This was sent in by email by a registered
artisan on this site who is employing other artisans and who asked not be
identified because of possible reprisals from those working "on the black" :-
"This little
fact applies to any person who employs clandestine workers, registered
artisans working outside their remit (eg a gardener replacing a roof) and
uninsured registered or non registered trades.
1) If an accident occurs where someone is injured or even killed in the
process of work then the ‘employer’ who is legally the house owner is
liable for all costs. For example, you pay someone ‘au noir’ to do your
building work. He has an accident and is hospitalised. Under French law as
he is not registered, you are liable as his employer to pay: all medical
costs, his social security charges, the social security charges you should
be paying as his employer, the wages he should have been able to earn all
the time he is off sick and the worker can then take you to court for
damages or his family if the artisan is killed. The ‘employer’ will fine
an investigation by the Inspecteur du Travail, URSAFF and any other
official body that sees fit, and will be liable for paying fines and
chares associated with employing clandestine labour, avoiding social
charges and tax. The same will be applied to artisans who are working
outside there registration as you have asked them to do the work and
legally you become there ‘employer’. Again if an registered artisan is
working uninsured but within the remit of his registration, the house
owner can become liable for any medical costs etc should the artisan be
injured. Injuries at work are not covered by an artisans top up insurance
and they can make a claim against the employer or the artisans insurance
if they feel the need.
2) The INSEE who hold all the registrations of Artisans only ever show the
main trade of that person and though you can check the Siret Numbers out,
it is always safer to physically see the registration card or KBIS of the
artisan, plus a COPY of their insurance. The reason for this is that as
many legitimate artisans have found the INSEE do not record everything
they are registered for, however ALL that information is found on the KBIS,
and the green Artisan card that legally has to be carried. Insurance
companies in France underwriting artisans always do more checks than the
Chambre de Metiers. They do not rely solely on four recommendations from
previous clients as these can and have been fraudulently created so that
people can register as an artisan in France.
3) If you have any concerns about an artisan, take their name, full
address and land line number (not a mobile as many cowboys work this way),
plus if they have it, details of their Siret number. You put any of these
details in to:
http://www.cofacerating.fr/ Otherwise
known as LesEchos.fr. If you get no results from any of the information
you put in then you need to assume that the person is NOT REGISTERED, if
you get a result, check what they are registered for. Please be aware that
gardeners register under the Chambre de Commerce and pay lower
cotisations, this means that they are not and can not be registered for
building unless they reregister with the Chambre de Metiers.
4) Just another caution. PROJECT MANAGERS – these can be legitimately
registered, but this does not mean they are capable of doing building work
themselves. A good project manager will charge you a fee to take the worry
and stress out of finding artisans to do your work. This is time consuming
and the project Manager earns his fee this way and gives the client piece
of mind. However, some Project Managers are getting devis from Artisans
using these to get clients to pay for works, hiring in cheaper workers,
some clandestine, then pocketing the difference between the amount charged
to the client and the amount paid to the workers. Clients should pay there
artisans directly in order for the insurance to be valid and pay the fees
required by the Project Manager direct to him. Again the rules regarding
accidents and death will apply to the houseowner if anything happens.
Project managers do not necessarily hold the qualifications or insurance
to insure your works. So always double check and use sites like these to
RECOMMEND the Project Managers who deserve recognition.
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