Consumer law protects customers well.
Stores are required to accept back unsuitable clothing, repair equipment under warranty, and return money for defective goods. Contractors must redo shoddy work for free.
Each obligation has a deadline; for violation, the consumer receives penalties and compensation for moral damage.
Some consumers use their rights not for protection, but to obtain benefits at the expense of the entrepreneur. Informally, this is called consumer extremism. In the Civil Code of the Russian Federation for such cases there is the concept of abuse of right - Art. 10 Civil Code of the Russian Federation.
Look at our article for examples of abuse of the Consumer Rights Act. In each example, we described the mistakes entrepreneurs should avoid. At the end, we’ll tell you how to protect yourself from unscrupulous clients.
The Criminal Code says that it should not do this. What should/shouldn’t she do?
— The minimum list of works for the maintenance of the common property of an apartment building is prescribed in the Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of April 3, 2013 No. 290 - this is the minimum work/services that the management company is obliged to provide. It lists 30 types of work and services, including the maintenance of roofs, basements, walls, foundations, floors, coatings, roofs, stairs, facades, windows. Management companies are required to monitor the ventilation and condition of the garbage chute, heat, gas, water supply systems, electrical networks, and elevators. Cleaning the common areas of the house, the adjacent area, and the yard is also included in the minimum set of responsibilities of the management company.
The maximum list of activities is not limited by law. The owners at the general meeting can change the list of works/services: add or reduce in accordance with the service tariff.
The services that the management company must provide are specified in the management agreement. So the management company must wash the floor in the entrance and remove icicles from the roofs. Especially if it is specified in the house management agreement. It sounds like this: “moving the snow and clearing the local area of snow and ice with rutting above 5 cm.”
It’s another matter if the service is not specified in the contract, but is needed. Or the owner wants the floors in the hallways to be washed twice, not once a month. Now, by the way, according to the decree of the chief sanitary doctor, cleaning of entrances must be carried out at least twice a week. If the cleaning is not done, you can be fined.
The sphere of management of apartment buildings is a territory of inaction. The owner complains: this service is not enough. But it does not go to the general meeting of owners in order to include this service in the list of works and services provided. He doesn’t check what’s on his list at all and how much it costs. You can easily include the required service in the same amount, it will be enough for everything.
| Fragment of the list in the tariff for maintaining the house. Right column - cost of services in rubles |
There is no strict control over the level of prices for services provided in the housing and communal services sector, so the tariff for the same services in different houses may differ. How does the tariff work out? The house is inspected, all the structural elements of the building are described, and all the work that the house needs is prescribed. Then an assessment is made of the estimated cost of the work as of the date of conclusion of the contract. Taking into account the seasonality of these works, the tariff is calculated. The contract contains a list of services; opposite each one is the cost per unit of each service, which is added up in the calculation. This is calculated from the total area per square meter. The management company must include in this tariff all possible risks that it has. Now in most cases there is no competent economic justification.
Let's make a reservation: not every harmful client is a deceiver
It happens that a product or service does not meet a person’s expectations.
The buyer imagined that an ergonomic chair would completely relieve fatigue. But after eight hours at the computer, he still felt pain in his back. Out of disappointment, the person returned the chair to the store and said the product was not as described and overpriced. Such a client is simply upset; you should not fight with him.
Another case is when something went wrong.
A woman signed up for a manicure, but the manicurist got sick. The woman was flying out on vacation that day and had to hurriedly look for a service in neighboring salons. Now she is asking for compensation for paying for a manicure from your competitor and for moral damages. The salon is to blame, and the client can be understood.
The Criminal Code is ignoring my requests. And it doesn't do its job. Where can I complain about her? To what authorities?
- You need to photograph all the defects. And contact the State Housing Supervision Inspectorate of the Perm Territory. Upon request, the inspectorate conducts an inspection and holds the person accountable. You can send an appeal to the “Managing Together” portal.
Let me give you an example of a step-by-step algorithm in a situation where the roof is leaking and you have stains on the ceiling. Where and what to go with? First, make an application to the management company so that they record the fact of a roof leak. If representatives of the management company do not come, write a complaint to the housing inspectorate or to the “Managing Together” portal. Representatives of the housing inspection will arrive, draw up a corresponding report, and photograph the violation. They will issue an order from the Criminal Code to eliminate the leak within a certain period of time.
At the end of the inspection, the consumer will have in his hands: a request to conduct an inspection, an order to conduct it, an act, an order issued by the Criminal Code - all this data is placed on the page of the apartment building in the GIS Housing and Communal Services by the authorized inspector who conducted the inspection. Management companies must eliminate the leak and repair the roof and the part of the apartment where it was discovered.
If problems cannot be resolved, you can go to court. If there is a roof leak, an appropriate assessment is made. It is better to do it as part of a forensic examination. Do not do the examination yourself, but wait for the court to order it.
In a situation where the leak is extensive, the following algorithm of actions must be followed:
- Call the emergency dispatch service and report the problem. The service telephone number is indicated either on the receipt or on a stand inside the entrance.
- If there is no telephone number for the emergency dispatch service, or no one answers the calls, call the Ministry of Emergency Situations on the single number 112 and report the problem.
- If the management company is inactive in this case, we will activate the leak ourselves. We make photo and video recording of an extensive leak, draw up a report where we write the date, time and place of drawing up, the full names of those present (you can call 1-3 neighbors), indicate that photo and video recording was made, the device for which it was made, and describe in free form leakage situation, as well as a list of damaged property and interior decoration. As a result, everyone present when drawing up the act signs, indicating their full name (you can also have a residential address or telephone number).
- We are writing a complaint to the supervisory authorities regarding the inaction of the Criminal Code.
- Based on repair costs or an assessment of the cost of damage (done by appraisal companies), we draw up a pre-trial claim. If within a month the Criminal Code does not reimburse expenses, we go to court with a statement of claim.
In general, the management company receives a license at the beginning of its activities to manage an apartment building. Therefore, we do not say “the management company services the house,” but “the house is included in the management company’s license.” Any inclusion of a house in a license, as well as the issuance of the license itself, is subject to the control of a supervisory authority - the State Housing Supervision Inspectorate.
Licensing requirements are outlined in a number of regulations relating to the maintenance and management of housing stock and are enshrined in the main law - the Housing Code of the Russian Federation. A house managed by a management company and included in the management company’s license must comply with the norms and standards for the condition of the housing stock.
If the dispute reaches the court or judicial practice
In court cases with harmful clients, entrepreneurs are also protected by the prohibition of abuse of rights from Art. 10 Civil Code of the Russian Federation. When a person abuses the law, the court rejects the claim.
If this is your case, show exactly what the abuse is like in these examples.
1. A woman bought a down jacket in a store for 24,000 rubles. The down jacket was too big and the store offered adjustments based on sleeve length and hood depth. The woman agreed and agreed on six days.
The down jacket was sewn in, but the woman did not come after six days. Nine days later, the woman asked for the money back because she no longer liked the model. The down jacket had already been customized for the customer, so the store refused to return it. Then the woman went to court and asked for 24,000 rubles for the purchase, 200 rubles of interest for the delay in returning the money, 10,000 rubles for compensation for moral damage, 32,000 for legal assistance and a 32,000 rubles fine for the store’s refusal to pay voluntarily.
The woman was not awarded a penny. The court found that she was abusing her right. The buyer herself agreed to have the product adjusted, and then refused. Now the down jacket cannot be sold. Therefore, the store has the right not to accept it - case No. 33-11245/2018.
2. A man bought a sewer cleaning machine from a catalog for 405,000 rubles. Eight months later, the man sent the store a demand for a refund. He explained that the seller sent instructions for the car in a foreign language without translation. It is impossible to use the machine without instructions.
The seller refused to refund the money. Then the man filed a lawsuit demanding the return of 405,000 rubles for the car, 20,250 rubles in penalties, 8,000 rubles for the cost of delivering the car back to the store, 5,000 rubles for moral damages and 10,000 for the lawyer’s fees.
The man lost because the court found an abuse of the law.
The seller explained at the meeting that three weeks after the purchase he sent instructions in Russian to the address of the man’s friend. There was a witness to this.
He received the instructions, which means he can use the machine. The cleaning machine is not a seasonal product, which means that claims must be made within a reasonable time, and not after eight months. You cannot make money from minor store mistakes - case No. 33-5794/2017.
