Current Asbestos Regulations & The Law

Training is mandatory for anyone likely to be exposed to asbestos fibres at work. This includes maintenance workers and others who may come into contact with or disturb asbestos (e.g. cable installers). It also includes those involved in asbestos removal work.

The control limit for asbestos is 0.1 asbestos fibres per cubic centimetre of air (0.1 f/cm3). This control limit should not be taken as a safe level for working. Exposure from work activities involving asbestos must be reduced as far below the control limit as possible.

In many cases, asbestos works need to be done by a licensed contractor. This includes some asbestos removal, all work with sprayed asbestos coatings and asbestos lagging, and most work with asbestos insulation and asbestos insulating board (AIB). Where the work is on bonded asbestos products, it does not usually need to be carried out by a licensed contractor. This includes profiled asbestos cement sheeting or asbestos cement slates or flat sheets.

If you want to do any building or maintenance work or use plant or equipment that might contain asbestos, you need to identify where it is. You also need to identify its type and condition, so you can assess the risks, and then manage and control such risks.

You have a responsibility to manage asbestos risks if you’re in charge of the maintenance of non-domestic premises. You have a duty to protect anyone using or working on the premises from asbestos exposure and associated health risks.

If you’re responsible for the maintenance of non-domestic premises, you have a duty to manage asbestos risks. You have a responsibility to protect anyone using or working on the premises from health risks caused by asbestos exposure.

If existing asbestos-containing materials (ACMs) are in good condition and are not likely to be damaged, they should be left in place. Their condition should then be monitored and managed to ensure they are not disturbed.

In recent legislation, there has been some modernisation of language and changes to reflect other legislation, e.g. the prohibition section has been removed. The prohibition of supply and use of asbestos is now covered by REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals Regulations 2006).

All workers/self-employed doing notifiable non-licensed work with asbestos must be under health surveillance by a doctor. Workers already under health surveillance for licensed work do not need to have another medical examination for non-licensed work. Medicals for notifiable non-licensed work are not acceptable for those doing licensed work.

Brief written records should be kept of notifiable non-licensed work. For example, a copy of the notification with a list of workers on the job, plus the level of their likely exposure to asbestos. This does not require air monitoring on every job if the degree of asbestos exposure can be made based on the experience of similar past tasks or published guidance.