Rainwater and neighbours in France: run-off, roofs, remedies

Natural flow: an easement on the lower-lying land

The principle. “Lower-lying land is subject, in favour of higher land, to receiving the water that flows from it naturally without any human hand having contributed to it” (art. 640). The Civil Code classes this obligation among the easements (servitudes) arising from the situation of the land: it stems neither from a contract nor from any fault.

Which water? Service-public.gouv.fr refers to rainwater, spring water and snowmelt. The obligation does not cover waste water (eaux usées) (fact sheet F2443).

The two prohibitions (art. 640):

• the owner of the lower land may not build a dyke that prevents the flow;
• the owner of the higher land may do nothing that increases the burden on the lower land.

Service-public.gouv.fr gives the example of drainage that directs water towards the land below: the flow is no longer natural, and the obligation to receive it disappears (F2443). A fence must not obstruct the natural flow of rainwater either (service-public.gouv.fr, fact sheet F3131).

Using or directing your rainwater: article 641

“Every owner has the right to use and dispose of the rainwater that falls on their land” (art. 641). This right has a limit: if the use of this water, or the direction given to it, increases the natural flow easement, compensation is owed to the owner of the lower land. The same rule applies to spring water rising on a piece of land. If boreholes or underground works bring water to the surface, the lower-lying land must receive it, but its owners are entitled to compensation if damage results (art. 641).

Stronger protection around homes. Houses, yards, gardens, parks and enclosures adjoining dwellings may not be subjected to any increase in the flow easement in these cases (art. 641).

Collecting rainwater. This is one way of using your rainwater. Service-public.gouv.fr points out that this water is not drinkable. A collector connected to the indoor plumbing of the house must be declared at the mairie (town hall), and its indoor use is limited to washing laundry, washing floors and flushing toilets. A collector with no connection is for outdoor uses only: watering, cleaning outdoor surfaces, washing vehicles at home, ornamental fountains. Connecting it to the public drinking-water network is prohibited (fact sheet F31481).

Roof drainage: your water must not fall on your neighbour’s land

Article 681 is unambiguous: “Every owner must construct roofs so that rainwater drains onto their own land or onto the public highway; they may not let it pour onto their neighbour’s land.”

Article 640 only covers water that flows without any human hand having contributed to it; article 681 deals separately with roofs. Even if their land lies lower, your neighbour therefore does not have to receive the water that your gutters or downpipe pour onto their land. Before building on the property boundary, check that the slope of the roof and the downpipes send the water back to your side or towards the public highway.

Local rules: rainwater zoning and the PLU

Local councils or their groupings mark out, after a public inquiry, rainwater management zones (General Code of Local Authorities, art. L2224-10):

• zones where measures must limit soil sealing and control the rate and flow of rainwater and run-off (3°);
• zones where facilities for collecting, storing and, where necessary, treating rainwater are required (4°).

The regulations of the PLU (plan local d’urbanisme, local development plan) may mark out these zones (code de l’urbanisme (Planning Code), art. L151-24). In urban areas, rainwater management is a local-council public administrative service. This service checks the connection of buildings to the public rainwater collection network and compliance with the zoning requirements (General Code of Local Authorities, art. L2226-1). Before building, extending or paving over a yard, ask at the mairie about these requirements.

Remedies in the event of a dispute

For waste water discharged onto your land, service-public.gouv.fr suggests a series of steps (F2443):

1. point out the situation to the neighbour;
2. send them an ordinary letter, with evidence (photos, witness statements);
3. then a registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt asking them to stop the nuisance;
4. try an amicable solution: a conciliateur de justice (court conciliator, free of charge), a mediator (paid) or a procédure participative (collaborative procedure) with a lawyer;
5. go to the tribunal judiciaire (civil court) for the place where the land is located, to have the nuisance stopped, the land restored and damages awarded.

A compulsory amicable step. The tribunal judiciaire hears disputes relating to the easements of articles 640 and 641 and the compensation they give rise to (code de l’organisation judiciaire (Code of Judicial Organisation), art. R211-3-8). For these actions, the court claim must be preceded by an attempt at conciliation, mediation or a procédure participative, failing which it is inadmissible (Code of Civil Procedure, art. 750-1). Fact sheet F2443 presents this step as merely an option; the text makes it compulsory, subject to the exceptions provided in the same article (notably manifest urgency).

See also our guide bornage et troubles de voisinage (boundary-fixing and neighbour nuisance).

Which professional to consult

The géomètre-expert (chartered land surveyor) establishes the dividing boundary: it marks where the neighbour’s land begins, onto which your roof drainage must not pour. The notaire (notary) searches the title deeds for any drainage easement agreed between owners and drafts one if the neighbours agree.