A family left their luxury French holiday home a week early when water began gushing through the ceiling.
Sara Stephens-White has been left gutted after her family's first big holiday ended in tears and several large puddles.
The 40-year-old abandoned the chateau in Nouvelle-Aquitaine a week into the fortnight long stay when heavy leaks ended up soaking her son, 4, and daughter, 2.
It proved to be the final straw for Sara, her husband and parents, who had been left disappointed by an outhouse covered in bird poo, cracked flooring, rotten decking, a blocked toilet and the smell of mould.
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The Woking, Surrey family meticulously documented the issues and have now been offered a full refund by Pure France after the booking company was contacted by The Mirror.
Sara, a solicitor, told The Mirror: "I dread to think if someone put a baby's cot underneath the leak. It doesn't bear thinking about.
"Water was also leaking onto the electrical wires. It just doesn't seem safe to me.
"I am waking up with night terrors. There is nothing more terrifying than waking up to your child screaming."
The Stephens-Whites had decided to splash out for what was their first first big holiday abroad all together and so booked the chateau for just shy of 6,000 euros.
Among the features it boasts are a heated pool and sun-terrace, outdoor kitchen, pool house, double-height living room ceiling and a games room.
"We decided to slightly blow the budget, because of the hassle with travelling with kids so young," Sara explained.
"We decided to book a self contained property with its own swimming pool, in case of Covid regulations coming back.
"We wanted a couple of weeks in the sunshine, enjoying some food and weather. We were expecting an upmarket property and a bit of rustic charm."
While Sara admits that expecting something "completely modern" from a French farmhouse would be unrealistic, she was shocked to discover the standards parts of the property were kept at, given it was expressively advertised as child friendly.
She continued: "There was bird poo on the furniture in the pool house. We couldn't use that room because you can't let children in there.
"It was all over the rattan furniture in there. The flooring around the pool was all cracked as well.
"My daughter tripped and grazed her knees quite badly. There was wooden decking that was rotten. The boards kept coming up so we couldn't let the kids on them by themselves."
Inside there were multiple plug-connectors connected to one another with exposed wiring, which Sara described as a "bit strange".
"We spent the whole time telling our son not to touch stuff," she continued.
"It wasn't very clean either. It needed a deep clean. The carpets were threadbare and a bit rotten. The children were in rooms which smelt funny and damp.
"A toilet got blocked. We weren't doing anything odd with it. And the carpet in the bathroom was getting increasingly wet.
"We thought it was the shower at first, but it was actually coming from somewhere beneath. I have no idea if it was safe water or sewage water."
On Monday night, a week into their stay, the baby monitor went off in Sara and her husband's bedroom.
She recalled: "I stumbled half asleep in my daughter's bedroom, but it wasn't her screaming as I expected, it was my son.
"I walked through to see him sitting in his bed with water pouring on his head, screaming in terror and stuck to the spot.
"I whisked him out to bed. There was water leaking into my daughter's room and living room and corridor as well.
"Water was leaking into the kitchen. Its floor was completely soaking wet. We just wanted to leave. It was the final straw. We packed up on Tuesday morning."
After staying one night in a hotel the family got a ferry back to the UK on Wednesday morning.
"I came back to work the next Monday not refreshed but stressed and quite upset," Sara said.
The owner of the property offered the family another week in the same home for no extra fee next summer, which Sara rejected.
In an email to the couple they said the leaks were due to heavy storms which also impacted many homes in the area, and that the owners came round to clean up as much as possible the next morning.
"Dozens of families who have lived there have never reported to us that our house constitutes a danger," they told the family in an email, translated from French.
They added: "Aware of the inconveniences you have suffered, we suggest that you come back and spend a week at our expense, by agreeing on a date. Please accept our sincere apologies."
A Pure France spokesperson said: “Pure France is very sorry for the problems that the Stephens' experienced at their holiday home in France as we understand due to exceptional weather conditions.
"The Stephens family have been offered a free holiday by the property owners which they have politely declined in preference for a financial reimbursement.
"The two contracted parties are in contact with each other via email to conclude the situation.”
As of the time of publication, the family had not received a refund.
