Asbestos roof removal

What is an asbestos roof?

An asbestos roof is a fibre-cement roof whose cement sheets were cast with asbestos fibres. Sheets like these were laid until around 1990. As long as they lie whole and untouched, they release few fibres. It is taking them down that raises dust: broken sheets, drilling and pressure washing send asbestos fibres into the air.

How do you know whether your roof contains asbestos?

If the roof was laid before 1990, assume it may contain asbestos until a sample shows otherwise. Asbestos fibre-cement sheets were produced in Denmark until 1988, and sheets left in stock were laid until around 1990. A roof can also have been relaid with old sheets, so the year of construction doesn’t tell the whole story.

Look at the underside of the sheets from the loft. Many fibre-cement sheets carry a stamped number, and it gives an indication:

• An 8-digit number starting with 4 or 5, or a number containing letters, suggests a sheet without asbestos.
• A number of 5–7 digits with no letters suggests a sheet with asbestos.

Foreign sheets cannot be read from the number, and the number is not proof. An asbestos sample is the only reliable way to get an answer, see asbestos survey. We never judge a roof from a photo.

Fibre-cement slates, the small flat ones, were produced with asbestos until 1986.

Can you take an asbestos roof down yourself?

No. Since 1 January 2025, demolition of asbestos-containing material requires authorisation, including a whole roof on a private house, and the job may not be split into small ones to avoid it.

The exception is brief demolition work of a minor nature. The Working Environment Authority’s example is 4–6 roof sheets taken down for one roof window. You may do that yourself, but the sheets must be taken down so they raise as little dust as possible, sealed in plastic and delivered as your municipality directs.

Before you sign, check that the company is authorised for asbestos demolition. The rest of the rules are in the guide to the asbestos rules.

How we remove an asbestos roof

1. Written quote. You tell us about the roof and get a written quote for exactly the work that is included. If there is doubt about asbestos, we arrange a sample and an analysis.
2. Notification and planning. We notify the work to the Working Environment Authority and help with the details for the waste notification to the municipality, which you must file as the building owner. We agree the date with you and your roofer, so the house is open for as short a time as possible.
3. Cordoning and sheeting. We cordon off the area around the house and cover the ground below the eaves, so fallen pieces don’t end up in the flower beds.
4. Removal. Screws and hooks come out first, then the sheets are wetted and lifted down whole. We don’t cut, sand or drill them, and we don’t throw them down. Everyone on the roof holds the occupational health and safety training the Working Environment Authority requires.
5. Packing and transport. The sheets are packed in sealed plastic on pallets or in approved big bags, labelled and taken to an approved waste site. You get the receipt.
6. Clean-up and documentation. We check battens, gutters and the ground for residue. You get documentation of notification, disposal and the work carried out, which you can pass on to your roofer, your insurer and a future buyer.

What does it cost to remove an asbestos roof?

The price is per m² of roof area, and the rate falls in steps as the roof gets bigger. Fibre-cement slates cost more than corrugated sheets: a corrugated sheet covers around a square metre and comes off in one piece, while slates are many small pieces that each have to be loosened and kept whole.

Choose the roof type in the calculator. If you don’t know which type you have, choose “Other / don’t know”. If it is still unclear, we come out and look at the roof free of charge.

Scaffolding is not in the per-m² price. If you don’t have your own, we put it up at a fixed price on an ordinary single-storey house, and the calculator includes it. A worked example and everything the price depends on are on the pricing page.

There is currently no nationwide grant scheme for removing asbestos roofs, and the craftsman deduction does not cover the work. What has been proposed is in the guide to grants.

New roof on top, or replacement?

Laying a new, light roof on top of an asbestos roof is not banned, for example steel on spacer battens. It requires that the old sheets are not drilled, cut or damaged, and that the structure can carry two roofs. Ask your municipality before you decide. The asbestos is still there, it should be disclosed when you sell, and the day the roof comes down there are two layers to remove.

We don’t clean or paint asbestos roofs, and paint does not remove the asbestos. Pressure washing asbestos sheets is banned, and the exemptions professional roof cleaners held lapsed on 1 July 2026. The rules on cleaning are in the guide to the asbestos rules.

Disposal of an asbestos roof

Asbestos waste must not be mixed with other building waste and may only be delivered to an approved waste site. Whole, packed sheets do not count as hazardous waste, but the rules on packing and labelling still apply. Dusting asbestos waste is hazardous waste. We take a whole roof away ourselves, and the landfill fee is in the price.

If the work affects more than 10 m² or produces more than 1 tonne of waste, you as the building owner must notify the building waste to your municipality before the roof comes down. That notification is in your name and separate from our notification to the Working Environment Authority. We help with the figures on quantity and waste type.