How to make and where to file a complaint against neighbors

Quarrels between neighbors become a truly serious problem in an apartment building, where a respectable family with children can live on the same landing, the owner of a Rottweiler who goes out for walks without a leash or muzzle, and a very sociable person whose wild fun does not end even when night comes. If the inevitable conflict of interests in this case cannot be settled through contractual means, other methods have to be put into action. The main thing is not to forget about their legality and, armed with a pen (or computer), start writing a complaint.

Where to complain

The addressee of a complaint against neighbors is selected based on the nature of the offense they commit (regular noise, poor sanitary conditions, aggressive pets and openly threatening behavior of residents) and their willingness to dialogue. It could be:

Management company (MC) or homeowners association (HOA).
Federal Service for Supervision of Consumer Rights Protection and Human Welfare (Rospotrebnadzor).
Police.
Court.

How to write a complaint against neighbors so that it is considered, read the article “How to write a complaint correctly”

Organization of management or self-government in the housing and communal services sector

The management company or homeowners' association carries out the functions of maintaining the house in satisfactory technical, sanitary and hygienic condition, as well as other tasks specified in the charter or agreement with residents.

You can complain to the management company or homeowners association about neighbors who neglect environmental hygiene, freedom of movement and the safety of others when they:

crowd the common space (landing or flight) with large items;
systematically litter the entrance or yard, not bothering to clean up after themselves;
engage in activities on the territory of the house that create inconvenience to others (unpleasant odors (Read the article: “How to write a complaint about a smell”), loud noise during the time allotted for rest, etc.);
walking without a leash or muzzle or leaving potentially dangerous animals unattended and not removing their waste products;
smoke in common areas.

You can submit a complaint orally or in writing to a person authorized to receive such requests. The inaction of the management company or the HOA in this case is grounds for appeal against them. But in practice, even an immediate response to an application rarely eliminates the problem, since the management organization does not have sufficient tools for this. The maximum that its representative can do is talk to the offender and, if there is no result, help resolve the unfavorable situation through the competent government authorities.

Rospotrebnadzor

Rospotrebnadzor is the executive body exercising state supervision over compliance with sanitary and epidemiological rules and regulations. You can contact the service with a statement about their violation by neighbors or if they themselves are a source of epidemiological risk due to the presence of a dangerous disease spread by airborne droplets or through contact with common objects (door handles, railings, etc.).

Methods for filing a complaint with the Federal Sanitary and Epidemiological Surveillance Authority:

By mail - 127994, Moscow, Vadkovsky lane, building 18, buildings 5 and 7.
At an appointment with a specialist from the Department of Sanitary Surveillance (Tuesday from 13:00 to 16:00) or the Department of Epidemiological Surveillance (Friday from 10:00 to 13:00) in the building of the central office of the service at the address Moscow, Vadkovsky Lane, building 18, buildings 5 and 7
By post or in person at the Rospotrebnadzor Office in the subject (addresses at https://rospotrebnadzor.ru/region/structure/str_uprav.php).
Through the electronic petition submission service - https://petition.rospotrebnadzor.ru/petition/.

A complaint in electronic document format is created and sent from the official website of Rospotrebnadzor.
The link provided above offers two options for submitting it: with or without authorization in the Unified Identification and Authentication System (USIA). A claim filed in the first way may become the basis for an unscheduled inspection of the violation. To proceed to its creation, the sender will need an account on the State Services portal. It is through him that authorization in the ESIA takes place.

To file a complaint using the second method, no additional steps are taken. The transition to electronic form is carried out immediately. Next, the applicant will need to enter the following data:

Full Name.
Contact information - telephone, fax, email (required), postal address.
Addressee department (territorial or central office of Rospotrebnadzor).
Details of the offense, names and addresses of persons involved in its commission.

You can attach a file or archive of no more than 5 MB in size to an electronic complaint.

Help numbers for registration of written requests:

8 (free in Russia);
8.

How to contact the Ministry of Internal Affairs via the Internet

You can submit an online application to the Ministry of Internal Affairs about an offense in 2020 in all regions without registration through:

website of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation;
website of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of your region;
mobile application of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

IMPORTANT!

Through the Gosuslugi website, in most parts of Russia, appeals are available only to the prosecutor’s office; whether it is possible to file a complaint online with the police in your region is checked in the user’s account.

Please note that if a crime has occurred, an event that directly threatens personal and public safety at the present time, you should promptly call 02 from a landline phone and 102 from a mobile phone. For other requests, read the step-by-step instructions on how to write a police report online, where to find the form and when to expect a response.

Step 1. On the main page of the Ministry of Internal Affairs website, click the “For Citizens” section button. Select the item “Reception of requests from citizens and organizations.”

Step 2. In the list of departments, select the desired department, mark it by checking one of the boxes. Information about the functions of the department will open; after selecting the department, click “Continue” at the bottom of the page.

Step 3. Read the information provided, check the box confirming that you have read it, and click “Submit an appeal.”

Step 4. Fill out the form that opens - option for the regional website of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Tver Region.

Step 5. Having selected a territorial division, fill in the information and indicate the address for response and the location of the event that you intend to report.

Step 6. If your written request is repeated, provide information about where and when you already wrote. Fill out the “Text of Appeal” window - the police application form to fill out is not approved by law. It is better to prepare the text that you enter into the online form in advance. Attach files with the necessary documents (if any). Send a request.

Police

The police considers applications for administrative and criminal offenses of citizens, for example:

violation of sanitary and epidemiological requirements;
consumption and distribution of narcotic drugs and psychotropic drugs not prescribed by a doctor;
destruction or damage to someone else's property;
violation of the rules for the use of residential premises;
noise at night;
creating a threat to the health and life of others (applies to the rules for walking potentially dangerous pets);
aggressive behavior (insults, threats);
unintentional harm to human health;
violent actions.

Contacting the police should start with the local police officer. A complaint about the unlawful behavior of neighbors is written in his name and is usually submitted in person, since the police department is located within the same administrative district as the applicant.

If the matter is urgent and the subject of the complaint is an acute conflict or a criminal act of a neighbor, you must immediately call 02.

You can find the police department and the local commissioner on the map or at the address on the official website of the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in the subject. This service is also available on the portal of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation at the link https://mvd.rf/district.

As an example of a statement against a neighbor, you can take the following sample:

The inaction of the district police officer (refusal to accept a complaint, failure to take measures to clarify and suppress the fact of violation) is unlawful and is subject to appeal first to the head of the police department, and if there is no result - to higher structural units (DMI, Regional Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, etc.) .

If the offense committed by neighbors is of a criminal nature, requiring the perpetrator to be held criminally liable, the application is submitted to the duty department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MVD) in the area. However, it should be remembered that slander and giving knowingly false information to the police are punishable by law, in accordance with the provisions of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

You can write to a higher official using the electronic appeal service. To do this you need:

Follow the link https://mvd.rf/contacts/sites.
Select the appropriate Department or Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for your subject.
Click on the main menu item “For Citizens” and go to “Reception of Applications”.
Read the information provided on the page and click “Submit an appeal.”
Select a department, indicate the name and position of the addressee.
Fill in information about the applicant - last name, first name, patronymic, postal or email address, telephone number and civil status (citizen of the Russian Federation, another country, stateless person, etc.).
Indicate the location, details of the incident and the unit to which the application was previously submitted.
Attach documents relevant to the case, photographs and video materials in electronic form.
Send a request.

Causes of conflicts with neighbors

Any violation of generally accepted rules of behavior on the part of neighbors is, first of all, disrespect for the people living in the same house with them. However, considering living in an apartment building in the legal framework, it can be stated that inappropriate behavior of a resident of an apartment building is inherently an offense.

In case of any violations on the part of a neighbor, the first thing you should do is try to talk to him: point out the problem that causes discomfort and ask him to solve it in some way. If conversations have not helped, or the neighbor does not make contact at all, it is time to resort to methods of resolving the situation established by law. Let's look at what exactly can be done in various situations.

Noise behind the wall

Complaints about noise from neighbors are perhaps the most common among residents of apartment buildings. Depending on the source of the sound - repair work, a child's cry, loud music, etc., you need to choose who to complain to about noisy neighbors.

The level of permissible noise and the measure of liability for violating established standards are regulated both by federal legislation (Article 23 of the Federal Law of March 30, 1999 No. 52-FZ “On the Sanitary and Epidemiological Welfare of the Population”) and by regional laws detailing the rules for maintaining silence.

So, according to the law on silence in Moscow, you cannot make noise from 23:00 to 07:00, and also make repairs - from 19:00 to 09:00, from 13:00 to 15:00, on Sundays and holidays. At the same time, during the daytime the noise cannot exceed 55 decibels, and at night - 45 decibels.

Of course, it is unlikely that anyone will specifically measure the noise level in an apartment with a sound level meter; here it is rather worth focusing on whether the noise creates discomfort.

In addition, some buildings establish their own rules for using an apartment building, further limiting the possibility of making noise, well, at the contract level. In accordance with this agreement, a neighbor can also be held accountable, but this will be extremely difficult to do: firstly, entering into this agreement occurs on a voluntary basis, and the neighbor could simply not sign it, and secondly, this requires an application to court.

Important! The level of extraneous noise in an apartment depends not only on the degree of activity of the neighbors, but also on the quality of sound insulation. Thus, new buildings must comply with the noise insulation level CH 2.2.4/2.1.8.562-96. 2.1.8. If you bought an apartment in a new building, but you can hear your neighbors behind the wall as if you were at home, this is a reason to file a claim with the developer.

Where to contact:

To quickly solve a noise problem, you must first call a local police officer, who is obliged to respond to the call, find out the cause of the noise and, if possible, eliminate it, and bring the perpetrators to justice.
If noise bothers you regularly, you should try to figure out its cause and, if necessary, involve highly specialized authorities in solving the problem. You can also submit a written complaint to the district police officer about noisy neighbors.
So, if the noise allows us to conclude that the neighbors are mistreating the child, it is worth contacting the guardianship authorities. You can also complain to guardianship if your neighbor is disabled or elderly, suffering from a psychological disorder and in need of help. However, before contacting this government agency, it is better to try to find out more about your neighbors’ family: perhaps they just have a restless child. After all, guardianship can create serious problems even for a normal family.
It is also worth paying attention to the nature of the sounds of repairs: neighbors may be carrying out illegal redevelopment, which will be indicated by the sounds of collapsing walls, tremors, or even the appearance of cracks in the walls or ceiling. The State Housing Inspectorate is authorized to hold people accountable for such violations. It will impose a fine on the violator and also oblige him to restore all structures to their original condition. Subsequently, if the neighbor’s actions caused damage to other apartments, damages can be recovered from him through the court.
You can also go to court for compensation for moral damage caused by constant noise from neighbors. However, you shouldn’t count on much: the court itself sets the amount of such compensation and, as a rule, it is very small, within a few thousand rubles.

Smoking

Smoking in public places, which includes all common areas in an apartment building, is prohibited and is an administrative offense. You can file a complaint with the police about neighbors who smoke.

The situation is more complicated in situations where a neighbor smokes in his apartment, but the smoke penetrates into other living spaces. On the one hand, the owner of a residential premises has the right to do almost anything on his personal territory. On the other hand, his actions should not infringe on the rights of other residents. Judicial practice shows that smoking on your balcony or loggia is illegal if it causes inconvenience to residents. It is unlikely that your neighbor will be fined for this, but through the court you can get a small compensation for moral damage. But if smoke gets to you through the ventilation shaft, then the reason is most likely not in the neighbor, but in improper operation of the ventilation. In this case, you need to contact the management company to set up the ventilation system.

Cluttering of common areas

Sometimes neighbors perceive porches and other common spaces as their personal storage room. This approach not only creates inconvenience for residents, but also violates fire safety standards. Thus, according to clause 5.1.1 of SP 1.13130.2009, the width of passages through which people can evacuate must be at least 1.2 m. Violators of this rule face administrative liability in the form of a fine of 2,000 to 3,000 rubles.

The State Housing Inspectorate or fire supervision can check whether neighbors comply with fire safety requirements based on a complaint from residents.

Residential premises are not used for their intended purpose

In accordance with Art. 17 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation, residential premises can be used for business activities if this does not violate the legitimate interests of other citizens. It is not allowed to locate production facilities, hotel businesses, or carry out missionary activities in residential premises.

Moreover, there cannot be a brothel or brothel in the apartment: this not only violates the rights of residents, attracting unwanted people into the house, but is also a criminal activity that must be reported to law enforcement agencies.

In addition, the tax office may be interested in illegal business activities.

But it will not be possible to punish owners who rent apartments by the day: according to current legislation, tenants themselves are responsible for their activities. Daily rentals are not considered a hotel business.

Pets

One dog or cat, if all the rules for caring for pets are followed, is unlikely to cause problems for any of the neighbors. However, some situations can lead to conflict:

the animal is left alone for a long time and screams or howls for a long time;
too many animals in one room, which causes unsanitary conditions;
animals walk along the entrance;
the dog is walking without a muzzle or is on a self-walk;
The apartment houses an animal shelter.

All these signs indicate a violation of the rules for handling animals and can subject a neighbor to administrative liability in the form of a fine and even criminal liability for cruelty to animals. Rospotrebnadzor is the authority where you can complain about unsanitary conditions in your neighbors, and the police will deal with cruelty to animals.

If the actions of an animal cause damage to property or human health, the owner of the animal is obliged to compensate for it. In case of refusal of voluntary compensation for harm, you will have to go to court.

Neighbors upstairs flooded the apartment

At the first signs of flooding you should:

take action to stop further flooding: turn off the water and inform neighbors above about the leak;
call representatives of the management company and draw up a flood report. A big advantage when compensating for damage will be the signature of the act by the residents from the apartment above;
take photos of the damage.

If there is evidence of flooding, you can demand compensation for property damage from your neighbor. If the neighbor does not admit his guilt and refuses to pay compensation voluntarily, you need to have the premises examined by a specialized organization that will assess the damage caused and go to court.

If the house has commercial premises

Often, shops, beauty salons and other organizations are located on the ground floors of residential buildings. In general, you can complain about violations on their part as if you were an ordinary neighbor.

It is better to start solving the problem with a written complaint addressed to the organization itself. Fines for organizations for the above violations are many times higher than fines for ordinary citizens, so the store management will not want to escalate the conflict to complaints to government agencies and will fulfill the demands of the residents specified in the complaint.

In case of systematic violations by users of commercial premises - noise, unsanitary conditions, etc., you can complain to Rospotrebnadzor.

Court

Filing a complaint to court is probably one of the last resort measures to counter systematic violations by neighbors. The purpose of the appeal may be:

Stopping the unlawful behavior of a neighboring tenant.
Bringing him to administrative or criminal liability.
Recovery from the violator of monetary compensation for the material damage and/or moral damage caused to him.

An application to the court is drawn up according to a standard structural plan, which includes four main blocks:

Introductory. Here the name of the court and information about the parties to the trial are indicated - the plaintiff (victim), defendant (accused), their representatives and, if any, other interested parties.
Descriptive. The main details of the incident are stated - date, place, participants, essence of the conflict and other significant circumstances.
Pleading. It formulates the applicant’s demands, reflecting the purpose of filing the complaint.
Applications. Contains a list of documents and materials on the case.

When appealing against a neighbor’s unlawful actions, the evidence base plays an important role. Without it, the likelihood of a satisfactory outcome of the trial is extremely low; moreover, it may not even take place due to lack of evidence.

As arguments for his appeal, the plaintiff can provide:

photographs;
video recordings;
official protocols, acts and conclusions issued by authorized government agencies and other competent organizations;
witness statements;
receipts and checks reflecting the expenses that the applicant incurred as a result of the offense committed, etc.

A complaint against a neighbor is filed with the district court within the statute of limitations, which is 3 years from the date of the unlawful act.

How to write a complaint against neighbors?

If you had to complain about your neighbors to government authorities, you need to approach this responsibly: failure to comply with certain rules will lead to the fact that the complaint will not be considered and the problem will remain unresolved.

Collection of evidence

Any complaint must be justified. Unfounded accusations not only will not help solve the problem, but may also expose the applicant to liability, including criminal liability for libel. Therefore, it is important to collect evidence of your neighbor's inappropriate behavior. It can be:

photos and videos of the offense. However, it should be borne in mind that the results of secret filming may not be taken into account, since they violate the right to freedom of image of a person. Therefore, you need to shoot openly;
testimony from other neighbors;
photos and videos of damage caused by the actions of a neighbor;
documents confirming the commission of an offense.

Rules for filing a complaint

If there are systematic violations by a neighbor, there is a high probability that several residents were affected by his actions. This makes it possible to create a collective appeal. It will have more significant weight for government agencies when considering.
A complaint against a neighbor must be justified. If the letter indicates the specific circumstances of what happened, when and under what circumstances it happened, how it became known. All evidence must be attached to the application.
The appeal must be written briefly, succinctly and concisely. Many complaints go through government agency employees, and they may simply not be able to read long appeals. For the same reason, it is better to type the text of the complaint than to write it by hand.
The application must not contain insults or profanity, otherwise it may be left without consideration. When writing, it is generally better to do with a dry presentation of facts without emotions.
The appeal should not be anonymous, since government agencies have the right not to consider such appeals.

Taking into account these rules, as well as the norms of the Federal Law of May 2, 2006 No. 59-FZ “On the procedure for considering appeals from citizens of the Russian Federation,” the complaint is drawn up in the following order:

Document header. In the upper right corner of the document, information about the applicant and recipient of the complaint is indicated. The full name of the authority or the full name and position of a specific employee (for example, a district police officer), as well as the full name and contact information of the applicant, are indicated. If a collective complaint is filed against a neighbor, information about each applicant must be provided.
The essence of the appeal. The neighbor’s name, address of his residence, what actions he committed, what evidence is available, whether any harm was caused by unlawful actions. You can cite legal norms or clauses in the rules for using an apartment building that were violated.
The final part should formulate a request to the government agency: to take measures; bring to justice, etc.
A list of application documents is compiled.
All applicants are dated and signed.

Each conflict between neighbors of an apartment building is individual in nature, so there is no universal sample of a complaint against a neighbor. But as an example of registration, you can use our sample complaint against neighbors.

Sample complaint

Sample application

How to file a complaint?

In order for a complaint against a neighbor to government agencies to be considered officially filed, some rules must be followed.

If the application is submitted in person, you need to come to the authority with two copies: one will be handed over to the office, and the second will be marked as received and given back to the applicant. This copy should be kept with you in case you need to contact higher authorities or the court.
By mail, it is best to send your complaint by certified mail, return receipt requested, so that you can track its delivery and receive proof of receipt in the form of a returned notice.
If it is possible to submit a complaint electronically on the official website of a government agency, you need to carefully read the registration rules that are usually written before filling out the application form: the maximum number of characters, acceptable file types for applications, etc.

How to file a claim in court?

It is worth filing a lawsuit against a neighbor only if there are specific material requirements in the form of compensation for harm. Such claims are called property claims and are filed in court at the defendant’s place of residence. If the amount of all claims is less than 50,000 rubles, the claim will be considered by a magistrate. Claims for larger amounts are filed in the district court. Before submitting your application, you must do the following:

Pay the state fee. It is calculated based on the amount of the claim according to the rules of Art. 333.19 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation. A receipt for payment will need to be attached to the claim in court.
Prepare 3 copies of the statement of claim, as well as copies of application documents.
Send a copy of the claim to the defendant by registered mail with return receipt requested. The receipt of delivery must be attached to the claim to the court.
Apply to the court. This can be done in three ways:

come to the court office and hand in the documents in person. Then the secretary will mark your copy as having been received and take away the claim along with all the attachments;
send the claim by registered mail;
use the electronic system of GAS Justice and send documents electronically in PDF format. This will require authorization through the ESIA.

How to correctly write a testimonial from neighbors? Sample

How to measure the noise level from neighbors and prove that the neighbors are noisy?

Collective appeal

In order for the complaint to have more weight, it can be filed collectively. To do this, you need to talk with other residents and ask whether the illegal actions of a common neighbor are causing them any inconvenience. If the applicant has like-minded people in this, they should also be included in the appeal process.

To draw up a collective complaint, it is enough to correctly formulate the general requirements, list in the “header” the appeals of all applicants (full names and addresses), and under the text, at the bottom of the sheet, ask them all to sign.

If there are a lot of people who want to pacify troubled neighbors, it is recommended to exclude information about the applicants from the introductory block and move it down or to the back of the paper, opposite the signatures.

The more signatures a complaint collects, the higher the likelihood that it will be “heard” by the authorities competent to resolve such issues. And an unscrupulous tenant himself can adjust his behavior under public pressure.

The legislative framework

When appealing illegal actions of neighbors, it is important to refer to the current legislation in your demands. The following legal acts will become relevant:

Federal Law “On the Sanitary and Epidemiological Welfare of the Population” dated March 30, 1999 N 52-FZ.
“Code of the Russian Federation on Administrative Offenses” dated December 30, 2001 N 195-FZ.
“Criminal Code of the Russian Federation” dated June 13, 1996 N 63-FZ.
Federal Law “On the procedure for considering appeals from citizens of the Russian Federation” dated May 2, 2006 N 59-FZ.

What to do with violent neighbors who are alcoholics or drug addicts?

Here, of course, peaceful methods of influence will not help, all these conversations and requests to behave as quietly as peas against a wall, many tried to solve the problem in a good way, but unfortunately, as practice shows, such measures lead to nothing. Usually everything ends in a conflict between neighbors, in some situations a whole war breaks out, when the most sophisticated ways are used to teach neighbors a lesson, often leading to assault, but in the end nothing is resolved and decent neighbors continue to suffer, and violent neighbors continue to poison the lives of those around them.

There is an option to call the police to the place and try to solve the problem in this way. Yes, the police will come, record the fact of violation of order, draw up a report and issue a fine to the violent neighbors, and that will be the end of the matter. I have heard many times what people who find themselves in such a situation say, we call the police, they come, draw up a report and leave, and sometimes they don’t come at all. This is an endless process that has no end, no matter how much you call the police, they do nothing except reports and fines. Fines do not frighten such neighbors at all, they don’t care about them, and they are already so accustomed to police visits that they take it for granted.

What to do if your neighbors are constantly making noise and preventing you from living and relaxing in peace?

Many people simply give up, because the situation really looks hopeless. But you can try to solve the problem legally, especially since the current legislation gives us such an opportunity, and now I will tell you about two articles that can help you if you take action.

On the territory of the Russian Federation there is a code of administrative offenses and it contains articles 6.4 and 7.21 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation, which can help us, and if the first helps as a measure of financial impact, then the second is more serious.

If there is unsanitary conditions in the neighbors’ living quarters, then Article 6.4 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation is suitable here, since it provides for a fine for individuals in the amount of 500 to 1000 rubles, the fine of course, to be honest, is extremely small, but if a violation of sanitary and epidemiological requirements is revealed operation of residential premises, then this article is just what you need.

The second article 7.21 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation concerns violation of the rules for the use of residential premises, namely, this concerns damage to residential premises or the use of residential premises for other purposes; it also provides for a fine of 1000 to 1500 rubles. The fine is not large, but if the fact of using residential premises for other purposes or damage to such premises is recorded, then here you can go further and apply more serious sanctions, which I will discuss later.

We all understand that for such neighbors, a greater fine or a smaller fine does not matter, but it is quite possible to evict such neighbors and deprive them of their property rights.

Based on Article 91 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation, it is possible to evict such neighbors if they live in an apartment under a residential lease agreement, because if the tenant or members of his family use the residential premises for other purposes and regularly violate the rights of neighbors, they mismanage the residential premises allowing its destruction and after a written warning the situation has not changed, then such tenants are subject to eviction in court.

If the violent neighbors living are the owners of the residential premises, then, on the basis of Article 293 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, in the case when such owners use the residential premises for other purposes, regularly violating the rights and interests of neighbors, mishandle the residential premises allowing for its destruction, then in such a situation the authority local government must set such owners a reasonable period to eliminate such violations (repair the premises or bring it into a state that complies with sanitary standards). And if the owner does not eliminate the violations, then the local government body simply takes such owner to court and receives a judicial decision on the right to sell such premises at auction and after the sale the owner is paid the proceeds, minus the costs of executing the court decision, including for organizing trades.