WITH talk of a looming financial crisis everywhere at the moment you might be tempted to cut come corners in a bid to save yourself some money.
But when it comes to managing asbestos, or anything to do with health and safety, not doing things by the book also comes at a price.
Ian Stone, Director of Acorn Analytical Services explains more.
You can’t ignore asbestos management
If you are a landlord, or you own business premises, then you are what is known as a dutyholder.
A dutyholder is responsible for finding out if asbestos is present in a building and, if it is, making sure it is managed efficiently, and within the law.
Even though asbestos is no longer used in new buildings, it is still prevalent in older buildings such as offices, shops, factories and homes. According to the latest figures from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), each year 12,000 people die from lung disease linked to past exposure at work – a figure which also includes more than 2,500 deaths from mesothelioma, a cancer caused specifically by exposure to asbestos fibres.
Put simply, if your house or premises were built before 1999, you should check if they contain asbestos. Don’t ignore it.
What do I need to know about health and safety?
Health and safety rules govern many areas of our lives these days and they are often ridiculed as being too severe or out of date.
But the simple fact is health and safety rules are there to protect us and not following them can have devastating consequences.
Recently, the HSE reported that 142 workers were killed in 2020/21 and more than 400,000 people were injured. More than a third of those injuries were caused by slips, trips and falls. While it’s impossible to know the cause of each individual incident, it’s fair to presume that the vast majority of those cases could have been prevented.
The cost of not following the rules
As well as the obvious human cost of not following the rules, there is also a financial cost which can prove devastating, particularly for smaller businesses.
The total cost of fines issued by the HSE hit more than £26 million in 2020/21. The average fine was £145,000.
It’s vital that every business follows the rules around health and safety and gets support if they need to. The team at Acorn Analytical Services can help to ensure you are fully compliant and that yourself and your colleagues are safe.
How much does it cost?
Acorn Analytical Services has offices in Northampton, Cleckheaton, Wolverhampton and London and a team of experts who travel across the UK. We’re local, independent and we have decades of experience between us.
While every job is different, and costs do vary, we work with you to make sure the work we do fits within your timeframe and your budget.
We have experts dedicated to helping you with legionella testing, and fire risk assessments and a full range of health and safety services.
The lead time for many of our services is a week, but in many cases, we arrange appointments much sooner and sometimes within 24 hours.
We’re fully independent and ready to help in any way we can.
The team and I look forward to hearing from you soon.
Acorn is a professional asbestos consultancy helping organisations deal with asbestos compliance using asbestos surveys, asbestos air testing, and asbestos removal management.
Please call one of the team, or use the online form to obtain your free quotation. If you would like further information or advice on asbestos and asbestos training, contact the team on 0844 818 0895 or Contact Us
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