Poundland hit with £565,000 fine after asbestos found at Ipswich store
The company has been prosecuted for failing to either remove the material or make it safe.
Discount retailer Poundland has been fined £565,000 and forced to pay an additional £75,000 in costs, after asbestos was found at its store in Ipswich.
The company took over the former Woolworths on Carr Street in 2011. Surveyors found several different types of asbestos in the store at the time.
Although consultants were brought back to monitor the asbestos in the building, the company did not put a proper procedure in place to keep staff or customers safe.
This would have involved telling staff to take extra precautions in certain parts of the building, or bringing in builders to remove the substance entirely.
Councillor Alasdair Ross, of Ipswich Borough Council, said: “This case shows how important it is for even the largest businesses to take seriously their legal requirement to manage asbestos in premises they use.
"Asbestos still kills around 5,000 workers each year, this is more than the number of people killed on roads.
“Ipswich Borough Council, as the local enforcement authority for health and safety, is committed to working with businesses to meet their legal duties.
"In cases of serious and long-standing failure where identified shortcomings are not corrected in a timely manner, Ipswich Borough Council will take enforcement action, even if that means bringing a criminal prosecution as we did in this case.”