London contractor fined £19,300 for asbestos failings

A self-employed builder from London has been fined for exposing his workers to dangerous levels of asbestos on a job in the south of the capital.

Fadil Adil was fined £19,300 and ordered to pay costs of £7,654, after failing to protect workers from fibres of the carcinogenic material on a restaurant demolition job in Bromley.

Three workmen were exposed to the material when demolishing the building using sledgehammers and hand-operated breakers.

The City of London Magistrates’ Court heard how Adil had not carried out an asbestos survey, did not have a licence to work with asbestos, nor was he trained in construction management.

Health and Safety Executive inspector Ian Seabrook, who was prosecuting, said: “Sadly,this kind of incident is all too familiar because the defendant’s actions meant that his colleagues were more than likely exposed to asbestos fibres.

“The dangers of asbestos are well known; it is the single greatest cause of work-related deaths in the UK with around 1,000 tradesmen dying each year from asbestos-related diseases.”

Adil was in charge of the demolition of the building between 21 and 29 June 2010.