material that was widely used in building materials up until the year 2000 and was commonly used due to its heat resisting and durability properties.
However, as most of us know, it is harmful to health when disturbed fibres are breathed in.
Therefore, it was completely banned in 1999 but can still be found in properties built before this date.
What is the law when it comes to Asbestos in blocks of flats?
Any property built prior to the year 2000 may contain Asbestos Containing Materials (ACMs). As such, the law requires those responsible for such a property, i.e. Property Managers and RMC Directors, to manage any Asbestos in the non-domestic premises. This duty comes under Regulation 4 of the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 which states:
“If you’re responsible for maintenance of non-domestic premises, you have a ‘duty to manage’ the asbestos in them, to protect anyone using or working in the premises from the risks to health that exposure to asbestos causes.
If you want to do any building or maintenance work in premises, or on plant or equipment that might contain asbestos, you need to identify where it is and its type and condition; assess the risks, and manage and control these risks.” (HSE)
This means that the regulation does not place any direct duty on Landlords of individual flats but instead on those responsible for the communal areas such as, stairwells, corridors, lifts and boiler rooms.
So, as a Property Manager, RMC Director or Landlord, what should I be doing?
As the legislation states, those responsible for the non-domestic areas of a residential block must manage any Asbestos Containing Materials.
In order to do this, the block must have an Asbestos Management Survey. If it does not, you should have one carried out as soon as possible by a competent person or organisation.
Overall, an Asbestos Management Survey with yearly re-inspections (if Asbestos is found to be present) should be sufficient for routine maintenance works.
When are contractors most at risk?
Asbestos Containing Materials will not release Asbestos fibres unless they are disturbed or damaged in some way. This is the reason why it is often contractors and maintenance workers who are most at risk. Some of the tasks that are at particular risk of exposing Asbestos can include: drilling into walls, laying cables, removing floor tiles, and repairing roofing in areas that contain ACMs.
However, it is important to note that there is a risk when working on any building built before the year 2000.
Therefore, contractors carrying out any maintenance works will need to know the location and condition of any ACMs in the building and the Asbestos Register must be viewed and acknowledged by all contractors before any work commences onsite, to ensure they are aware of any Asbestos present.
