Fined for failure to assess asbestos risks

Darchem Engineering Limited appeared before Teesside Magistrates’ Court to answer charges under the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006. Their guilty plea led to fines of £3,000 for failing to protect their employees. The offence was spotted by a contractor who had been trained in asbestos awareness, and noticed  two maintenance workers drilling into asbestos insulation board to relocate a junction box without taking appropriate precautions. The workers were potentially exposed to asbestos fibres, and HSE Inspector Andrew Mulligan said: “A suitable and sufficient assessment should have been carried out and the company should have made sure that their employees had adequate information, instruction and training.”