Asbestos testing - who should pay?

[curlyrebel]

We are in the process of selling our house and buying a new one. Our buyers have no chain below them but we have two above us.

Their homebuyers survey brought up that there may be a low risk of asbestos in the ceilings. The property was built 1988. They asked to arrange some asbestos testing which we declined since we were about to have a baby and thought it intrusive, as well as unnecessary. They also said that while they would pay the initial costs, an allowance should come from the purchase price on completion. This was all done through our solicitors.

After we declined the testing our EA then liaised between us, explained to the buyer that they usually cover costs themselves. EA said they agreed to covering the costs but still wanted the testing carried out. Said to us it would seem like we had something to hide if we declined it. So we agreed to it but with the stipulation that they wait until after our baby was born and were more settled.

A date has been arranged. But now an email from our solicitors is saying they still want this to come off our purchase price. I think this is really cheeky. I've no idea how much this testing costs. We don't want to break the chain but how could we take it from here?

Reply and tell them you had an agreement they would pay for it. They are pushing boundaries like so many people when buying and selling.

Depends how much you want/need to sell.

On the one hand it's tempting to say if the buyers are the ones wanting such a test then it's up to them to cover the cost.

However, do you want to keep them sweet? If so, a contribution may be worth considering.

It's pretty unlikely a house built in 1988 would contain asbestos, although not entirely impossible. are the ceilings artexed?

Well we spoke to our EA and they still say that the buyers are aware of the agreement to cover costs themselves and it's just their solicitors who aren't.
I've gone back to our solicitors to ask for this in writing. We will see what happens next.

I'm not even sure how much the testing will cost. Yes @Mildura the ceilings are artexed. I am concerned what would happen should they find asbestos there. Would the buyers pull out or expect us to pay to remove it? I can't see it being a problem unless they plan on doing some work to the building but I doubt they would need to touch the ceilings.

If it's old artex it will be coated in asbestos, but it is low risk. Normally the recommendation is just to skim over.

They are in no danger from artex ceilings unless they start sanding them (although why would you?) or drilling. As a pp says, the usual way to deal with it is to skim them, but it is hardly urgent and could be done as and when according to time and money available. I would call their bluff personally. They are not going to want to lose the house for a few hundred - I say that, but the testing can't be that expensive. I certainly wouldn't lower the price to cover the cost of skimming all the ceilings. If they are first time buyers their stipulations are par for the course.

And also, artex ceilings are hugely common still. I'd agree it's not a deal breaker at all.

I don’t like artex and prefer remove it. Yes, I know that you could skim over but it means lower ceilings and the risk is still there e.g in case of drilling for lights or rewiring. Removal is costly so I would factor it when buying and the house without artex would cost more for me than the house with artex.
We pulled out from the house purchase about an year ago. It’s got artex and that’s made redoing it quite costly. There was another reason as well but actually without artex it was easier to address ( and cheaper) . It was flagged after home-buyers report. We didn’t even ask for testing as it was intrusive. We tried to renegotiate the price because of issues the report flagged but the vendor refused so we pulled out. We were told that the testing would cost £200-300, depending on the size of the house

We had our hall, utility and kitchen ceiling tested prior to having new kitchen.
Think it was £200ish.
We got a report giving the all clear a week later.
The testing involved tiny samples of the artex being taken in the three rooms.
No biohazard suits or preparation required!
Our house was built 1988.

We viewed the cost as just one of those things you have to pay for now and again for the upkeep of the house.

I agree with you @longearedbat and @Ihaventgottimeforthis. Our EA says they're just nervous first time buyers which is unfortunate for us!
@greenlynx did the homebuyers report say what level of risk of asbestos there was? Did you know for sure the house had asbestos? Interesting to hear your perspective as a house buyer.
@tanstaafl so there were no safety issues with the testing then? I will have a newborn baby and toddler at home so hope there is no risk to them (or us!)