Hi all,
Firstly, this is long so please bear with me!
I live in the Alsace region in France and currently rent an old Alsatian house that was built in 1948. I have been living here two years but not long after I moved in, I found out that the couple next door knocked down their barn and sold all of their land to a property developer and soon there would be apartments built on the land. Work started last year and my house was literally shaking for 10 weeks whilst the builders started on the foundations. Something to note is that they also knocked down my wall which was half a meter from my house and were drilling in this area for an extended period (I don’t even believe this was allowed, but my landlord really didn’t care). About half a meter from where my wall was, they had to dig a large hole which ran the length of my house and barn to put in all the pipe work etc. After this was done, everything was quiet as they started on the structure. However, about 6 months ago, I noticed cracks forming by the windows of my house and on some of the walls. I panicked and called my landlord and he came out and said there was nothing to worry about. I live alone with my 3 children and just wanted to be sure all was fine. Fast forward to last month, my neighbour pointed out that my tiles were slipping from the roof and a large crack on the opposite side of the house to where the work was done has formed as if the house is pulling away from the wall. I immediately panicked and called my landlord again. He came out and looked and said it’s fine and nothing to worry about. I said I did not want to be fobbed off again and I am feeling afraid and can he send out a structural engineer to assess what the issue is. He said he would send out his handyman. Not that this probably matters, but my landlord is English and not French. His handyman came out yesterday, almost a month later. Since I called him last, I have noticed more and more cracks, drywall breaking and cracking, the plaster between all the beams starting to crack along side the beams. I chatted with the handyman and he again said there is nothing to worry and I should only worry when I see cracks by the windows…so I took him upstairs to 4 windows where cracks have started to form. He did then seem concerned and said I should keep an eye out if they continue to grow. He went outside and that’s when, everything changed. There are large cracks forming outside on the walls, some 3mm some even 10mm. I think that as they builders did the work so closely to the house, this is now causing the house to subside. The windows in the cellar along that side of the house have all popped out. The handyman then found more worrying problems and notified my landlord. I told him I want a structural engineer out as soon as the Easter break is over. He is being non committal as usual and in all honesty, I am absolutely freaking out. He has never taken me seriously and makes me feel like a hysterical woman (perhaps I am overreacting?) but I have no idea about such things and just want piece of mind. I guess I am writing as I want to know if there is a risk that the house starts to collapse? The handyman told me that the roof where the tiles are slipping is collapsing. Perhaps it’s also worth noting that after the foundation work was done, we had a very large earthquake and then a couple of months later had another, smaller one. I cannot predict when/if another earthquake will come but for sure, I imagine if the house is now not structurally sound this damage is only going to continue to worsen, whether or not another earthquake comes. I am not even sure of my rights as a tenant but I feel very unsafe. Does anyone have any thoughts or advice for me please? I feel like, I just need to know that my house will not just fall to the ground one day or does this sound serious enough that I should get myself and children out of here. I know that’s probably difficult to answer but I have to try. Thanks for reading of you got this far!
Welcome to SF, @PipJones and sorry to read you are in a bit of a predicament. There are quite a few really kind members on this forum who will help you to find a safe solution. You are not alone!
My quick advice would be to see if you can move. Failing that, maybe a trip to discuss your fears at the Mairie. Others will know better.
You go to the Marie and ask their advice. If you think there is real chance of collapse, contact the pompiers.
There have been a few circumstances like this over recent years across France where buildings just collapse for various reasons. Some due to work in the vacinity. People have died.
You are renting. Just get out ASAP is my advice. Not worth the risk to your children or you.
None of us can tell whether the house is in a dangerous condition or, if it is, how dangerous and how imminent the danger of collapse.
At this stage, I think the best plan is to
i. start looking for a new house. It is unlikely to be time wasted;
ii. take photos pf the damage
iii. consult the pompiers
iv. as @JaneJones implies, decide on a reasonable timetable for your landlord’s action. Follow French norms (LRAR etc). He won’t want to do anything, of course.
It sounds to me that you will only be satisfied by a formal structural engineer’s report (and without that, you will continue to have at least nagging worries). I don’t think that’s unreasonable. The problem may be the French professional’s caution, which may make for pessimistic reading.
You may want to ask yourself if you are at the stage where, whatever happens, you will remain worried? If you are, then you may feel that cutting your losses and moving may be financially worth it for your peace of mind.
This really seems like the central point as @Porridge and others have said. There are two ways at looking at this situation, the glass half empty one is focusing on the fact that you’ll have to uproot your lives, find somewhere else, and deal with everything that that entails. The glass half full one is that you are in the incredibly lucky position that you don’t own the bricks and mortar so it’s not your problem. You can just get out go elsewhere and someone else will have to clear up the mess (literally perhaps) that may happen in the future. There’s likely no need to panic or worry, but make other plans and leave it up to someone else.
The risks to people in the near term are negligible … But as said it’s time to start looking for a new place.
If it’s stressing you now that’s a good reason - but assumung the owner decides to fix it you won’t want to live there during the work if it’s as bad as you say so …
If the landlord isn’t worried then I doubt there is any immenent risk. If there was real structural damage due to the building work then he’d be taking legal action against the builders. I doubt he’s going to sit by and see his asset damaged without seeking compensation. A letter to him is no harm, just to put him on formal notice and to establish a paper trail in case matters get worse. Measure the cracks that concern you, mention them in the letter and then monitor them. If they do get larger then IMO that’s the time to get concerned.
There are many more. The first one was rented out.
Throwing this into the debate, if the house did collapse and lets say a bystander was killed and the OP new about the problems……well….you know French law. They could be as responsible as anyone else.
I would cover my arsē….personally.
I’m guessing the pompiers would prefer to act now rather than dig out dead kids from under rubble.
That’s probably a reasonable assumption, though I’m sure the Landlord, having been informed, would be done for manslaughter too. Do you think he’d risk that if he thought the building was dangerous? If I owned a property that had been damaged due to building work next door I’d certainly be taking action. My bottom line would be if he’s not worried then I wouldn’t be worried either.
I think people are getting a bit doomsaying, and probably not helping the OP’s nerves. Yes she needs to take action now, but we don’t know what the real condition of the house is. And running down the street screaming the sky is falling in won’t help anyone.
Here I would probably stroll down to the pompiers and ask their advice , before returning home to write a strong letter. If I really felt scared I would go stay with a friend.
No, but if they drill a bloody hole and you see subsidence and do nothing about it, like getting them to stop and calling someone to prevent the damage spreading, the insurance company will say you are partly responsible. Have you ever made a significant insurance claim, for a water leak for example? I have, on several occasions, and when damage occurs to your house you MUST make every effort to minimise the damage. Otherwise the payout could be reduced. You can’t just sit back and think not my problem, I’m insured
Hi everyone, thanks for all your responses. They really are appreciated and I understand that it’s a difficult situation to judge or give advice on when you cannot know the real extent. So I should also clarify some things, when I got him out the first and second time, he looked at only a couple of my concerns and brushed them away. His handyman has now sent him a report since I wrote this post. He has come out to the house this afternoon and I showed him everything, he told me to leave the building immediately. I have probably 70 pictures of all the cracks on the inside and outside of the house and sent him everything. He has now also offered to put me in a hotel, as this has all occurred over a very short period of time and the damage is extensive. My ex husband came over and we looked at the damage where the largest cracks are (you can see through them) and it looks as though the house has moved almost an inch, which is substantial and the tiles are now slipping from the roof. He is saying he cannot sue the construction company because he does not think it’s a fight that he can win, it is clear that this is the cause of the subsidence but really, it matters not to me. I just want a place to live with my kids that won’t collapse. It looks like now he has his report, he realised the seriousness of the situation and is moving into action and will have a structural engineer out as an emergency once Easter is over. But I will get the form that was posted from someone above as I want to also cover my own arse and make sure that things move quickly. I will not be having my children in the house while this is ongoing, but whoever mentioned that it could injure or kill someone on the street, this has also made me call the pompiers and they will come out. Thank you all so much, as stressful as it is, listening to your advice has really helped.
The thing is, he never really looked properly. He didn’t take me seriously and only looked at one crack in the kitchen which is substantial but said it was fine. He didn’t look at the cracks in the windows and said that the cracks in the ceiling are normal. None of this is normal in 4-6 months and the speed that the house is changing is unreal. The wind of frames all have gaps in and so does the chimney. In my opinion, he should have had it looked at when I first came to him, to make sure his tenants are safe.
That’s really good news - particularly about moving you out. As well as photos do keep a detailed diary of dates/times of conversations etc.
I hope since he now seems to have grasped the issue it will get sorted for you, but just in case good to keep a record. You should not be out of pocket over this, so important to keep standing your ground.
