The short answer
Asbestos cement roof sheeting is lifted off whole, wrapped and sealed in heavy-duty plastic, labelled, and carried by a suitable waste carrier to a site that accepts asbestos waste. It never goes in an ordinary skip or the household bin. Ask the contractor who is carrying it, where it is going and for the paperwork afterwards, and check with your council if you are unsure which site takes it.
Why asbestos sheeting is treated as hazardous waste
Asbestos cement is a hard material made of cement and asbestos fibre. While a sheet stays whole and sealed in place it does little harm, and that is why the HSE treats careful removal of intact roof sheeting as non-licensed work. The risk comes when the material is broken, drilled or crushed, because that is what releases fibres into the air.
That is the reason the disposal rules exist. The aim is to keep every sheet intact from the moment it comes off the purlins to the moment it is tipped, with nobody walking on it, cutting it or loading it carelessly. If the sheets are substantially broken or dropped, the HSE puts the job in the notifiable non-licensed category, which brings notification, medical examinations and health records for the employer.
Our guide to how an asbestos garage roof is removed describes the lifting stage. This page picks up when the sheets are down.
Wrapping and labelling on site
Once lifted, the sheets are stacked on pallets or on a laid-down sheet of heavy polythene, kept as flat as possible, and wrapped in thick plastic that is taped at the seams. Smaller offcuts, clips and debris go in sealed bags marked as asbestos waste. Everything is labelled so that the next person who handles it knows what it is, whether that is the driver, the loaders or the staff at the tip. Gloves, disposable coveralls and a suitable mask are part of the kit, and they are bagged with the waste at the end.
Wrapping is not decoration. It stops dust escaping if a corner is knocked in transit, and it keeps the load identifiable to everyone who handles it. The stack is kept on site for the shortest time the job allows, away from where children or pets play, and it is not left uncovered overnight.
A professional will wet-wipe or clean the work area with suitable methods, never sweep it dry. What remains of the garage roof deck can then be prepared for the new covering. We describe covering choices in turning a flat garage roof pitched, which is worth reading if you are rethinking the roof's shape.
Carriers, sites and the paperwork
Asbestos is hazardous waste. A business carrying construction or demolition waste must be registered with the Environment Agency as an upper tier waste carrier, which you can check on the public register, and the waste may only be tipped at a site permitted to accept it. You cannot put it in an ordinary skip or leave it for the bulky waste service. Gloucestershire's household recycling centres take only small amounts of asbestos cement removed by householders, in special bags ordered in advance and on a booked visit, so check Gloucestershire County Council's current rules before you transport anything yourself.
Weather and timing come into it as well. Wrapped sheet should not sit in a driveway for weeks while a skip is arranged, and a collection booked for the same day as the strip-out avoids the problem. Ground that has collected small fragments, from a sheet that cracked as it was lifted, needs to be cleared and bagged too, not raked into the soil or the flower bed.
If a contractor is removing it, ask three questions in advance: who will carry it, which site will take it, and what paperwork you will receive. A contractor removing asbestos from a home must complete a hazardous waste consignment note as the waste producer, because the usual household exemption does not cover asbestos. The note names the waste, the carrier and the destination. Keep it with your house papers, because a buyer's surveyor may ask for it. It also protects you if the waste is ever traced back to your address.
Be wary of a price that seems to leave out disposal. Tipping asbestos is a real cost, and a very low quote usually means it has been left out.
Doing it yourself, and what it costs
HSE guidance does allow careful, non-licensed work on intact asbestos cement, but the rules on disposal still apply to you as a householder, and the personal protective equipment, wrapping and transport are not simple. Many owners find that the carrier and tip arrangements are the part they cannot manage alone. If you are weighing it up, note that a roof which is not asbestos at all, such as old bitumen felt, raises none of these questions, and our answer on patching a felt garage roof shows when a repair is enough.
On price, MyBuilder's 2026 asbestos removal guide gives an average of about £2,000 for removal work, and a single garage roof at £350 to £1,295 against £650 to £1,800 for a double garage. The same guide puts surveys at £50 and up. These are national figures covering removal; treat them as a guide and check that any quote you receive covers disposal.
What we do on a Stroud garage
We begin with a survey and photographs of the sheets, then confirm whether they need testing. Lifting, wrapping, the carrier and the tip are all covered and agreed in writing before work starts, and the rest of the roof follows on from there. The site is cleared at the end and the paperwork passed to you.
To talk it through, ring 01453 933613, use WhatsApp or the enquiry form. Our workmanship guarantee runs for 10 years and is given in writing. You can see the whole range of garage jobs on our garage roof replacement page.