Retailers are being sent a quick reference factsheet to help them understand their legal responsibilities on asbestos to ensure their workers, customers or any contractors are protected from exposure.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has teamed up with the BHF-BSSA Group - an independent retail trade body representing more than 7500 small retailers, after it was found that compliance with 'duty to manage' regulations was particularly low in this sector.

Any person or organisation responsible for the maintenance or repair of non domestic premises will almost certainly be responsible for managing any asbestos present, under Regulation 4 of the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006.

The Fact Sheet outlines:

• Who has the duty to manage;
• What the duty to manage means;
• Three essential steps to comply with the duty; and
• Advice on asbestos surveys.

Steve Coldrick, HSE's Asbestos Programme Director, said:

"Around 4000 people die each year from past exposure to asbestos. It may be present in any building built before the year 2000, and so it is essential that retailers are aware of the risk it still poses and their responsibilities in managing it.

"Working with the BHF-BSSA to put in simple terms what businesses should be doing will help remove any mystery or uncertainty around the regulations."

Michael Weedon, BHF-BSSA Group Communications Manager, said:

"Contractors never know what they are walking into when they start work on a jo b but retailers walk into the same premises day after day after day, so they really need to know what is lurking in their environment.

"Our factsheet sets out to make the subject clear and easy to understand, both for those who own their own premises and those who rent them from others."

The Fact Sheet is available to BHF-BSSA members at www.bssa.co.uk ^[1]

Notes to editors:

• The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain's national regulator for workplace health and safety. It works to prevent death, injury and ill-health to those at work and those affected by work activities. For more information about the work of HSE, visit www.hse.gov.uk^[2]
• BHF-BSSA Group is the umbrella group for seven trade associations representing independent retailers and dealers. Formed in 2009 from the merger of BHF Group, which was founded in 1899 and The British Shops & Stores Association (BSSA) which was formed in 1991, it has more than 7500 members across the UK. BHF-BSSA Group provides services to help support independents, as well as working on their behalf to represent their interests to local, national government and international government (EU). The Group includes: British Hardware Federation (BHF): British Shops & Stores Association (bssa), British Agricultural & Garden Machinery Association (BAGMA): Cookshop & Housewares Association (CHA): Home Decoration Retailers Association (HDRA): Independent Builders Merchant Services (IBMS): Pet Product Retailers Assocation (PPRA).
• Any person or organisation responsible for protecting others who work in or use non-domestic premises has a duty to manage the risks to health that exposure to asbestos causes. In many cases, this is the person or organisation that has clear responsibility for the maintenance or repair of the premises.
• 'Non-domestic premises' includes all industrial, commercial or public buildings such as factories, warehouses, offices, shops, hospitals and schools; and also includes common areas of some domestic premises.
• For further information on the duty to manage, visit http://www.hse.gov.uk/asbestos/managing/index.htm^[3]

Press enquiries

Laura Byrne, Tel: 0151 951 4205
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Public Enquiries

HSE InfoLine,
Caerphilly Business Park,
Caerphilly
CF83 3GG
Tel: 0845 345 0055
http://www.hse.gov.uk/contact/index

HSE have now launched a new 'Hammer Horror video' to highlight the dangers of Asbestos within buildings. The footage features advice on safety precautions.

To view the video click here!

Natas has now launched our upgraded version of our 'Asbestos Awareness' & 'Asbestos Awareness and the Duty to Manage' e-learning courses, from £25.00

HSG264 Asbestos

HSG264 Asbestos: The Survey Guide – A Summary

On 29th January 2010 the HSE released HSG 264 Asbestos: The Survey Guide. This document expands on and replaces MDHS 100. This document is aimed at those conducting Surveys, those who commission surveys and those with specific responsibilities for managing asbestos in accordance with Control of Asbestos Regulations (CAR) 2006.

Main new features:

Types of Asbestos Survey

The management survey (akin to the Type 2 survey) is designed to locate, as far as reasonably practicable, the presence and extent of asbestos containing materials (ACM’s), so that the Duty holder can prepare a plan for the management of asbestos.

Standard type of survey

• Types 1 and 2 no longer applicable
• Normal occupancy / activities
• Associated routine and simple maintenance / installations work
• Involve minor intrusive work e.g. accessing behind fascia and panels or superficial materials.
• Combination of sampling and presuming ACM's present
• Default presumption should be avoided, more difficult to manage e.g. lead to unnecessary removal of non-ACM's

The refurbishment/demolition survey (akin to the Type 3 survey) is a much more intrusive survey, designed to locate all the ACM’s so they can be removed before the refurbishment (whether small scale or a large project) or demolition takes place.

• Includes minor refurbishment which involve structural or layout changes e.g. removal of partitions, walls etc.
• Needed for home improvement programmes e.g. new kitchens, bathrooms, electrics, plumbing, windows, roof etc.
• Does not need to assess condition of ACM's other than to indicate areas of damage or areas debris may be present apart from where removal may not take place for more than 3 months – need to assess condition of ACM's
• No access areas from previous survey must be accessed
• Textured coating: survey should identify the nature of the substrate and whether textured coating removal will be required
• Provides details of specific areas which should be inspected: Suspended ceiling, partition walls, cavity walls, apertures, floors, ducts, cladding, debris in boiler room, roof voids, DPC etc.
• Surveyed area must be fit for reoccupation – requires thorough visual inspection and reassurance air sampling with disturbance (areas with significant destruction)

Planning Stage

• Purpose of survey?
• Should not accept restrictions on the surveyor's ability to access such areas. Under the new HSE guidance, the duty holder cannot simply take advantage of the small print, for example excusing the surveyor from accessing areas above a certain height, to relieve him of his obligation to locate and manage asbestos.

The duty holder should provide:

• clear information on the number of buildings to be inspected
• plans and relevant reports or surveys on the building design, structure and construction
• information as to the use of the buildings and any known hazards details of access arrangements to all relevant areas
• Avoidance of standard form of disclaimers/caveats, ineffectiveness to protect a negligent surveyor.
• Should not seek to escape liability for incompetent performance by reliance on standard form and widely drawn caveats.
• Should be adequately prepared for accessing areas such as ceiling voids, lofts, lift shafts, basements or high ceilings
• Any caveat MUST be agreed between the duty holder and the surveyor before commencement and documented in the survey report.

The surveyor should provide:

• details of any caveats (see below)
• confirmation of any areas not accessed
• insurance details
• references from previous work
• names of surveyors
• timetable of work

Carrying Out the Survey

• Detailed instructions to the surveyor and largely reproduces in expanded form the contents of MDHS 100 and the same applies in relation to the presentation of results
• New sections on survey strategy for domestic sector
• Clearer definition for Strong presumption and presumed (default situation)
• Product ‘location & use’ section updated
• Greater detail on conducting refurbishment/demolition surveys
• Should check for AIB off-cuts
• For cement products - if bulk analysis is inconclusive (e.g. Chrysotile & Amosite are detected) then water absorption test should be carried out to determine if AIB or AC
• Contract monitoring by duty holder e.g. to check accuracy of survey report and against the original tender; plans are clear and accurate; all rooms and areas have been accessed, sufficient samples taken; any obvious discrepancies and inconsistencies.

Clarity of Report

Two more sections on reporting requirements:

• Executive summary - describe the scope, type and extent of survey and include the summary of identified/presumed ACM’s, no access areas, ACM’s with high material assessment scores, clear notes on any actions (and priorities)
• Conclusions and actions – summarise the rooms/products/items which contain ACM’s and material (or the priority assessment) to indicate their urgency

Quality Assurance & Quality Control

• New requirement for non-accredited organisations/surveyors – Should implement an effective quality management system (ISO 9001 as a minimum)
• 5% of all surveys are re-inspected
• Audit of completed surveys
• Survey reports should be checked by an authorised person before issuing to client

Editorial contributed by Mr M Lopacki

NATAS (National Asbestos Training and Accreditation Scheme)

www.natas.co.uk

http://www.hse.gov.uk/press/2010/coi-ne-14210.htm Date: 22 April 2010 Release No: NE/142/10

A building firm has been fined after refurbishment work triggered the temporary closure of country club near Darlington over fears of exposure to asbestos. Nationwide Building Contractors Limited - which is registered at 1640 Parkway, Solent Business Park, Whiteley, Fareham, Hampshire - was today fined a total of £4,500 at Darlington Magistrates' Court over the incident. The comopany was found guilty, in its absence, of breaching Regulations 5, 11 and 16 of the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006, between 7 January and 6 March 2008. The company had been contracted to refurbish Hall Garth Hotel Golf and Country Club, at Coatham Mundeville, near Darlington. When HSE inspectors visited the site, they found that work was carried out without adequate checks for asbestos or asbestos-containing materials, and served a Prohibition Notice - immediately stopping construction work. Further investigations found large amounts of asbestos pipe lagging in walls and floor voids where work had been undertaken. HSE worked with local Environmental Health Officers and the hotel management to ensure that asbestos fibres had not spread to the occupied areas of the hotel.

The hotel was voluntarily closed while tests were undertaken. Fortunately the test results in the public areas were negative. After the case, HSE Inspector Victoria Wise said: "Construction and maintenance workers are the most at-risk groups from asbestos-related diseases due to the nature of their work. The widespread occurrence of asbestos as a product in buildings constructed or refurbished prior to 2000, means that inadvertent disturbance of asbestos-containing materials can be frequent and regular where asbestos products have not been adequately identified or managed. "Nationwide Building Contractors could have prevented this risk and should have ensured that the asbestos containing materials in the work areas had been identified and, where necessary, removed - then the information passed on to those who were liable to disturb the fabric of the building. "This prosecution should act as a reminder to those in the construction industry, and those in control of the repair and maintenance of buildings, of the importance of ensuring that a suitable and sufficient assessment for asbestos has been carried out and that the correct control measures are in place to ensure that exposure to asbestos is prevented, so far as is reasonably practicable."

Asbestos products have been widely used in the UK since the end of the 19th century and were used in the construction and refurbishment of buildings until 1999. Asbestos can cause a number of fatal or serious respiratory conditions if fibres are inhaled. Asbestos exposure is the most serious occupational health issue in the UK, and is responsible for approximately 4,000 deaths each year. Nationwide Building Contractors Ltd is now in liquidation. Notes to Editors: Visit http://www.hse.gov.uk/asbestos/hiddenkiller/ for further information about asbestos from HSE. HSE is Britain's national regulator for workplace safety and health. It aims to reduce injuries and illness in the workplace Regulation 5 of the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006 states that before work is undertaken a company should carry out "a suitable and sufficient assessment as to whether asbestos, what type of asbestos, contained in what material and in what condition was or was liable to be present". Regulation 11 of the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006 states a company must "prevent the exposure of their employees to asbestos, so far as is reasonably practicable". Regulation 16 of the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006 states a company must "prevent the spread of asbestos". The court also ordered Nationwide Building Contractors Limited to pay a separate [£15] victim surcharge, the proceeds of which will be spent on services for victims and witnesses.

Press enquiries Karen Bell, Tel: 0191 283 4003 Public Enquiries HSE InfoLine, Caerphilly Business Park, Caerphilly CF83 3GG Tel: 0845 345 0055 http://www.hse.gov.uk/contact/index Issued on behalf of HSE by COI News and PR North East