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ABSTRACT
The first inspection offices (in particular Sécuritas and Veritas) were created as a result of building collapses, which were responsible for many victims. The architects’ and contractors’ insurance companies, anxious to be informed of the risk they may be asked to underwrite, made the technical inspection of the works an obligation of their guarantee. The reports prepared by the technical inspectors allowed the insurers to exclude from their coverage foreseeable risks, materialized by the reservations that were mentioned in the insurance policy. The technical inspectors’ main activity was to inform construction insurers of the contingencies to be covered, primarily the risks associated with ‘ten-year responsibility’ coverage involving the stability and the sustainability of the works; the technical inspectors thus contributed to the standardization of the insured risk. Law no 78-12 of January 4th 1978 related to responsibility and insurance in the construction field, today part of the Code of the Construction and Housing, and modified by a prescription dated June 8th 2005, gave a status to technical inspection making the technical inspectors responsible parties in the construction process.
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Bernard Michel BLOCH: Diplôme d'Études Supérieures Spécialisées (DESS) in Construction and Urban Planning Law - Member of the Hauts-de-Seine Bar
INTRODUCTION
The first technical inspection bureaus (notably Sécuritas and Veritas for its building inspection branch) were created in 1928 and 1929 following building collapses that claimed many victims.
Architects' and contractors' insurers, anxious to be informed about the risks they might be required to cover, intended to make their guarantees conditional on a technical inspection of the work: the reports drawn up by the technical inspectors enabled them to exclude foreseeable risks from their cover, materialized by the reservations mentioned therein.
The main task of the technical inspectors was therefore to inform building insurers about the risks to be covered, and mainly those relating to decennial liability and the stability and durability of structures.
In this way, technical controllers contributed to the standardization of insured risk.
Law no. 78-12 of January 4, 1978 on liability and insurance in the construction industry, now incorporated in the French Construction and Housing Code, and last amended by an ordinance of June 8, 2005, gave status to technical inspection and broke new ground by making technical inspectors stakeholders and responsible parties in the act of building.
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KEYWORDS
markets of works | inspection
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Bibliography
Norms and Standards
- Critères généraux pour la contribution du contrôle technique à la prévention des aléas techniques dans le domaine de la construction. - AFNOR – NF P 03-100 - (09-95)
Regulations
Decree no. 99-443 of May 28, 1999 on the general technical specifications applicable to public technical inspection contracts.
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