Morning all, In brief, I bought a house was told the roof was intact, no issues, no leaks on several occasions. 4 weeks after final signing, massive leak in the roof.
Agent and seller are denying all knowledge of this. I have had a roof report done which states the damage has been there for a long time. The notaire did get in touch with the agent initially but is now ignoring all my emails. I have a bill for nearly 3000 euros. had i known about the roof i would not have bought the house. Is there anything i can do? thank you so much in advance.
What an awful situation to be in, I genuinely feel for you - we’ve just bought too, and have discovered all is not as it ought be. Silly niggly things, nothing like your situation touch wood, but I can empathise.
My gut feel, ignoring the rights and wrongs and how they might be redressed, is probably not going to be what you want to hear - pay the roofer to fix it, chalk it up to experience and move on. The time, the effort, the stress, the cost even of trying to get justice…
I’ve an acquaintance persuing a legal case at the moment and I really want to tell them to drop it. The anguish it’s causing her, it’s really not worth the sum she’s after. She’s totally in the right imho but that’s neither here nor there. She’s being outplayed and outgunned at every turn. There’s only one winner and it’s not going to be her. She’s only accumulating legal fees.
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I had a new house that I took possession of in 2022. Last spring I noticed a sewage smell in the main bathroom coming from the WC and thought maybe it was coming from the estate itself as the weather was very hot but on inspection by my son under the house in the vide sanitaire he found that the waste pipe from this WC had come away from under it and there was a pile of toilet paper and liquid on the ground. Looking around he noticed that all the plastic waste pipes under the house were not attached to the concrete Dalle and obviously over the previous two years, they had began to bow and were hanging down to the earth. I got in touch with the Builder’s Deçenelle Insurance company which they had to give us a copy of when I signed at the final acte de vente and an expert came out to make an inspection and also my pet plumber who did not do the work but confirmed to me what was wrong came too, it was the maçons who built the house who cut corners and as it turned out, my neighbour who shares the plot with me under co-proprieté had had some pipe issues too so the insurance company were aware of who had done the works. In the end, they paid out €3000 for my plumber to redo all the pipes, strengthen the installation and make sure they were attached to the Dalle which took him five days to complete. Money was paid to me an I paid him on completion. This is how you proceed, with the construction company insurers as it has a ten year guarantee and they are responsible for a visit to make an inspection; Get onto them immediately as they will be the only way to go currently with a new build
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Somewhat at sea here … Would not the Technique Dossier not have flagged that up?. The only reason I am familiar with this is that I am at the other phase ..selling , and the accredited TD report ..which you as a purchaser would have a copy of, will list building defects. The TD would have needed to be current ..eg within 2 years . So initially it seems you would have a case against .
- The TD assessor if a defect not flagged. They have insurance against this .
- The Agent if they had the TD report and did not supply a copy . Or indeed allowing a property for sale without one …That I understand would be an offence in French Law.
- The Notaire for not noticing it missing …or it was out of date .
I was with our assessor as he did my house and he was very particular in getting photographs of inside and outside roof and attic..
Markos point however is very valid …If you can swallow the cost ,it’s just a few days annoyance. If you try a legal remedy you are buying aggrovation perhaps for years and a very sour taste …
But in any event you are and were entitled to the TD ..so try and get It.
A point which surprised me when I purchased was that the Notaire retains the Deeds and other papers of the property ..even where there is no Mortgage … I insisted on getting copies ..and you should also. ..and the TD should be there also .
Thank you Marco, I think you are probably right sadly. I am beyond upset and the agent of course now I have paid all the fees is being really nasty, even saying he can go after me legally! i havent asked why and dont care to either. i forgot to put that home insurance wont cough up either!!! thank you again, much appreciated
Thank you Shiba, sadly not a new build. I dont have anything like a buider’s decennale either in my acte de vente documents. Home insurance will not pay out. I have been well and truly done over I fear!
Thank god you got sorted. thanks so much for your reply.
In French, it’s un vice caché.
You must have the leak inspected by a real estate expert or a bailiff and file a complaint with the civil court if an out-of-court settlement is not sufficient.
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oh thank you Dan1 - i dont have a TD report? it is not in my final acte de vente documentation?
I have all the other reports - termites, DPE, asbestos etc etc
The notaire is ignoring my emails but i could try again and request this.
The agent is being very nasty now saying he can take legal action against me. For what i have no idea!
Seller says he didnt know as there were no leaks.
I will go and sift through my ADV docs again just in case.
Thank you - very much appreciated
Thank you Juliet, I was reading about this.
I did ask my notaire and she just brushed me off and said the seller knew nothing about it and I had to prove he did. I have no emails or documentation to prove this just the report from the roofer.
My home insurance will not cover the cost here either.
many thanks for the information, much appreciated.
Welcome @LindyH1970 I hope you will stay here with us whatever your outcome, and I fully sympathise while offering no advice of use.
Except @Shiba is it possible that you have been led astray by the thread title? Your advice applies to a house which has incurred decenelle insurance, thus within 10 years of repair or building. This does not seem to be the case with Lindy, does it? Or am I mistaken? 
The TD is the name for all those reports ..termites ,lead, water etc
Yep, the old ‘he said, she said’ situation.
I’ve read that most contracts these days have a ‘clause d’exclusion de la garantie des vices cachés’ - basically a ‘sold as is or as seen’ stipulation where you would have to prove the seller knew of the defect and has deliberately not mentioned it. Now with something like a leaky roof, where it would be glaringly obvious on any rainy day, you might have an argument. But then if the house has been empty for whatever period then it’s probably getting iffy.
For €3000, I know what I’d do, but equally be pretty annoyed by it. I know someone (different person) who seemingly lives by the maxim ‘you can’t let them get away with it’. They contest just about everything. I couldn’t be doing that, not when it’s always an option to simply walk away. I’m sure I have a line somewhere but I’ve fortunately not found it yet.
You’re welcome 
See also La garantie légale, it protects you even if the vendeur and notaire ‘did not know’…
The diagnostique is very limited and doesn’t cover the house structure. It’s nothing like a UK survey.
Off the top of my head, it’s electrics, drainage, lead, asbestos and termites in some parts of the country.
Anything else is caveat emptor unless you can prove that a defect has been hidden. N.B. the buyer not being aware of it is not the same as the seller hiding it.
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Ah it was the title of your thread that made me think it was a new build and not one already established.
Yes it was the title that led me to post thinking it was a new house
Ok thank you. i didnt realise 
Definitely nothing in there then. should there have been?
No David think you are right.
Yes exactly that marko - clause saying sold as seen.
So frustrating and absolutely heartbreaking if im honest.
So much for the dream I worked all those years for!
I am grateful for an alternative opinion because it is very stressful and serious consideration I think must be given towards walking away. I am so frustrated and angry though that they clearly knew and will get away with it after taking all my money and telling me it was all ok!
Sorry Shiba, my title was misleading.