Asbestos Removal in Newcastle

If you unexpectedly encounter material in your Newcastle building that you suspect contains asbestos, you should immediately cease any work you are doing in that part of the premises, and take steps to confirm whether the material does, indeed, contain asbestos.

A key requirement of the “duty to manage” asbestos, as set out under Regulation 4 of the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 (CAR 2012), is to presume that all materials in a given property contain asbestos, unless there is strong evidence of this not being the case.

The “duty to manage” asbestos also includes taking reasonable steps to determine whether there are ACMs in the property – and if so, where those materials are located, as well as their amount and condition. This requirement is typically fulfilled by arranging to have an asbestos survey carried out at the site.

From a legal standpoint, there are some “lower-risk” asbestos removal tasks – such as, in certain circumstances, the removal of asbestos cement roof sheeting or small areas of textured decorative coatings – that it may be permissible for someone to do even if they do not hold a licence from the HSE.

However, there is a big difference between the questions of whether someone is legally entitled to remove ACMs from their property without a HSE licence, and whether someone should attempt their own asbestos removal.

In practice, the severe risks that asbestos can present to health – as well as the stringent regulatory requirements around how asbestos is managed – mean it could be a catastrophic decision to try to remove asbestos yourself. We would strongly advise you to arrange for licensed asbestos removal professionals to take on this specialised task for you.

The HSE has put together a series of documents over the years that provide guidance and information on asbestos management and removal. Click through to read our rundown of some of the most relevant HSE publications, or consult Oracle Solutions’ own online Learning Centre for extensive advice in relation to many of these topics.

Our company is licensed by the HSE to carry out asbestos removal and repair operations in all their forms. This means you can rest easy in the knowledge that when you have asbestos removed from your property by our professionals, and subsequently disposed of, every aspect of our work will comply with the UK’s strict asbestos regulations. 

We are also completely insured, including holding the highest available level of professional indemnity insurance in the asbestos industry. So, when we provide you with advice, you can have the utmost confidence in it being high-quality advice.

Our professional indemnity insurance covers you for £5 million. This is in sharp contrast to many of our competitors, which often either don’t have this type of cover at all, or only have a low level of insurance.

Technically, there are some forms of asbestos work – including some asbestos removal tasks – for which a licence from the HSE is not required.

However, there are many other types of work on asbestos materials that do need a HSE licence. Furthermore, even if a particular asbestos removal operation doesn’t strictly require a licence, we would still strongly recommend that you use a licensed contractor for this job.

A given contractor being licensed indicates that they have achieved HSE-set standards for the quality of their asbestos work. This will give you added peace of mind compared to if you had chosen an unlicensed asbestos removal firm.