New Instances Of Asbestos Exposure ‘Continuing To Put Lives At Risk’

by Liz Seyi Digital marketing manager

We receive all too many reminders here at Trident Asbestos Solutions of the importance that Asbestos Awareness Training retains well into the 21^st century, and recent statistics have shown that the risk of coming into contact with asbestos is still a genuine one for some workers.

Sobering figures for anyone concerned about asbestos

As reported by Health & Safety Matters, the period since the start of 2018 has seen 135 companies or individuals ordered to halt work activities due to a failure to comply with asbestos regulations, in addition to 130 that were warned of the need to improve.

31 more companies or individuals have been prosecuted for breaches, being hit with fines of between £1 and £200,000 and even – in some cases – seeing prison sentences handed to their directors.

Such punishments pale into insignificance, however, compared to the human cost of encountering lethal asbestos fibres. At least 5,000 deaths a year in Britain are still linked to it.

Efforts to boost awareness of the persistent dangers of asbestos

Although it usually takes several decades or more for asbestos exposure to lead to a diagnosis of asbestos-related cancer, the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) is concerned that the risk remains of many more people continuing to come into fresh contact with asbestos.

The organisation says this fear is based on the widespread lack of awareness about asbestos, uncertainty as to how it should be managed, and the fact that at least half a million buildings are still thought to contain the harmful material.

Bev Messinger, IOSH chief executive, commented: “It is unacceptable that, 20 years on from asbestos being banned in Britain, organisations are still potentially putting at risk the lives of employees, their families and other members of the public.

“Thousands die in Britain every year from cancers like mesothelioma, while many more are diagnosed with it... all this is preventable through good occupational safety and health. It is time for organisations to wake up and realise how dangerous asbestos is. There are no excuses.”

We can be your dependable source of asbestos awareness training

An IOSH-funded survey last year found that of 500 respondents – including electricians, carpenters, joiners and roofers – almost a quarter claimed to have been exposed to asbestos. Meanwhile, one in three said they had never checked the asbestos register prior to starting work on a new site.

Such statistics simply affirm, once more, how vital the right asbestos awareness training remains for all manner of individuals and organisations active in the UK today, encompassing occupations ranging from maintenance workers and plumbers to builders and painters.

Get in touch with the Trident Asbestos Solutions team today, and we can provide you with the most competitive quote for any of our leading asbestos management, removal and training services, to help to ensure that every user of any premises for which you are responsible stays safe.