La vétusté réduit l’indemnisation.

to reduce

Breakdown of La vétusté réduit l’indemnisation.

• l’indemnisation: the insurance payout
• la vétusté: age-related deterioration

Questions & Answers about La vétusté réduit l’indemnisation.

Why does the sentence start with La? Why not just Vétusté?

In French, abstract nouns are very often used with a definite article.

So la vétusté is the natural French way to say the concept of wear and tear / age-related depreciation / obsolescence in a general sense.

French often uses an article where English does not:

• La patience est importante.
• Le courage compte.
• La vétusté réduit l’indemnisation.

So la does not necessarily mean the in a narrow, specific English sense here. It is just the normal French structure.

What exactly does vétusté mean here?

Vétusté is a fairly formal word. It usually refers to loss of value or deterioration caused by:

• age,
• normal wear,
• oldness,
• obsolescence.

It is especially common in:

• insurance,
• property,
• construction,
• legal/administrative language.

So it is not just old age in a human sense. It is more like depreciation due to age and wear.

Is vétusté a common everyday word?