The appeal trial over the rue d'Aubagne collapses, which killed eight people in 2018, opens in Marseille. What to do in France if a building is dangerous, and what occupants' rights are under an arrêté de mise en sécurité

What is happening

Today, 2 November, the appeal trial over the collapse of numbers 63 and 65 rue d'Aubagne in Marseille opens. Eight people died there in November 2018. Hearings are scheduled until 19 December; the Aix-en-Provence court of appeal is holding them in Marseille, in a courtroom built for large trials. The prosecution appealed the first-instance judgment for 15 of the 16 defendants. On the eve of the trial, France 3 reports, around 300 people marched through the city in memory of the victims.

This is not only a Marseille story. During the night before 31 October, a fire-hydrant pipe burst in the historic centre of Honfleur (Calvados), flooding cellars and undermining the road. According to franceinfo, 41 people were evacuated and seven addresses are under an arrêté de péril.

The court will decide who was responsible in Marseille. Here we look at something else: what French rules provide for the people living in a building that is dangerous. The rules speak of occupants and tenants and set no nationality condition.

Who to alert and who decides

According to the service-public page "Habitat menaçant ruine (en péril)" (checked on 12 July 2024), anyone aware of a dangerous building must report it to the mayor, by any means. The mayor (or the president of the EPCI) decides, by issuing an arrêté de mise en sécurité. The old name, arrêté de péril, is still widely used, including on service-public itself.

There are two procedures:

• ordinary: municipal services draw up a rapport de situation, the owner gets at least one month to comment (two months for the common parts of a copropriété, through the syndic), and occupants are informed by letter, by hand delivery against signature or by a posted notice. The order itself gives at least one month for the works;
• urgent: the mayor asks the administrative court to appoint an expert, who must report within 24 hours. If the danger is imminent, the mayor orders measures without first hearing the owner's side.

Inspections can take place between 6:00 and 21:00; entering against the occupant's will requires authorisation from the juge des libertés et de la détention.

Rent and where to live

The same page sets out:

• a permanent ban on living there. The lease stays in force, but rent stops being due from the 1st day of the month after the order is notified (or posted) until the 1st day of the month after the lifting order (mainlevée) is notified. Amounts paid that were not due must be refunded or deducted. The landlord must rehouse occupants according to their needs and means and pay compensation equal to three months of the new rent. If an occupant turns down three offers, the landlord can ask the tribunal judiciaire to end the lease. If the landlord does not rehouse them, the mayor steps in, and occupants who received no suitable offer are occupants de bonne foi who cannot be evicted;
• a temporary ban, or works that make the home temporarily unfit to live in. Whoever must carry out the works has to provide decent temporary accommodation until they are finished. If they do not, the mayor arranges it at the landlord's expense.

If the order is not complied with, the mayor can impose an astreinte of up to €1,000 per day of delay, or have the works done at the landlord's expense.

The common mistake: stopping rent on your own

Without an order, the rule is the opposite. The service-public page on decent housing (checked on 21 March 2025) says plainly that a tenant must not stop paying rent, even if the landlord is failing in their obligations. The steps it describes:

1. Tell the landlord or agency in writing what is wrong, preferably by registered letter with acknowledgment of receipt.
2. Depending on the département, file a report on the Signal Logement platform so that State services get involved.
3. If the landlord disputes it, send a mise en demeure by the same kind of registered letter.
4. After two months without a reply, or if the dispute continues, go to the juge des contentieux de la protection. Before court, free conciliation is available through the commission départementale de conciliation or a conciliateur de justice.

The judge can order works and set deadlines, reduce the rent or suspend it until the works are done. Housing under an arrêté de mise en sécurité or an insalubrity order cannot be considered decent.

Who to call

The ADIL "Info logement indigne" line: 0 806 706 806, 9:00–12:00 and 14:00–17:00, at local call rates. An adviser explains the procedures. The exact deadlines and obligations are written in the order itself, so keep it and read it in full.