Hiding essential information during a sale can justify its cancellation. This is the case of a house that was previously a gas station, without the buyers having been informed. This is a form of deception that the courts call fraud and which in this recent case resulted in the nullity of a sales agreement, nullity confirmed by the Amiens Court of Appeal (1st Civil Chamber, June 4, 2024 No. 22/0079). This judgment (see document below)spotted and commented on his blog by the lawyer specializing in real estate law, Me Gabriel Neu-Janicki, recalls the conditions that must be met to talk about “deceitful reticence” (i.e. deception by voluntary omission of essential information) and its consequences.
“For the record, article 1112-1 of the civil code imposes a pre-contractual obligation of information with regard to the co-contractor and articles 1130 and 1137 govern the subject of the nullity of contracts for fraud”, underlines the lawyer. The Court of Appeal confirmed the previous judgment by considering that this former service station activity with the presence of a buried tank at the front of the house was a determining circumstance for the buyers. She brushed aside the defense arguments emphasizing that the tank in question was not “actively dangerous”.
12,000 euros of rent reimbursed
Given the possibility of pollution, the possible existence of complications in the event of extension work or the creation of a terrace, or even possible administrative hassles, this information was essential. Knowing that the sellers were perfectly aware of the history of the house, there is little doubt that the silence was intentional. The sales agreement is therefore void, the notary must return the sequestered funds to the buyers (6,782 euros in this case) and the sellers must compensate for all the damages suffered by the buyers. The bill is rather steep, including the broker’s fees (1,400 euros), the notary’s fees for cancelling the agreement and the agency fees paid by the buyers to find new accommodation (873 euros). In addition, the buyers, who had sold their apartment, had to take out rental accommodation due to the cancellation of the promise and therefore obtained the reimbursement of 15 months’ rent at 800 euros, or 12,000 euros.
