A man who trespassed on private property to go swimming has found himself in a legal battle with the property owner, breaking his back in a failed dive and leaving him paralyzed from the neck down.
The man, who was 18 at the time of the accident in 2022, was taking part in a dangerous ‘pool squatting’ challenge that saw him illegally gain access to a stranger’s swimming pool in Toulouse, France, when he was injured.
Now he has taken the apartment management company to court to sue them for negligence, even though the owners are still responsible for the maintenance of the pool under the French Civil Code.
“When damage occurs to their property, in this case a swimming pool, the owners must compensate the people who are injured, even if they entered the pool illegally,” French lawyer Fabien Gaillard told BFM TV.
The homeowners claim that they told the teenager to leave and that there was a sign at the entrance to the pool clearly stating how deep the pool was on both sides, but the teenager decided not to listen.
“We’re completely lost,” Alexandra, one of the property’s owners, told La Dépêche. “We feel sorry for this young man who injured himself and ruined his life at 18, but he knew he shouldn’t be jumping there and he didn’t belong there.”
File. According to French law, the man could have a case against the owners of the apartment
According to the owners of the property, this was not the first time the private pool complex had been broken into.
She said that since it opened six years ago, more swimmers have come in every year and that the pool squatting craze is only getting more popular.
Anthony, a witness, told La Dépêche that he had seen the teenager and his friends “jumping around like idiots” before the accident.
But although squatting itself is illegal, squatters still have certain rights under French law.
Article 1244 of the French Civil Code, a thoroughly revised version of Napoleon’s original code of 1804, states that owners are liable for damage or injury that occurs in their home as a result of neglect, even if someone enters illegally.
Owners are responsible for demonstrating that a pool is properly maintained. For this purpose, invoices with photo evidence etc. should be kept.
These types of claims are assessed on a case-by-case basis, real estate attorney Romain Rossi-Landi said. The Figaro.
‘In order to avoid this obligation to compensate the squatter, the owner will have to demonstrate that the living space was in good condition before the squat, or that the squatter has prevented the living space from meeting its maintenance obligation,’ said the alderman.
Homeowners affected by the swimming pool squatting trend say they have faced threats and sometimes violence from brazen youths breaking into their homes.
Patricia, a resident of Toulouse, told La Dépêche that she has been bothered by swimming pool squatters for years.
“They cut our liner with a cutter two years ago,” she told the French outlet. “It cost us 14,000 euros (£12,000).”
Another anonymous man told the newspaper: ‘A few years ago one of the co-owners came down to make them leave, and he was beaten up.
‘It often happens that groups of eight to ten people make threats’.
“They don’t attach that much importance to video surveillance.”
In 2022 the police were reported I get about 10 to 15 calls a day from people reporting strangers entering other people’s swimming pools.
More than 200 calls from residents about the problem were recorded in just three months via a Toulouse municipal helpline.
“There are groups of young people coming in and trying to get into the pool,” Toulouse resident Patrick Lammertyn told The Times.
‘We often have to call the police, but they don’t always come.’
File. Owners are still liable for damages if a squatter injures himself in their private home
The number of times people squat in swimming pools has increased in recent years, despite the obvious risks.
In a bit of a surprise, a homeowner in Repentigny, Canada, captured herself coming home last month to find her entire family in her private pool.
Maryse Chaussé was informed via an app that they had rented out the swimming pool.
She later discovered that a former tenant of the house was still renting out the pool online.
“Is this the first time she’s done this? I can’t say. We’re not always home,” she told Noovo Info.