The prefect and the regional director of public finances signed a protocol to combat housing deprivation on Thursday 23 November. Their goal is to force the owners to do the necessary work. There will be fines and penalties… up to 1000 euros per day!
“This is the place to do it!” Determined, the regional prefect presented his plan to fight against unsuitable housing. Press conference for the occasion. Georges-François Leclerc wants to show his priority. “There is a significant prevalence of substandard housing in the north“.
Check the sanitation of the accommodation you rent, because we are here
Georges-François Leclerc, regional prefect
The numbers are overwhelming. “71,000 homes are potentially unhealthy, homes that are monitored.” This represents 16% of unsuitable housing in France.
Any home, building or structure that poses a danger or risk to the health or physical safety of people is considered unsanitary. Very often, unsanitary homes are characterized by damp on the walls, dangling electrical cables, rodents, insects, etc.
“These are symptoms that can create large thermal wastes and public health problems”. An unsanitary accommodation undermines the dignity of those who live there. “That’s why we think she’s the mother of battles“.
In the North, the sectors are particularly affected. And the prefect to mention the Sambre, the Avesnois, the mining basin and the north of the metropolis of Lille. He wants to send a clear message to the owners: “Check the sanitation of your accommodation that you rent because we are here“.
The owners are more than ever in the crosshairs. Once reported, the habitat is subject to surveys by the regional health agency. The departmental directorate of the territories and the sea then indicates to the owners the works to be carried out. If the work is not finished, the tone hardens.
This Wednesday, November 23, the prefect and the regional director of public finance signed a recovery protocol. “I asked the regional director to put more resources into recovering credits and penalties. You have to be very precise. This is one of the main credibility factors of the system. If a landlord doesn’t do his job, money is taken from him to do it for him“.
These sanctions are intended to be dissuasive. They can reach 1000 euros a day”forcing the landlord to do the work and house people during the work, or even rehouse them, if the apartment or house is in very bad condition“, adds Amélie Puccinelli, deputy secretary general of the prefecture of the North.
