Bad asbestos advice can now land on the adviser.
In July 2026 HSE said it intends to hold third-party advisers to account when a duty holder breaks the law because it followed their advice. For asbestos surveyors, analysts, consultants and occupational health providers, that changes the risk of getting it wrong. Here is what the law allows, who is exposed and how to show buyers you are a safe pair of hands.
- At HSE’s July 2026 AGM, its director of regulation said HSE would hold third-party advisers to account where duty holders fail because they relied on poor advice.
- Section 36 of the Health and Safety at Work Act lets HSE prosecute any person whose act or default caused someone else’s offence, whether or not the duty holder is prosecuted.
- Section 37 extends liability to directors and senior managers of a company where an offence involved their consent, connivance or neglect.
- Asbestos advisers most exposed include surveyors, analysts, consultants and occupational health providers whose work duty holders depend on.
- The best protection is good practice that is documented and visible: clear scope, honest limitations, current competence and quality control buyers can see.
What HSE said
At HSE’s annual general meeting on 28 July 2026, a GMB representative asked about recent enforcement action against an occupational health provider. As reported in ARCA News, HSE’s director of regulation, Jane Lassey, said the regulator would hold third-party advisers to account where a duty holder fails to comply because it relied on their advice. She said many duty holders, especially small and medium-sized employers, depend on outside advice, and that it is “just not right that they can effectively get away with shoddy work”. She added that HSE should be doing more of it.
It was a short exchange, but it matters to the whole asbestos industry. Duty holders rarely manage asbestos alone. They rely on surveyors to find it, analysts to identify it, consultants to plan around it and occupational health providers to monitor the people exposed to it.
What the law actually allows
The ARCA News report referred to section 37 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. In practice, two neighbouring sections are relevant, and it is worth understanding both.
| Section | What it says | Who it reaches |
|---|---|---|
| Section 36: offences due to fault of other person | Where an offence by one person is due to the act or default of another person, that other person is guilty of the offence, whether or not the first person is prosecuted. | Any person whose act or default caused the offence, including an outside adviser or adviser firm. |
| Section 37: offences by bodies corporate | Where a company commits an offence with the consent or connivance of, or attributable to neglect by, a director, manager, secretary or similar officer, that person is also guilty. | Directors and senior managers, including those of an advising company. |
You can read section 36 on legislation.gov.uk. Put simply, section 36 is the route to the adviser whose poor work caused the breach, and section 37 is the route to the people running the advising company if that work reflected their neglect. This is not new law. What is new is HSE saying publicly that it wants to use these powers more often, and the precedent already exists: an occupational hygienist has previously been prosecuted under section 36 for failing to assess workers’ exposure properly.
Who is most exposed in the asbestos industry
- Asbestos surveyors, where a missed or wrongly assessed material leads a duty holder to disturb asbestos during works.
- Analysts and laboratories, where a misidentified sample or an inadequate clearance leads to exposure. HSE’s recent laboratory mystery shopper study has already put quality control under the spotlight.
- Consultants who write management plans, specifications or method advice that a duty holder follows.
- Occupational health providers, which were the subject of the enforcement case raised at the AGM.
Licensed removal contractors are already duty holders in their own right, but they also rely on analysts and consultants. That cuts both ways: choosing competent advisers protects them too.
Does your website prove your competence before anyone asks?
Duty holders choosing an adviser now have a sharper reason to check credentials. We build websites for surveyors, analysts and consultants that show accreditation, qualifications, quality control and sample reports clearly, for buyers and AI tools alike.
What good practice looks like now
None of this should worry advisers who do careful work. It should push the industry to make that care visible. The practical steps are familiar, but HSE’s comments raise the stakes for doing them consistently:
- Work within your competence. Only take on survey types, analysis and advice that your qualifications, experience and accreditation cover.
- Define the scope and the limitations of every survey and report in plain language, including areas not accessed and presumptions made.
- Keep quality control records, including rechecks, deviations and how errors are fed back into training.
- Keep qualifications and refresher training current for every person who signs off work.
- Record the advice you give, the information you relied on and why you reached your recommendation.
- Check your professional indemnity cover reflects the work you actually do.
We explain the differences between personal competence, organisational accreditation and personnel certification in competence, accreditation and certification explained.
Why this is also a marketing issue
Duty holders now have a sharper reason to choose advisers carefully. A facilities manager or principal contractor who has read about HSE’s comments will look harder at who they appoint. They will check accreditation, qualifications, insurance and evidence of quality before they commission anyone. Our guide to what buyers check before shortlisting covers those checks in detail.
Most consultancy and laboratory websites make that hard. Accreditation numbers are hidden in a footer image, qualifications are not listed, quality control is never explained and there are no sample reports or case studies. Advisers who make their competence easy to verify will win the cautious buyers, and AI tools will describe them more accurately too. See how to show asbestos credentials online and how audits can become proof for clients.
Keep track of what changes next
HSE has also confirmed targeted reform of the Control of Asbestos Regulations. We follow every change affecting the industry on our asbestos regulation and policy tracker.
We have over 20 years of experience in web design and digital marketing for the trades, and we build websites for surveyors, analysts and consultants that show competence clearly, using data, not guesswork. Start with a free Four Stage Clearance.
Sources: ARCA News Issue 133, Autumn 2026, reporting HSE’s annual general meeting of 28 July 2026; Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, sections 36 and 37, via legislation.gov.uk. This article is general information, not legal advice.
Questions advisers are asking
Can HSE prosecute an asbestos surveyor or consultant for a client’s breach?
Yes, in principle. Section 36 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 says that where an offence by one person is due to the act or default of another, that other person is guilty of the offence, whether or not the first person is prosecuted. HSE said in July 2026 that it intends to use its powers against third-party advisers more often.
What is the difference between section 36 and section 37?
Section 36 targets any person whose act or default caused someone else’s offence, such as an adviser. Section 37 targets directors, managers and similar officers of a company where the company’s offence involved their consent, connivance or neglect.
Which asbestos businesses are most exposed?
Anyone whose advice a duty holder relies on: asbestos surveyors, analysts and laboratories, consultants who write management plans or specifications, and occupational health providers.
How can asbestos advisers reduce their risk?
Work within your competence and accreditation, define the scope and limitations of every survey and report clearly, keep quality control records, keep qualifications current and record the advice you give and why.
Does accreditation protect a consultancy from prosecution?
No. Accreditation shows an organisation has systems in place, but HSE looks at what actually happened. It helps, but it is not a defence if the advice was poor.
Make your competence impossible to miss.
Run the free Four Stage Clearance and see whether your website shows duty holders the accreditation, qualifications and quality control they now look for. Our team will then personally review it within one working day.
