BUSINESS tenants are being urged to check their premises for asbestos or risk being caught out by tough new regulations.
The call has come from experts at Button & Co Solicitors, in Manor Road, Coventry city centre, as new regulations could place the responsibility on business tenants to manage any asbestos in their premises.
Commercial lawyer Neil Ireland said business tenants should get an asbestos survey of their premises done, but warned that they could be liable to fix problems if the poisonous material was found to be in a poor or dangerous condition.
Failure to do so could leave tenants facing large fines or even prison sentences.
Part of the Control of Asbestos at Work Regulations which have come into force have a major bearing on commercial leases as anyone responsible for business premises must check for asbestos and, if it is found must take appropriate action to manage the risk.
It is estimated that about 500,000 buildings in Britain still contain asbestos which was used in buildings in various forms between 1950 and 1999.
Mr Ireland said: "The onus is now on tenants to manage the risk of their premises containing asbestos so businesses should take even greater care when moving into premises, as an awful lot of buildings still contain asbestos in their ceilings and roof structures." |
