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French couple seeks compensation for home built 37 centimeters too low

Their demolition dispute has left Butry-sur-Oise facing a compensation demand its mayor says equals half the town's budget.

Channel: TF1 INFO ·

FranceStory of November 11, 2026Trari Newsroom

Why this story? One of TF1 INFO's most watched videos since yesterday, with 408,202 views.

TF1 INFO: The news division of TF1, a private French television channel owned by the Bouygues group. 1.8M subscribers and 2B views.

Ce couple doit faire démolir sa maison... pour une erreur de 37 cm !｜TF1 INFO

Eugénia and José Casal live inside the source of their stress: an unfinished house they must demolish because it was built 37 centimeters too low, according to France's TF1 INFO.

The couple's home in Butry-sur-Oise, in the Val-d'Oise department north of Paris, should have been raised to meet flood-protection requirements linked to the Oise River. Eugénia shows the height difference with a tape measure and describes six years of distress.

The report traces the dispute to a building permit granted by the town hall in 2017. The prefecture, the state's local authority, subsequently challenged it. TF1 attributes the situation to an architect's error and a delay in forwarding administrative paperwork.

The Casals say the unfinished property has already cost them more than €600,000. They describe a prolonged legal battle and the strain of continuing to live in the building at the center of it.

They are seeking €950,000 from the municipality to rebuild their lives. Mayor Claude Noël acknowledges a past mistake and the couple's distress, but says the amount requested represents half the municipality's budget.

That leaves a substantial gap between the couple's demand and the town's capacity to pay. According to the report, negotiations involving lawyers and insurers have already continued for four years.

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