Yes, the owner of tge land enclosed by tgecwall is responsible for the maintenance.
When we lived in the Cotswolds we had such a wall at the top of our garden and we made sure that when tge house was sold that the new owners were aware of their responsibilities.
It is a well known practice.
Yes, I was supporting your comment
Jane - a wall that āenclosesā a piece of land is not the same thing. Responsibility for boundaries in England is usually marked on the Deed Plan (with a āTā), as you correctly say. This is not normally done in France - although the cadastral plan may indicate land ownership (by means of an arrow pointing out from a building).
The key issue here is that the boundary wall āretainsā the land above, which is owned by the commune, whether the new maire likes the responsibility or not!
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With a suitable wall, I would hope? Otherwise you could be responsible for the collapse of the comment above yoursā¦
That is what I meant.
The land is not totally enclosed, but retained by tge wall.
Itās hard to explain - the community centre, once a school and before that a farmhouse (sold to the commune in 1851) is at the top of the ruelle. My house, insofar as I have been able to find out and according to the cadastral maps, was once part of the farm and, according to local knowledge, became two tiny cottages that housed the schoolmistresses. Directly behind is a car park that was once the garden in front of the farmhouse (now covered in tarmac). Between the rear of my house and the side of the CC is the wall, around four metres high on my side but one metre on the other. The width is also around four metres. There is evidence of another building that would have been directly next to my house - the wall contains an outline of a roof and there was a piece of zinc embedded in it. To me, it looks as if there could be the remains of a building beneath the car park, as though a large quantity of soil, at some point in the distant past, was moved on top of it. I have made an appointment with the notaire but heās not available until 11 Mai. I donāt know if there is a time limit on these things but I will be responding to the insurance company in the interim period.
Thanks for this. Actually a photo or two would help - but just a couple of thoughts may be appropriate:
- None of the historic backround as to the subsequent uses of the buildings is relevant, It looks like a normal situation - a group of farm buildings & land being divided up into separate ownerships.
- In the absence of any record in your āActe de Venteā to the contrary, the collapsed wall must be the responsibility of the commune, because it retains their land, which you say is approx 3 metres higher than yours. Previous use or evidence of earlier buildings is irrelevant.
- You should not, therefore, post any āwarningā sign to users of their car park. That could be taken to show that you accept responsibility for the problem that has arisen. It is for the mairie to take appropriate action - not you.
- Since your notaire canāt take any action on your behalf until 11th May, I suggest you should immediately send a short, polite Notice (in French, of course) to the maire - copy to your notaire - expressing your concerns; and asking her to take this appropriate action. An email will suffice - but it needs to be a written record.
- I would not make any further contact with your insurance company until you have the advice and input of your notaire. What can you say, until you feel sure? The only time limit, in my view, rests with the maire - who should have taken immediate action to make the commune car parking boundary safe.
Keep in touch, please!
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Thank you for your comprehensive response which has afforded my muddled thinking some clarity (I had a collapse myself at the end of last year which has given me cause for concern and had a negative impact on my future plans). Absolutely, the maire should have done something in January when the wall collapsed. I hope that contacting the insurance company isnāt taken as an acceptance of responsibility although I did mention that my raised beds and a pile of tomettes had been completely crushed. Also, following the assessor confirming that the company would pay out, I contacted a few stonemasons. One actually responded and, after a very thorough inspection of the wall, agreed that it was the responsibility of the mairie/commune. Something the maire did say was to not go near the wall - and she asked if I had young children (Iām 73!). I hope the rather nonchalant notaire will not be too dismissive ā¦