Asbestos removal contractor checklist

How to use this checklist

Send the questions below to every provider you are considering, and ask for written answers. A serious company will not find them unusual; most of them are simply the content of a proper job. Where an answer is vague, ask again. Where it is missing, treat it as missing.

The checklist is organised in five blocks: who does the work, how it is planned, how it is done, what happens to the waste and what you get at the end. It applies to roofs, tanks, pipes and any other asbestos-containing material, and to houses, communities and industrial buildings alike.

Block 1 – Who actually removes the asbestos?

1. Which company will remove the asbestos, and is it registered in the RERA? Under Real Decreto 847/2026 only RERA-registered companies may remove or demolish asbestos-containing materials. Ask for the company name in writing.
2. If the contractor you talk to is not that company, what is its role? Coordination by a general contractor is common and legitimate. Our own model works that way: Retirada de Uralita Málaga is not RERA-registered; a RERA-registered company works as our subcontractor and carries out the removal, and we coordinate the rest.
3. Who is your single point of contact? Especially if you live abroad, one person should answer for the whole job, including the parts done by others.

Why this block comes first is explained in our post on red flags with contractors without RERA.

Block 2 – Planning and paperwork

4. Will a plan de trabajo be prepared for my site and filed with the provincial labour authority? It is the core document of any asbestos removal.
5. Which municipal procedure applies, and who handles it? Check with the ayuntamiento or your técnico; if a skip, platform or scaffold stands on the public road, an occupation authorisation is needed. We do not file municipal procedures ourselves but coordinate dates with your técnico.
6. Is the job part of a larger works or demolition? If several companies take part, the promotor appoints a coordinador de seguridad y salud during execution (Real Decreto 1627/1997), and the timing has to fit around the asbestos work.

The planning stage takes time; any provider promising to start immediately is skipping something.

Block 3 – Method on site

7. How will the material be removed? Expect wetting, removal of fixings, whole sheets lowered and wrapped immediately. Breaking, cutting or throwing sheets are red flags.
8. How is the fall risk managed? Fibre-cement does not carry a person's weight; ask about edge protection, boards, lines or platforms.
9. Which areas must be vacated, and for how long? Important for holiday lets, tenants and communities.
10. How will the neighbours and the community be informed? A short notice prevents most alarm; in communities, the formal steps of Ley 49/1960 apply to common elements.

For roofs, the typical sequence is described on our uralita removal page.

Block 4 – Waste

11. How will the asbestos waste be packaged, transported and where will it go? Asbestos cement is hazardous waste 17 06 05*; it may not be mixed with other waste (Ley 7/2022, art. 30.1) and is delivered to an authorised manager.
12. What happens to the ordinary rubble? If there is other demolition, the material is sorted on site – wood, mineral fractions, metals, glass, plastic, gypsum – and the receipts are handed over. A plan de gestión de residuos is prepared by the contractor.

If the town hall asks for a fianza or guarantee for construction and demolition waste, it is returned once delivery to an authorised manager is proven, which is one more reason to insist on documents. Our guide on asbestos waste disposal in Spain goes further.

Block 5 – Price and the end state

13. Does the quote separate the asbestos part from the rest, and state the VAT rate? Demolition is generally invoiced at 21 % IVA; certain renovation works on private homes may qualify for 10 % if the legal conditions are met.
14. What will the building look like when you leave? New roof, temporary cover, demolition of the structure or a cleared plot – it should be written down.

We do not publish prices; the cost factors are explained in what affects the cost of removing an uralita roof, and the Presupuesto Demolición calculator gives a rounded band. To compare offers line by line, see the sister guide on how to compare demolition quotes.

Five answers that should end the conversation

Some replies are not a matter of comparing quality but a reason to stop:

• "We don't need a work plan for a small roof."
• "We'll cut the sheets so they fit in the van."
• "It can all go in the same skip."
• "There's no paperwork for this kind of job."
• "We can't tell you who does the asbestos part."

Each contradicts something stated above: the registered company, the approved plan, the controlled method, the separate hazardous-waste route or the documents you are entitled to keep. Thank the provider and move on to the next quote.

Who this checklist is for – and the documents to keep

It is written for four kinds of reader: private owners, often living abroad, with uralita on a villa, garage or finca; communities of owners and their administradores, for roofs, tanks and downpipes on common elements (see asbestos in communities); businesses with older warehouses or farm buildings (see asbestos in warehouses); and buyers who want to understand a quote before negotiating.

At the end of the job, keep in the property file: the name of the RERA-registered company that did the removal, the confirmation that the work plan was approved, the delivery documents for the asbestos waste, the receipts for any other rubble and the final photos. If the asbestos is part of a demolition, our asbestos removal before a demolition service puts both phases under one coordination.