More than 120 Canberra families living in homes affected by Mr Fluffy asbestos have joined a new lobby group – a precursor to a possible class action – to urgently address health concerns and financial losses posed by their homes.
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Homeowners also want the ACT government to crack down on the licensing and work practices of asbestos assessors and removalists in the light of mounting evidence some unscrupulous operators were preying on Mr Fluffy families – undertaking incorrect and expensive procedures.
At least two operators are offering to “test” for asbestos by smoking the roof at a cost of about $1200. Others were conducting visual inspections when Mr Fluffy homes require dust samples to be analysed in a laboratory to determine the presence of amosite asbestos.
The Fluffy Owners and Residents’ Action Group, launched by affected homeowner Brianna Heseltine, has received more than 10,000 hits to its website since it went live last week.
Ms Heseltine discovered last month that the newly renovated home she was living in with her husband, three-year-old son and newborn was a Mr Fluffy property. Tests confirmed remnant amosite asbestos in the ducted gas heating system, which has since been sealed.
Ms Heseltine said she was not prepared to go silently on the issue and has come out as the public face of Mr Fluffy homeowners. She had been inundated with calls and emails from hundreds of the 1050 affected families and was also in close communication with lawyers advising the group on a potential class action.
Ms Heseltine said the first private meeting of homeowners took place on Monday and had gone for nearly four hours. She said there was an outpouring of questions and concerns over the shock of discovering homes were still affected by Mr Fluffy, 20 years after a $100 million federal clean-up program.
“Our diverse group includes young families, people in their 80s, recent purchasers and long-standing owners who installed the asbestos insulation without knowing the grave risk. Members were relieved to be able to come together in a private forum to finally express their fears and concerns over the potential health exposure issues that have long hung over some families,” she said.
“These families are dealing with the knowledge that they face financial uncertainty at the least, and possible financial ruin at the worst. More disturbing is the level of fear over health. Asbestos exposure and financial ruin produced a powerful undercurrent in the room.”
But Ms Heseltine said there were focused discussions about how the group will seek action from the ACT and federal governments.
“While we have been shaken by our circumstances, we are motivated and confident that we can move this issue forward after 20 years of inaction,” she said.
With ACT Work Safety Commissioner Mark McCabe having placed prohibition orders on at least a dozen homes with the most serious contamination over the past three months, Ms Heseltine said there was increasing anger over the ACT government's silence on the issue and the lack of emergency financial support for families who were locked out of their homes.
She was seeking a meeting with Attorney-General and Work Safety Minister Simon Corbell next week.
“It is fair to say there are growing levels of frustration over the continued ACT government silence on this issue. We are hearing about levies for a light rail system while we have families with young children living in hotels.”
There was also growing dissatisfaction with the ACT government's oversight of the asbestos industry.
“Owners have identified training and accreditation, absence of standard operating procedures for sampling, and variable pricing as three key concerns,” Ms Heseltine said.
Mr Corbell’s office confirmed the Environment and Sustainable Development Directorate was investigating at least two class A licensed asbestos assessors who failed to pick up the presence of loose amosite falling down the back of wardrobes in children’s bedrooms.
The Construction Occupations Registrar was also reviewing the mandatory qualifications for all of the 11 construction occupations and 50 construction occupations classes, including those relating to asbestos work.
A spokesman said that while the review was industry-wide, the directorate "would consider investigations and recent issues" during its deliberations.
