In The House

Now and again you come up with a google search or on social media you find a company that catches your eye and find they are talking your talk.

I did just that the other day as I was looking through LinkedIn and there it was, a comment from a man on an article I had copied over.

I had a message from him and a friendship has been struck. Why?? because he shares my passion for surveys to be carried out in houses.

I have spoken of this for sometime that we should have survey’s of the asbestos in a house built before 2000, and in the selling pack. Asbestos wasn’t fully banned as a building material until 1999, so anybody inside a building that was either built or refurbished before that date, or currently undergoing construction work, is at risk of asbestos exposure.

Some Mortgage Company’s are pushing for this. They are not expensive. I would want to at least know where the asbestos was so that I could manage it. To decide whether to have it removed or just to know where not to drill or where not to scrap.

So many people have removed the Artex or the flooring and the popcorn wallpaper. Taken sheds down etc etc with no protection.

Rob emailed me :-

We came across the idea when realising that the Control of Asbestos Regs didn’t seem to concern about the domestic home owner. We do quite a bit of asbestos work with architects on a commercial level at BESA group and found that we were having to remind them that asbestos is also present in the home although the regs point towards social housing.

From there, and a small amount of requests for the removal of the odd domestic garage roof, we realised that asbestos identification and removal is either priced at a commercial level or conducted incorrectly by cowboys!

Being a company that work with 3 councils and a good handful of large commercial outfits, we always rely on prudence when providing asbestos advice rather than taking the client for their ignorance. (Not many of us about, I’m sure?)

We decided to set up Asbestos in Homes to bring an affordable but professional company to the domestic market.

Off the back of the website and ‘Google Ad Words’ we have seen an organic growth as a department, with more and more home buyers and sellers, estate agents and small domestic service companies nationwide, (plumbers, electricians and builders etc) finding us to be a good source of free advice and affordable remediation. (Even if it’s based on potential products identified within home buyers report)

I love watching the domestic market start to take asbestos seriously, not just because we are a business but because I got into this industry after leaving the army, seeing events that created unnecessary trauma in people’s lives, and realising that some people really don’t care how they can negatively affect the lives of others for their own gain.

So lets keep family’s safe shall we and let’s make it a law.

HAVING WORK CARRIED OUT AT HOME?
CONSTRUCTION (DESIGN AND MANAGEMENT) REGULATIONS 2015
Am I a domestic client?
If you’re having works carried out at home it is important to understand your duties and responsibilities under current regulations.
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2015/51/contents/made
A domestic client is any individual who has construction work carried out on their home, or the home of a family member, that is not done as part of any business. While these regulations place duties on commercial clients in full, the duties for domestic clients normally pass to the contractor or principal contractor.
The Importance of a contractor / principal contractor
As a domestic client undergoing construction work, you must follow regulations that have been put in place to keep you and your family safe. If you have appointed an architect or designer for the proposed works that involve more than one contractor you can ask them to manage the project and take on these responsibilities as a principal designer. A written agreement between the domestic client and the architect / designer, must be in place.

Throughout your project, the principal contractor or designer will ensure that all pre-construction information is relevant to the project. This information includes the health and safety file for your project, as well as an asbestos survey and structural drawings. All information must contain an appropriate level of detail and be proportionate to the nature of the risks. A professional contractor will give you this complete peace of mind.

http://www.asbestosinhomes.co.uk/#health-risk

Please read though their web pages it could save your families lives and save them from Mesothelioma