Asbestos In Safes & The Problematic AIS Safe List

The HSA Legislation & Enforcement Notice

A Legislation & Enforcement Notice entitled “Asbestos Risks In Safes And Fire-Resistant Cabinets” was issued by the Health And Safety Authority of Ireland (HSA) on the 21st of October 2019.

This notice followed an investigation initiated by Certified Safes Ireland in May 2019 that received support from the Law Society of Ireland and was later joined by several other parties in the European safe and vault industry including ESSA and Chubb Safes Ireland.

What This Means For The AIS List (UK) & It's Claim To Be "Appropriate For Eire"

The HSA notice makes it clear that hundreds of safes listed in the UK's Association of Insurance Surveyor's (AIS) "Safe List" which the AIS has said, is "appropriate for use in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Eire" should be presumed to contain asbestos and their sale has been illegal in Ireland since 2000. 

It is also illegal to "place on the market" any product that contains asbestos so it remains to be seen if the HSA will take further action on the matter.  

Needless to say the Association of Insurance Surveyor's Safe List is under no circumstances "appropriate" for the Republic of Ireland and it should also be pointed out that there are hundreds of safes on the list that have never been tested or certified by anyone. We recommend that for risk assessment purposes insurers stick to the established system of accredited European certification as a reference for rates for cash and jewelery cover.

The AIS Approved Mark Appears On Stickers That Have Been Distributed To Safe Sellers In Ireland.

Some safes identified as containing asbestos on the AIS List 2015:

• Page 33 – Fichet-Bauche - BAGC – Asbestos in door
• Page 33 – Fichet-Bauche - BAR – Asbestos in door & walls
• Page 33 – Fichet-Bauche - BANKERS GC – Asbestos in door
• Page 33 – Fichet-Bauche - 170 DF – Asbestos in walls
• Page 34 – Fichet-Bauche - ENTREPRISE – Asbestos in door & walls
• Page 34 – Fichet-Bauche - ENTREPRISE 2 – Asbestos in door & walls
• Page 71 – Fichet-Bauche - ORDINA – Asbestos in joints

Information in this case was provided by the manufacturer.

Download A Copy Of HSA Notice 2019