Legal Duties and Compliance (England)
Asbestos management in non-domestic premises (shops, offices, warehouses, restaurants) and the common parts of multi-occupancy domestic buildings (communal stairs, corridors, entrance halls, plant rooms) is covered by the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 and the “duty to manage” requirements.
In practice, the dutyholder (often the landlord, freeholder, managing agent, or the organisation responsible for maintenance/repairs) must take reasonable steps to:
Find out if asbestos is present (or assume it is if uncertain)
Keep an up-to-date asbestos register (what/where/condition)
Assess the risk from any asbestos-containing materials (ACMs)
Create and maintain an asbestos management plan
Provide asbestos information to anyone who could disturb it (maintenance staff, electricians, builders, contractors)
A suitable asbestos survey and report is the foundation for compliance because it supports your asbestos register and management plan. A Management Survey is typically used for normal occupation/maintenance. For refurbishment or demolition works, you generally need the correct survey type planned to the work area, because disturbance risk increases significantly and you need safe planning before work starts. HSE guidance (HSG264) is the industry reference used for survey planning, reporting, and how dutyholders should use survey results.
Keep your records usable, not just “filed away”. That means keeping the survey/report accessible, updating the register after changes, and reviewing the management plan when conditions change (works, damage, change of use, new tenancy arrangements, etc.). This is what protects you legally and operationally if a contractor later disturbs ACMs.