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Obligatory lead report for rental contracts
From
12th August 2008, a report on the risk of exposure to lead
must be annexed to all new or renewed rental contracts concerning
property for which the planning permit was issued prior to 1st
January 1949. This is in addition to the natural and technological
risks report which became obligatory from 1st June 2006 and
the energy performance report which came into force on 1st
July 2007.
The
report is obligatory for properties built prior to the above date over
all of the French territory and should have been drawn up within 6 years
of the date of signing the rental contract.
The
rental contracts affected are those concerning a property for
residential use and cover:
-unfurnished 3 year lets under the law of 1989
-seasonal lets
-furnished lets
-lodgings linked to profession or employment
-lets
to seasonal workers
Lets
relating to property exclusively for commercial or professional use are
excluded but for mixed lets (i.e. commercial and residential) the report
covers only the part of the property for residential use. For
apartments or similar in co-ownership, the report only concerns the
freehold and not the communal parts.
If
the report does not reveal any risk of exposure to lead then the
landlord is not required to produce a report on the occasion of each new
contract: it suffices to annex the original report to each lease.
If
the report does reveal a risk of exposure to lead, the owner should
undertake the work necessary to suppress the risk prior to renting the
property out. Failure to do so could engage the landlord’s legal
liability, as could failure to provide the report in the first
place.
The
report is at the landlord’s exclusive charge and any agreement to
the contrary is invalid.
19/09/2008
- Legal
update
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