Asbestos testing in New Zealand

Why you can't sample it yourself

Only a laboratory can tell you whether a material contains asbestos. WorkSafe tells homeowners that sampling should only be done by a reputable contractor, and tells PCBUs that it should only be done by a competent person. That is why a surveyor takes our samples and why we do not sell DIY sampling kits.

You will find DIY sampling kits for sale in New Zealand. We don't sell one, and we won't: taking a sample means disturbing the exact material you are worried about, and WorkSafe's guidance is that a competent person should do it. The cost difference between a kit and a proper visit is smaller than people expect once you count the second sample most jobs need.

What actually happens

1. You book online and tell us the address, the material, where it is and whether it is damaged. You pay $249 including GST for one sample.
2. We arrange a visit within 2 working days of the booking, with a surveyor we have under subcontract in your region.
3. The surveyor takes the sample — wetted down, sealed and put in a labelled bag — and notes the condition and approximate extent of the material. If more samples are needed they ask you on site first, at $85 each.
4. An IANZ-accredited laboratory analyses it. If a PCBU arranges for a sample to be analysed, the analysis must be done by a laboratory accredited for that work — in New Zealand that means an IANZ-accredited laboratory (or NATA in Australia).
5. We send you the report— the laboratory's own document, unedited — plus a plain-English note on what it means and what your options are.

What it costs, here and elsewhere

Every figure below was read off the provider's own page on 15 September 2026. Where a provider quotes GST-exclusive prices we show the GST-inclusive equivalent in brackets, so the comparison is like for like.

We don't sell laboratory-only analysis, where you post in a sample you took yourself. Fibresafe publish $60 for that, and it is a legitimate service for someone competent to sample. It isn't what we do.

How to read the result

A laboratory report says what was found in the sample submitted. It does not say your house is "asbestos-free", and no honest report ever will: it speaks for the material sampled, at the point it was sampled. That is why the surveyor's note about extent and condition matters as much as the yes or no.

If the answer is no, you carry on with your work and keep the report with the property file. If the answer is yes, the next question is not "how bad is it" but is it friable, and how much of it is there — because that decides who is legally allowed to remove it. The rules page sets out the thresholds with their regulation numbers.

If it's positive

Ask us for a removal quote and we come back with one fixed written price. It names the WorkSafe-licensed remover doing the work, their licence class and number, who is doing the independent clearance, and what is included. Your $249 test fee is credited against a removal we arrange within 90 days.