..as the Health and Safety Executive fights for greater asbestos regulation

The UK's leading loft boarding company, Instaloft Ltd, have issued a warning to homeowners across the country regarding the prevalence of asbestos in older domestic properties, urging them to be aware of the legal requirements of contractors carrying out loft-related work.

Currently, contractors have no legal obligation to conduct an asbestos survey before commencing domestic construction work, despite it being part of the Approved Code of Practice which is enforced by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), Local Authorities (LAs) and the Office of Rail and Road (ORE). However, under the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012, businesses do have a legal requirement to protect both their employees and those residing within the home if asbestos is found to be present.

With loft boarding being a fast-growing industry, there is currently no governing body regulating this sector as there is for gas, electricity or the window trade, which has prompted the Health and Safety Executive to begin lobbying for a review of the whole industry, ensuring companies are complying with their legal requirements around asbestos, protecting both homeowners and loft boarding installers from exposure and the spread of asbestos.

The last 18 months have seen Instaloft working closely with the HSE, building a code of practice around asbestos surveying that is now being used as the benchmark within the wider loft boarding industry.

Richard Breeze, Asbestos Line Manager for Instaloft explains:

"With the popularity of loft boarding growing in the UK, many homeowners are simply unaware of the potential presence of Asbestos Containing Materials (ACMs) in the ceilings below the loft space, within the loft space and in the roof of the property. The danger arises when loft boarding surveyors fail to conduct asbestos surveys by a qualified asbestos surveyor before carrying out contracted work, potentially putting those living in the home at risk of exposure to asbestos fibres if those materials are disturbed."

"Through our extensive work with the HSE, we've developed robust procedures around asbestos surveying, allowing us to create an asbestos target refurbishment (TR) survey tailored to the loft space and affected ceilings on all properties that were built before 2000. If a TR survey identifies an ACM and it is deemed to be a non-licensed material we have qualified fitters who can deal in the non-licensed asbestos removal and can carry out the work safely, protecting both our employees and those living within the home."

"We are urging homeowners to be aware of the risks of asbestos if handled incorrectly, and always choose a loft boarding company that is asbestos regulated."

Asbestos has been prohibited as a building material since 1999. However, the prevalence of the material in everything from cement and insulating boards, to pipe lagging and cladding means houses built before 2000 are likely to have asbestos materials within the fabric of the building. Though estimates on exact numbers vary, the consensus is that around 50% of private homes built before 1999 are likely to contain asbestos in some form.

Providing that asbestos materials are left intact and undisturbed, they pose little risk. However, any kind of construction, renovation or even routine DIY that damages or disturbs any ACM can pose serious health risks including Lung Cancer, Asbestosis (scarring of the lungs), and Mesothelioma (an aggressive and deadly form of cancer).

Instaloft is continuing to work alongside the HSE to pioneer stringent regulatory requirements for loft boarding companies around the risk of asbestos and the need for an asbestos survey to be carried out prior to any refurbishment work, as well as raising the awareness amongst the general public around the need to choose reputable, asbestos-trained companies for any loft-boarding related work.

For more information, please visit:

https://www.instaloft.co.uk/asbestos-survey/