Getting into hot water with your pool?
Picture this. You've just had a lazy evening at your friends' house in France. Bloated with fromage and eau de vie, you are feeling slightly muzzy, so you take a petit tour around their garden. Suddenly a high pitched alarm screeches out. Is this a raid by les flics? Have your friends forgotten to pay their taxe foncière? You stumble back towards the house and then trip over a low plastic barrier. You go flying through the air and spread-eagle yourself over the rigid canopy covering the pool. Sacre bleu these holidays in France can be a hazardous business.
What do all these gizmos mean? They are child security devices for private pools and, as you have discovered, your friends have got a substantial system in place. It may have given you a hard time, but the system would almost certainly comply with the security regulations, which came into force for all private pools in France in January 2006.
Some will say this is yet another government initiative designed to create jobs in France (which it has, as new security systems have been (or should have been!) needed for an awesome half a million constructed pools). But in fact they are a long overdue safety feature. Why? Because over half of all domestic fatalities for children under five in France involve swimming pools. In essence, the French government has given up trying to persuade parents to take more care with youngsters around swimming pools. Now it is the law. And a fine of 45,000 euros, if you ignore the new regulations.
As you might imagine, the industry has taken a period to meet demand for the new safety devices and the standards coding were published later than anticipated. Accordingly some leniency in the enforcement of the new rules might be likely, provided the owners have acted in good faith (i.e. at least tried to contact a pool contractor/supplier with proof they have done so).
If you are proposing to build a new pool, the constructor must give you full technical details of the security systems required for your chosen size and style of pool. The safety devices are familiar enough to those who browse through the catalogues offering a choice of barriers, alarms, covers and canopies. If you already have a pool, life is rather more difficult as of course their original construction was probably not designed to feature security systems. If your pool is entirely bespoke with a strange shape, the legislation offers an exemption until a suitable system becomes available on the market for your pool. Currently no security systems are required for above ground, inflatable and collapsible pools. Spas, jacuzzis and hot tubs are also exempt.
All safety fittings must comply with the AFNOR standards and great care should be taken when ordering safety fittings. If the AFNOR mark does not feature, get yourself another catalogue.
The trouble of course that many house owners do not want to clutter up the elegant lines of their pools with nasty plastic barriers and canopies, but regrettably those days are now gone and plastic security fittings of various designs are the order of the day. Even if you have no children, nor the prospect of any children visiting your pool, you must install a security system failing which you would be subject to a fine. And also bear in mind that failing to have a compliant pool is likely to invalidate your third party insurance cover should any accident take place.
Oh and don't forget to tell your adult guests about the new features. And if they fancy skinny-dipping late at night, don't forget to turn off the alarm. If the exposed flesh doesn't upset the neighbours, the noise certainly will!
Philip Winter-Taylor
Tel: 01233 666968
Email: wintertaylors@aol.com
Site Index links: