Testing your property for loose-fill asbestos insulation

Testing your property

NSW Fair Trading does not recommend any untrained or unqualified person entering the roof cavity to take a sample of material that could contain loose-fill asbestos insulation.
Loose-fill asbestos cannot be confirmed by a visual inspection as there are other types of insulation that look similar.  For this reason, a sample of the material needs to be taken by a licensed asbestos assessor (LAA) and tested by an accredited laboratory to confirm the presence of loose-fill asbestos.

Homeowners are able to arrange their own private sample testing by an LAA and a National Association of Testing Authorities (NATA) accredited laboratory test, to detect loose-fill asbestos insulation.

SafeWork NSW allows you to search for asbestos and demolition license holders, including LAAs. Enter your search requirements by selecting "licensed asbestos assessor" and the relevant region in NSW. Search for asbestos and demolition licence holders.

Should the test confirm the presence of loose-fill asbestos insulation, Service NSW should be contacted immediately to find out about the options available.

Private tests for strata

Strata premises built before 1980 may contain loose-fill asbestos insulation. If there is concern that the property contains loose-fill asbestos insulation, the strata scheme should arrange for a licensed asbestos assessor to conduct a sample test at their own expense. The scheme as a whole will be affected if testing confirms the presence of loose-fill asbestos insulation.

If the test returns positive, contact Service NSW immediately to find out about the options available.

Check the Loose-fill Asbestos Insulation register

If you are concerned your property may contain loose-fill asbestos, you can check the register to see if your address has already been tested and found to have loose-fill asbestos insulation.

The Loose-fill Asbestos Insulation register is a record of homes in NSW that have been tested and contain loose-fill asbestos. The Home Building Act 1989 requires the NSW Government to maintain the register.