The problem
While installing your new computer system, cablers find asbestos tiling behind the wallpaper - something they didn't discover until after drilling holes from one end of your hotel to the other. They call the Health & Safety Executive, which wants to know where your asbestos survey is. You don't know what an asbestos survey is.
Expert Advice
The first rule is, don't do it yourself: spotting asbestos can be tricky. Before the health problems were realised asbestos was seen by builders as the best thing since sliced bread. We all know about it being used in panel form to fireproof doors, but did you know that some manufacturers used it for making window boxes?
If your survey fails to identify some asbestos, you could put the health of workers at risk, since they won't be aware of the need to take precautions.
It's best to hire a qualified person to carry out the survey and provide advice on how to manage any asbestos found. Check that they are properly accredited, for example by the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS). However, always remember that the buck stops with you, as employer.
If you've gone to the trouble and expense of hiring a professional, make sure you have a proper contract with them so that, if they make a mistake, you can claim against them.
Find out more before proceeding: the Health & Safety Executive has a useful website, packed with helpful information (see Contacts).
The law
Although the use of new asbestos has been banned in construction since 1999, the Government is concerned at the risk posed by the six million tonnes of it already in buildings. The main danger with asbestos comes if it is accidentally disturbed. It's then that the lethal fibres are released.
The Control of Asbestos at Work Regulations 2002 impose a number of obligations on people in control of workplaces such as hotels, restaurants and public houses.
Under these rules you must:
* Carry out an investigation to find out whether asbestos is present in your building. If it is, you must find out where it is and in what condition.
* Create a written record of your findings.
* Plan how to manage the asbestos in future to ensure that it is kept safe.
* Ensure that those who need to know (such as your cablers) have full information enabling them to work around the asbestos safely.
Check list
* Contact the Health & Safety Executive to get further information.
* Hire the professionals. Don't try to do your survey yourself. Seek advice about what to do with any asbestos found.
* Make sure you have a proper contract with your chosen expert.
* Get on with it.
Beware!
Failure to comply with these regulations will be a criminal offence and will put you at risk of a fine. There is no limit on how much that fine could be. Even if you operate your business through a limited-liability company, the law says that if you are a director, company secretary or manager you could face personal liability.
If one of your workers contracts an asbestos-related illness, you may find yourself at the end of some very expensive litigation.
Failure to comply with these regulations may put you at risk of losing your compulsory Employers' Liability Insurance, and if that lapses you will find you have a whole new set of problems to sort out.
Contacts
Lewis Silkin
12 Gough Square, London EC4A 3DW
E-mail: neil.toner@lewissilkin.com
Health & Safety Executive
Web: www.hse.gov.uk
UKAS
Web: www.ukas.com