Residential Asbestos Surveys – Pre Purchase and Common Parts Surveys and Asbestos Registers
Residential Asbestos Surveys and Pre – Purchase Surveys
Suspected asbestos containing materials are often highlighted by home buyer surveys and building surveys as you approach exchange to buy a new house or flat.
Commonly Artex ceilings, asbestos cement garage roofs, water tanks and flues along with asbestos floor tiles and asbestos board to boiler cupboards are flagged up. Often the survey will not tell you for certain whether asbestos is present.
Home buyers need to know if the suspect material does contain asbestos, what the risk is and what action needs to be taken to make the property safe so they are happy to progress with buying the property. This usually comes late in the buying process. We are used to working to a tight time limit where this is holding up the house purchase. Read case studies here.
What can we do about suspected Asbestos Materials
We can identify whether asbestos is present, what the potential risk is and what remedial action is required. This may require a full asbestos survey especially where several potential asbestos containing materials have been identified. Where there is a specific material that has been identified by a Home Buyers survey of Building Survey as a suspected to contain asbestos then we can carry out inspection and sampling of that material.
Once we have established whether asbestos is present then we can put forward recommendations as to what remedial action is required which may involve asbestos removal or could mean the materials can be left in situ as long as its condition is monitored and steps are put in place to avoid disturbance of the asbestos containing material.
What to do about asbestos if you plan refurbishment works
If you plan to undertake refurbishment or demolition works that will potentially disturb an asbestos containing material then removal of the asbestos will be required in advance of works. Asbestos removal works will commonly include removal of an asbestos cement garage roof or internal asbestos board garage ceiling prior to an extension or removal of artex textured coating where structural changes are planned or new lighting is to be installed.
Where there is an older boiler or an air heating system to be replaced; the removal of the boiler, asbestos board lining, floor tiles and an asbestos cement flue pipe are often involved not uncommonly with an asbestos cement cold water tank also coming out.
We can carry out any necessary asbestos removal or encapsulation works.
Asbestos Surveys and Asbestos Registers for the Common Parts of Blocks of Flats
There is a requirement most recently under the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 for an Asbestos Register to be put in place and maintained of the common parts of blocks of flats. Though the legislation was updated in 2012 it has been a requirement since 2004. The register is essentially a list of asbestos containing materials, their condition and what remedial action is to be taken with regard to these. It also specifies both the timescale for the management of the asbestos containing material, what action is required and who is responsible.
We carry out the asbestos management survey of the common parts of blocks of flats, converted houses and also HMOs to identify which asbestos containing materials are present, their condition and what remedial action is required. We can also put the asbestos register together.
The asbestos survey and register are necessary to ensure that residents or other people such as trades peoples are not exposed to potentially high risk asbestos containing materials and that all steps are taken to minimise any risk of fibre release and protect the people that use the building
We have cases where the requirement for an Asbestos Register has not been acted on or the register has either been lost or is completely out of date.
Solicitors will often demand a copy of the asbestos register or the asbestos survey of the common parts as part of the process of buying a flat. At this point it becomes urgent as the sale will not go through without it.
