The QBCC is proud to support this important safety initiative and promote public understanding about laws in Queensland designed to safeguard against the dangers of asbestos and other unsafe building materials in places where we live, work and play.
Did you know asbestos is a non-conforming building product?
Non-conforming building products (NCBPs) are products that do not meet the required standards for the use in which they are intended. A building product is considered a NCBP if it is any of the following:
- the product is not, or will not be, safe
- not compliant with the relevant regulatory requirements (e.g. the National Construction Code or the Australian Standards)
- it doesn't perform to the standard it is represented to perform to.
Under Queensland’s non-conforming building products law, every member of the construction industry supply chain (also known as the chain of responsibility), including manufacturers, suppliers and installers, must ensure the product they manufacture, supply or install is compliant and safe. Failure to do so risks significant penalties.
If a product is suspected of containing asbestos those in the chain of responsibility should satisfy themselves that the product is asbestos free and, where required, the product has been tested. For asbestos, the relevant testing standard is AS 4964- Method for the qualitative identification of asbestos in bulk samples.
Reporting NCBP to the QBCC
If a person in the chain of responsibility does become aware, or reasonably suspects, that a building product is a NCBP, they must give the QBCC notice in an approved form, within 2 days, or earlier if possible.
Penalties also apply for failing to notify the QBCC of a NCBP when required.
To learn more about safe building product decisions go to Your responsibilities with NCBP.