Who is this guidance for?

a) legal duty to manage the risk from this material; or

b) duty to co-operate with whoever manages that risk.

If you have information on the whereabouts of asbestos you will, under the duty of co-operation, be required to make this available to those responsible for managing these risks.

The main duty to manage is placed on the person responsible for maintaining the fabric of then on-domestic building or the shared common parts of domestic buildings.

This guidance will also be of help to you if you are managing asbestos in the private areas of social domestic premises. It will help you decide how to identify, assess and manage any asbestos-containing materials (ACMs) on your premises. A good strategy to manage these materials will help you prevent risk to workers or others who may use the premises.

Why is asbestos dangerous?

There are three main types of asbestos still found in premises.
These are commonly called ‘blue asbestos’ (crocidolite), ‘brown asbestos’ (amosite) and ‘white asbestos’(chrysotile). All of them are dangerous carcinogens, but blue and brown asbestos are more hazardous than white. You cannot identify them just by their colour. Although it is now illegal to use asbestos in the construction or refurbishment of any premises, many thousands of tonnes of it were used in the past and much of it is still in place. As long as it is in good condition and is not being or going to be disturbed or damaged there is negligible risk. But if it is disturbed or damaged, it can become a danger to health, because asbestos fibres are released into the air and people may breathe them in.

Who is at risk?

Anyone who uses your premises, who disturbs asbestos that has deteriorated or been damaged and is releasing fibres, can be at risk. In fact, anyone whose work involves drilling, sawing or cutting into the fabric of premises could potentially be at risk. They may all breathe in asbestos fibres during their day-to-day work.

There is now evidence to show that repeated occupational exposures, such as those which could occur during routine maintenance and repair work, can lead to asbestos-related cancers. But we do know the more asbestos fibres breathed in, the greater the risk to health. That is why it is important that ACMs are identified and that everyone who works with them should take appropriate precautions.

Where is asbestos found in buildings?

You are most likely to come across asbestos in these materials:

sprayed asbestos and asbestos loose packing - generally used as fire breaks in ceiling voids;

moulded or preformed lagging -generally used in thermal insulation of pipes and boilers;

sprayed asbestos - generally used as fire protection in ducts, fire breaks, panels, partitions, and on asbestos cement sheets around structural steel work;

insulating boards used for fire protection, thermal insulation, partitioning and ducts and as soffits and as ceiling or wall panels;

some ceiling tiles;

millboard, paper and paper products used for insulation of electrical equipment. Asbestos paper has also been used as a fire-proof facing on wood fibreboard;

asbestos cement products, which can be fully or semi-compressed into flat or corrugated sheets. Corrugated sheets are largely used as roofing and wall cladding. Other asbestos cement products include gutters, rainwater pipes and water tanks;

certain textured coatings:

bitumen roofing material;

vinyl or thermoplastic floor tiles.

High risk materials: Abestos pipe lagging Asbestos insulating board (AIB)Perforated AIB ceiling tiles Door with AIB panel

Normally lower risk materials: Asbestos cement wall cladding Asbestos-containing floor tiles

Remember, athough these are the most key uses and paces where asbestos will be found, asbestos was used in many other materials if you are in doubt, safer to presume that a material contains asbestos, unless there is strong evidence that it does not.

What does the duty to manage asbestos involve?

The duty to manage asbestos is included in the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006. It will apply to you if you have maintenance and repair responsibilities for non-domestic premises either through a contract or tenancy agreement or because you own the premises. The common parts of domestic premises such as lift and stair spaces in flats also attract the duty. The duty requires you to manage the risk from asbestos by:

1)either finding out if there is asbestos in the premises, its location and what
condition it is in;

2) or assessing if ACMs are liable to be present and making a presumption that materials contain asbestos unless you have strong evidence that they do not;

presuming materials contain asbestos, unless you have strong evidence that they do not;

making and keeping up to date a record of the location and condition of the ACMs or presumed ACMs in your premises;

assessing the risk from the material;

preparing a plan that sets out in detail how you are going to manage the risk from this material;

taking the steps needed to put your plan into action;

reviewing and monitoring your plan and the arrangements made to put it in place; and

setting up a system for providing information on the location and condition of the material to anyone who is liable to work on or disturb it.

Anyone who has information on the whereabouts of asbestos in your premises is required to make this available to you as the duty holder, but you will need to assess its reliability. Those who are not duty holders, but control access to the premises, would have to co-operate with you in managing the asbestos.

How can you comply with the duty?

Although you may appoint a competent person to carry out all or part of the work to meet the requirements of the duty, you will have to be involved in the final assessment of the potential risk. In particular, it is you who will know how the premises are used and what disturbance is likely to occur. The section ‘Assess the potential risk from the ACMs’ provides advice on doing this.

But remember, the responsibility for complying with the duty to manage the potential risk remains yours if you are responsible for maintaining relevant parts of a building.

Find out if asbestos is present

ACMs may be present if the building was constructed or refurbished before 2000. All asbestos use was prohibited by 1999. You need to do all that you reasonably can to find them by:

looking at building plans and any other relevant information, such as builders’ invoices, which may tell you if and where asbestos was used in the construction or refurbishment of the premises;

carrying out a thorough inspection of the premises both inside and out to identify materials that are or may be asbestos; and

consulting others, such as the architects, employees or safety representatives, who may be able to provide you with more information and who have a duty of co-operation to make this available.

Presume the material is asbestos