Water leak leaves home owner in France facing €35,000 bill
Expert report states broken pipes were result of earthworks by local mairie, but they refuse to pay
Leaking pipework can cause water bills to soar into the thousands
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A faulty pipe has left a resident in eastern France facing a water bill of more than €35,000 after leaking enough water to fill two Olympic swimming pools.
It is the latest in a series of large water bills ranging from €5,000 upwards that Christine Soressi has received, with the first one coming in 2022.
Ms Soressi owns a house in Beure (Doubs) and believes that a leaking pipe responsible for the bills was damaged by earthworks carried out by the local mairie, an opinion confirmed by an independent expert.
The mairie does not agree with the expert’s report, however, leaving Ms Soressi to take legal action.
A local judge is set to rule on the case.
Six metres of pipe broken by mairie
Ms Soressi purchased the second-floor property in 2021.
Soon after, the mairie began work on the first floor of the property, converting it into three separate rental units.
Despite an estimated monthly €25 water bill for the property in which Ms Soressi lives with her daughter, in autumn 2022 she received a bill for €5,000.
In addition, there were several water issues in her home, including leaks when using her washing machine.
She was able to have an expert assess the damage via her home insurance policy which determined the issue was due to damage to the former works by the mairie.
Read more: Water leaks, blocked pipes: what does home insurance cover in France?
“Numerous impacts on the pipe over a distance of six meters,” were recorded, as well as a break in her private drainage pipe separate to the shared water works for the area.
““Both losses are directly consecutive to the earthworks carried out by the commune of Beure,” the report concluded.
The insurer asked the commune to repair the issue, and to cover the costs for the water bill – at the time around €17,000 – however the commune ignored the request.
Payments of €10,000 debited from account
The issue led to two payments of €10,000 being debited against Ms Soressi’s account.
Both sums were repaid to her and a third attempt to debit €10,000 was blocked.
Ms Soressi now has an agreement with her water supplier to pay only for her estimated monthly consumption until the issue is resolved.
Several areas of France now use ‘smart’ water meters, allowing real-time readings that can quickly inform owners if there is a problem.
However, in areas where these are not yet installed regular checking for leaks can mitigate this type of problem.
Read more: How to check for leaks in your French home without a smart water meter
Unlike gas and electricity which can be received from a number of suppliers on the open market, you cannot choose your water supplier, as this is dependent on your location.
