Asbestos backboard removal- Who's responsible?

You still have a few months yet. Bear with me - I need to ask a few folks for advice here.

Ok, I’ve spoken to SSEN just now and gotten their advice.

But to me, that Horstmann device appears to be a LOCAL timeswitch - not an RTS one and it appears to be active. I don’t think you’re on RTS for that reason.

SSEN has advised that removing the asbestos may be out of scope for them - you’d likely need to pay privately for a specialist to do it at your own cost. OVO would NOT be responsible for this cost either as it’s not in the meter or anything OVO manages/owns.

You’d also need to arrange for SSEN to visit on the same day to temporarily kill the power to the property, so that the asbestos specialists can work safely.

For further advice, please call 0800 048 3516 or send an email to the email address I’m about to share with you via PM.

Thanks very useful, would be good if this is not a race against time. 

Don’t mind paying, can you or anyone recommend specialist asbestos removers for this kind of job? I live in Oxfordshire (Witney).

Bearing in mind OVO has not told me where exactly the asbestos is, according to the ‘engineer’, assuming it really is there.

Sorry whats ‘PM’ - email is going there?

Cliff

PS I own the property but it is occupied by two invalid relatives, not me

OK ‘PM’ = private message, got it

I can’t recommend one myself, but try https://www.gov.uk/asbestos-in-home for advice.

PM is a Private Message. Check https://forum.ovoenergy.com/inbox/overview

Thank you again

No worries! Sorry it has to be that way regarding the email address, but SSEN are not exactly easy to work with and it’s a tricky balance that I need to maintain in order to be able to keep them talking. Other DNO’s are far less fussy but alas, that’s what you get with 50+ different hands in the pot.

If you need a hand with anything else, you know where to find us. :)

Understood, the SSEN website has very few signposts…...

‘Asbestos in meter cupboard’ might mean several things. One is that the main fuse is an asbestos type. The other is that the backboard on which some of the equipment is mounted contains asbestos.

Since an installation engineer has to remove the main fuse in order to be able to remove and replace the meter, it would have to be upgraded to a modern one first. That’s SSEN’s job, because it’s their fuse.

Dealing with an asbestos backboard is a bit more convoluted - It’s a complex process because any dust produced while doing the work has to be properly contained. You say that the cut-out (the box at the end of the cable coming into the property containing the main fuse) is not in the same place as the meter. That’s unusual, but it means that you’d have to have the asbestos-containing material removed by a licenced contractor and a new backboard installed. The board can’t be removed while the electrical equipment is mounted on it. OVO might be able to deploy an asbestos-trained and -equipped meter engineer who could do what’s necessary; he might be helpful and replace the board for you, but you’d have to supply it (they’re readily available from builders’ merchants). 

If it’s not the backboard that contains asbestos, but perhaps some of the building materials around the meter box, then that’s a job for a licenced contractor. There look to be four of them in Witney, so it might be worthwhile talking to one or more of them:

You might also get on to the local council’s environmental health officer (EHO, but often known as the ratcatcher!). Asbestos should be within their purview, so they ought to know who could deal with it. You might even persuade the EHO to make a site visit to see what needs doing, including what to do with the asbestos-containing material once it’s been removed. This is of course more likely to happen if you go heavy on the ‘invalid’ card, because he’s bound to be required to deal more quickly with vulnerable citizens. Good luck with finding out how to get hold of him …

Very many thanks. This is very helpful. Although I am put out by OVO’s failure to tell me exactly what the problem is - they have not said it is the back board or the cabinet itself and have ignored my request that they revisit to discuss with me. 

When the flat was rewired the electrician was initially flummoxed because there was no fuse in the cabinet. It is about 10 feet away (below) and was tested last year by the block manager.