{“@context”: “https://schema.org”, “@type”: “FAQPage”, “mainEntity”: [{“@type”: “Question”, “name”: “I’m receiving my VEFA property next week and we can see defects: what should we do?”, “acceptedAnswer”: {“@type”: “Answer”, “text”: “Do NOT sign the acceptance report without reservations. List every defect in writing, with photos. If the defects are visible, they must be included in the reservations. A building expert can accompany you at handover to identify what you cannot see.”}}, {“@type”: “Question”, “name”: “The developer refuses to clear the reservations: what deadline applies?”, “acceptedAnswer”: {“@type”: “Answer”, “text”: “The developer has a contractual deadline (usually 12 months) to clear the reservations. If it fails to do so, you can take the matter to court and request a court-ordered expert assessment. Keep all written evidence.”}}, {“@type”: “Question”, “name”: “Can I withhold part of the payment if the work is poorly done?”, “acceptedAnswer”: {“@type”: “Answer”, “text”: “Yes. As long as the work does not comply, you can place the balance in escrow or withhold it. Never pay the full balance if defects exist – payment amounts to implied acceptance.”}}, {“@type”: “Question”, “name”: “Can a building expert attend the VEFA handover with me?”, “acceptedAnswer”: {“@type”: “Answer”, “text”: “Yes. A building expert who accompanies you at handover identifies the defects you cannot see, measures them (crack gauge, laser level, moisture meter) and drafts documented, costed reservations that are enforceable against the developer (which requires a rigorous method – see our article on the value of a report in court). This is the best moment to document everything.”}}]}
EXPERTISE – RESERVATIONS
You received a letter from the developer: “Reservations lifted.” Except the crack on the facade is still there, the balcony door doesn’t close properly, and the bathroom tiles sound hollow. Simply put, nothing has changed since delivery. Out of 100 VEFA cases I’ve followed on the French Riviera, 70% of lifted reservations hide uncorrected defects. In Nice, it’s the same story: developers, pressured by delay penalties, sign off on the lift without verifying.
What You See – and What It Really Hides
You look at the wall: the crack is still there, thin but clearly visible. The developer tells you it’s aesthetic and doesn’t warrant a reservation. But you feel a draft when the wind blows hard. What no one says: an untreated crack in a new building in Nice is often a sign of an air tightness defect or structural movement due to shrink-swell clay. On a case in Nice last year, I measured a 0.8 mm crack that went through the load-bearing wall. The developer had written “reservations lifted” three months earlier. Result: rainwater infiltration, mould in the bedroom, and a €4,500 bill for redoing the expansion joint.
Schematic: Reservation Lifted Without Actual Correction
The Calculations That Change Everything: Proof by Measurement
To challenge a lifted reservation, you need numbers. I use my Leica TS16 total station and Leica D810 laser distance meter. For the crack: I use a crack gauge and measure the opening. In Nice, differential shrinkage due to shrink-swell clays can reach 5 mm of annual movement. If the crack is 0.8 mm today, in 6 months it can reach 2 mm. The DTU 20.1 standard (French technical document for masonry) tolerates 0.2 mm for shrinkage cracks, but beyond that, it’s a disorder falling under Article 1792-6 of the Civil Code (which defines acceptance of works with or without reservations). For hollow tiles: I measure flatness deviation with an electronic level. If the deviation exceeds 2 mm under a 2 m straightedge, it’s non-compliant. For the balcony door: I measure the sealing gap. With an infrared thermometer, I detect a thermal bridge if the surface temperature is 3 °C lower than ambient. Concretely, these measurements give real deviations: crack 0.8 mm (out of tolerance), tiles 3 mm (non-compliant), door 5 mm gap (air infiltration). The developer cannot dispute numbers.
What Happens If You Do Nothing
Six months after the lift, the crack widens. Rainwater seeps in, tiles come loose, the balcony door squeaks and lets air through. In two years, you’ll have mould behind the closet, a crumbling wall, and a repair bill of at least €8,000. In Nice, with Mediterranean humidity and prevailing winds, damage accelerates. I saw an apartment where an unresolved reservation caused widespread water damage: €15,000 in repairs, not to mention lost rental value.
Recourse and Guarantees: What You Can Demand
Article 1792-6 of the Civil Code (paragraph 3) provides that acceptance is the act by which the client accepts the work with or without reservations. If reservations are not lifted, you can refuse to sign the lift report. Send a registered letter with acknowledgment of receipt to the developer, listing the uncorrected defects and requesting a second-opinion expert assessment. Petition the Judicial Court of Nice in summary proceedings to obtain a court-ordered expert appraisal. The judge will appoint an expert who will measure the deviations. If defects are proven, the developer must correct them under penalty. Don’t let it slide: your perfect completion guarantee runs for one year from acceptance. After that, you lose your rights.
Frequently asked questions
Off-plan purchase (VEFA): reservations signed off but defects remain. What can you do?
If the developer has signed off the reservations but defects remain, you must put a written claim in a registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt. The developer is required to repair defects covered by the ten-year warranty or amounting to non-compliance, even after the reservations have been signed off, failing which it may face legal action.
How long do you have to report defects after sign-off in a VEFA purchase?
You have 30 days after receiving the keys to report visible defects noted at handover. For latent defects, the time limit is 2 years for non-compliance and 10 years for structural damage. Act quickly to protect your rights.
Developer refuses to repair defects after a VEFA purchase?
If the developer refuses, you can bring the matter before the judicial court within 5 years for latent defects, or 10 years for damage covered by the ten-year warranty. Before that, send a formal notice and consider mediation. Keep all written evidence and photographs of the defects.
Further reading: Reservations Lifted but Work Poorly Done in Antibes: What to Do? · Reserves Ignored by Developer in Nice: What to Do in 2025? · Lifting of Reservations in Nice: Defect Persists, What to Do?
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Read more: Article 1641 of the Civil Code and the latent defects warranty, explained.
Survey carried out by Frédéric Faucouneau, independent building expert – Antibes, Alpes-Maritimes (06), Var (83), Bouches-du-Rhône (13). Find out more
📅 Last updated 06/11/2026 - Cassini Expertise, independent building expert – departments 06, 83 and 13.