Ten Technical Questions That Separate a Thorough Asbestos Survey from a Cheap One

Procuring an asbestos survey is a low-visibility decision with a long tail. The report produced at the end of the process will sit behind a management plan for years, inform refurbishment budgets, and determine whether a contractor can safely begin work. Yet surveys are frequently bought on price alone, against quotations that describe different amounts of work.

The ten questions below are intended to be asked before appointment, ideally in writing, so that answers can be compared side by side. They are not a substitute for professional judgement, but they do expose the points where cheap quotations are usually cheap for a reason.

1. Which survey type does this project actually require?

A management survey is designed to locate asbestos materials that will be disturbed during normal occupation and maintenance. A refurbishment and demolition survey is intrusive, assumes the building will be taken out of service in the affected areas, and is required before work that will breach the fabric. Quotations that offer "an asbestos survey" without specifying type are not comparable. If you are planning a fit-out, a roof replacement or a demolition, a management survey is not a cheaper version of the right answer — it is the wrong answer.

2. Are you accredited by UKAS for this work, and what does the schedule cover?

UKAS accreditation to ISO/IEC 17020 for asbestos surveying is the recognised marker of competence in the UK. Ask for the accreditation schedule and check that surveying, sampling and reporting for your premises type are within its scope. Accreditation is not a guarantee of a thorough job, but its absence is a material risk when the report later has to be relied upon.

3. Who will be on site, and what are their qualifications?

Tendering organisations sometimes propose senior staff and deploy others. Ask for the names, roles and qualifications of the surveyors who will actually attend, and expect to see BOHS P402 or equivalent credentials for surveying, with additional module-based competence for refurbishment and demolition work. Ask also how many surveyors will attend and how long they expect to be on site — a two-hour visit to a large industrial unit is a scope statement in itself.

4. How will you define intrusion limits, and how will you record areas you cannot reach?

Every survey has boundaries, and the honest ones are documented. Clarify in advance which areas require access equipment, which need isolation of services, and which will be recorded as no-access. Agree how those limitations will be presented in the report and how they will affect the recommendations. A quotation that assumes unrestricted access without discussion is either over-optimistic or planning to cut corners.

5. What is your sampling strategy?

Ask how many samples are included, how the surveyor will decide where to sample within a homogeneous material type, and whether the price covers laboratory analysis by a accredited laboratory. Unexpected variation in a material across a building is common; a report built on one sample per material type across multiple buildings should be treated with caution.

6. How will presumed materials be handled?

Not every material can or should be sampled — some are inaccessible, some are hazardous to disturb, and some are presumed on the basis of age and appearance. The surveyor should be able to explain the basis for presumption and how presumed items will appear in the register. Presumptions are legitimate; unexplained assumptions are not.

7. What happens if something unexpected is found?

Refurbishment and demolition surveys frequently uncover materials not anticipated at tender stage. Ask how additional samples, additional time and re-visits are priced, and how quickly the surveyor can respond. A clearly stated variation rate is more reassuring than a vague promise of flexibility.

8. What will the report contain, and in what format?

Specify the deliverables: a written report, a register in a usable electronic format, marked-up floor plans, and photographic evidence of each material. If you maintain a CAFM system or an asbestos database, confirm the surveyor can supply data in a compatible structure. Reports delivered as a scanned PDF only are far less useful than a structured register that can be updated over time.

9. How do findings feed into the management plan?

A survey that ends at the report has done half its job. Ask whether the surveyor will provide material and priority assessments, condition scoring and recommended actions in a form that can be transferred directly into the management plan. Where the same organisation also provides management planning, clarify the boundary between the two services so that responsibilities are not blurred.

10. What is the programme, and what does it depend on?

Establish the expected mobilisation period, the fieldwork dates, the laboratory turnaround and the report delivery date. Then ask what the surveyor needs from you — access arrangements, permits, building plans, occupant liaison — and record those obligations. Surveys that slip are usually waiting on something the dutyholder did not realise was required.

Comparing tenders on equal terms

Once answers are in hand, the comparison becomes straightforward. A quotation covering two surveyors for three days, full sampling, UKAS-accredited analysis and a structured data deliverable is not comparable to one covering a single site visit and a scanned report, even where the second is half the price. Set out a common scope in your tender documents, require respondents to confirm or qualify it, and treat any silent departure as a question to be asked rather than a saving to be banked.

The cost of the wrong survey is rarely the fee. It is the aborted refurbishment, the emergency licensed removal, or the management plan built on incomplete information — all of which surface long after the quotation has been forgotten.