How a Manchester Asbestos Case Shows the Real Duty to Manage

A recent prosecution of a Manchester construction firm working on the former Unicorn Public House in Eccles shines a harsh light on what “duty to manage” asbestos really means in practice. The case shows how quickly things can go wrong once asbestos debris is discovered – and how failing to revisit the asbestos assessment can lead straight to court.

This is directly relevant to, property owners, estates teams, dutyholders and contractors who manage or work on older buildings where asbestos is still present.

What happened at the former Unicorn Pub?

A1 Property Maintenance Management Limited was acting as principal contractor during works at the former Unicorn Public House on Liverpool Road, Eccles, Greater Manchester. During a routine inspection on 16 May 2022, an HSE inspector found that around 12 square metres of asbestos insulating board (AIB) in a dumb waiter lift shaft had already been removed illegally by unknown individuals.

Before that inspection, a site worker had entered the building after noticing the pub door had been broken into (presumably by trespassers) and discovered what appeared to be asbestos debris around the lift shaft. That debris was later wrapped and removed by a licensed asbestos removal contractor, but no full asbestos survey was carried out before construction work continued

​Where the duty to manage broke down

At the heart of this case is a failure to review and update the asbestos information when there had clearly been a “significant change” in the condition of the premises. Once the door was broken, the building accessed and suspected asbestos debris found and removed, the original assumptions about what asbestos was present and where it was located were no longer reliable.​

Despite this, A1 Property Maintenance Management Limited allowed further works to proceed without commissioning a full asbestos survey to confirm whether asbestos‑containing materials (ACMs) remained and what condition they were in. The company later pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 4(6) of the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 and was fined £5,360 with £5,117 in costs at Tameside Magistrates’ Court on 30 July 2025.​ 

HSE Press Release: Manchester firm fined after workers exposed to asbestos risks"

For property owners, construction companies and other dutyholders, this is a clear reminder that the duty to manage is not a one‑off exercise: it must be revisited whenever the building or its condition changes in ways that could affect asbestos.

HSE’s message to dutyholders and contractors

Following the hearing, HSE described the incident as serious and made clear that workers on the project had been put at risk of exposure to asbestos fibres. The regulator reminded dutyholders that asbestos assessments must be reviewed “without delay” where there has been a significant change in the premises, such as vandalism, break‑ins, unplanned disturbance, or partial removal of ACMs.

HSE has also highlighted its “Asbestos and You” and “Asbestos Your Duty” campaigns, aimed at tradespeople and those responsible for maintenance and repair of non‑domestic buildings, alongside its wider online guidance on identifying asbestos, stopping work, and putting safe systems in place where ACMs may be disturbed. This guidance is directly applicable across university and school estates, multi‑let properties and construction projects

Practical lessons for anyone with asbestos responsibilities

For property owners, estates teams, dutyholders and principal contractors, this case offers several clear compliance lessons.​

• Treat any asbestos disturbance as a trigger to review the assessment. A break‑in, fire, water damage, or unauthorised work should automatically prompt a review of the asbestos register and especially any adverse impact on the material risk assessment and management plan, not just a tidy‑up of visible debris.​

• Do not assume that licensed removal of visible material is the end of the story. Even where a licensed contractor has removed debris on an emergency basis, a competent refurbishment or targeted survey is needed to confirm what remains and whether the original information is still valid.​

• Stop work and verify before restarting. Once suspected asbestos has been disturbed, further construction or strip‑out work should not resume until up‑to‑date survey information is available and all parties are clear on the remaining risks and controls.​

• Clarify who holds the duty to manage. Vacant pubs, small commercial units, university outbuildings and mixed‑use premises often fall between cracks when ownership, letting and refurbishment responsibilities shift; someone still has legal duties under Regulation 4.​

• Make sure site workers know what to do if they see suspect material. In this case, a worker did recognise possible asbestos debris, but the follow‑through on survey and reassessment was missing. Clear instructions and authority to stop work are essential.​

For contractors, the message is equally clear: do not rely on assumptions or partial information where asbestos may be present; insist on current survey data and clear controls before proceeding.

Turning learning into action

The real value of cases like this is not the headline fine but the opportunity to stress‑test existing arrangements for managing asbestos across your estate or projects. Dutyholders should use it as a prompt to check whether their own asbestos registers, management plans and contractor controls would stand up if a similar unplanned disturbance occurred tomorrow.​

For universities, property owners and contractors, a simple internal question can be revealing: “If a caretaker or contractor reports suspect debris tomorrow, what happens next – and how quickly?”

If the answer is unclear, your arrangements probably need be reviewed.​

If you are a university, property owner, dutyholder or contractor and are unsure whether your asbestos management arrangements would withstand the kind of scrutiny applied in this case, support is available.

Services can include asbestos management plan reviews, survey scoping, incident procedures and contractor briefings designed to keep you compliant and your workforce safe.​

How Asbestos Compliance can help

Asbestos Compliance provides targeted support to help universities, property owners and contractors meet their duties under the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012.​

• Asbestos management plan review and update Independent review of existing asbestos registers and management plans against the regulations, focusing on whether there is a clear process to review the assessment after “significant change” (break‑ins, vandalism, unplanned disturbance, partial removal), as highlighted by the Unicorn Pub case.​

• Refurbishment/demolition survey strategy and scoping Support to determine the right survey type and produce or review scopes so surveys properly cover lift shafts, risers, voids and other hidden spaces where ACMs such as AIB are often found.​

• Incident response and stop‑work procedures Development of simple, practical procedures for dutyholders and contractors: what to do if suspect debris is found, who can stop work, and who calls the surveyor or analyst, plus escalation and communication routes so information moves quickly from site back to estates or the principal contractor.​

• Contractor competence and briefing support Assistance in setting competence requirements for contractors working on asbestos‑containing or suspect buildings, and delivery of toolbox talks or short briefings on what to do if you see suspect asbestos and how to use the asbestos register on site.​

• Compliance audits for estates and projects Periodic audits of projects and buildings to check asbestos information is current, communicated and being used in practice, using real cases like the Unicorn Pub prosecution as benchmarks for what good – and poor – compliance looks like.​

  
  

If you would like to discuss how these issues apply across your estate or projects, get in touch to arrange an initial review of your current asbestos management arrangements.​