Hot and cold water is turned off for several reasons, one of which is debts to pay for utilities. The current situation is such that citizens have more and more reasons to fall into the category of insolvent tenants. Therefore, the question of the powers of public utilities and debtors is relevant.
Do housing and communal services debts affect your credit history?
Debts on payments for housing and utilities can negatively affect the credit history of persistent defaulters, but, according to NBKI Marketing Director Alexei Volkov, this does not always happen. The fact is that first the court must make a decision to collect the debt, and the defendant must not fulfill it within 10 days. And even then, the organization in whose favor the decision was made only receives the right to transmit negative information to the credit history bureau, but it is not at all obligated to do so.
7 ways to improve your credit history
Read on topic
What to do if disabled
If the disconnection was carried out illegally, the debtor has grounds to challenge such measures, then you can appeal the actions of the RSO.
If there are no such grounds, then the debtor is obliged to pay the debt in full or apply for an installment plan. Then you need to contact the RSO management with a payment document and write an application to connect the resource. The service will be restored 2 days after the debt is repaid.
Is it possible to appeal the decision?
You can appeal against illegal actions through supervisory government bodies: State Housing Property Committee, prosecutor's office, court. To do this, you need to draw up a written claim, listing the circumstances under which the violation of rights occurred. Attach documents confirming the residence of children or a disabled person in the apartment, deliver in person, or send by mail. You can also use the official websites of government agencies, online portals of State Services, RosZhKH.
RSO for illegal shutdown will face an administrative penalty - a fine. If the restriction led to moral or material damage, you can include these losses in the amount of the claim and apply for compensation to the court.
What to do if you disabled it by mistake
If the restriction occurred due to an error (for example, the meter was confused with a neighbor’s or the payment did not go through), the reconnection service should be provided free of charge. To do this, you need to contact the management of the RSO with documents confirming the absence of debt (checks, receipts), and write an application for connection.
Can a bank refuse to give a loan due to utility debts?
If it comes to the point that the management company transmits information about debts to the credit history bureau, then such a record will reduce the likelihood of a willful defaulter receiving subsequent loans or significantly worsen the conditions. For example, the bank will offer a higher interest rate or will only approve a small amount. “Banks are paying attention to the lawsuit filed regarding housing and communal services debts. And this may affect the likelihood of issuing a loan,” confirms the founder of the Capital Creators Club, Maxim Kolesnichenko-Denezhnykh.
Extenuating circumstances
In a private home, cold water may not be turned off under a number of circumstances.
Among them:
- the resident’s documented difficult financial situation, due to which he could not pay utility bills on time;
- a confirmed fact of a delay in wages at work for the debtor tenant, which allows you to count on installments;
- a minor or disabled person living with the debtor;
- documented problems the consumer has with employment;
- the debtor has a difficult financial situation due to objective reasons.
A mitigating factor is also the condition of the house in which the debtor lives. If a disconnection could lead the house to a condition unsuitable for normal living, then the management company does not have the right to do this even if there is a large debt.
Can a debtor not be allowed to go abroad?
Yes, due to housing and communal services debt, a trip abroad will be postponed, states lawyer Vladimir Postanyuk. To do this, in accordance with the Law “On Enforcement Proceedings,” the amount of the outstanding debt must exceed 30 thousand rubles and be recorded in the executive document. When enforcement proceedings are initiated, the defaulter is given five days to voluntarily repay the entire amount of the overdue debt. If this is not done, the right to travel abroad will be limited for up to six months.
Restrictions can only apply to the title owners of the premises, that is, those who officially own the real estate, explains lawyer, chairman of the bar association “Burtseva, Agasieva and Partners” Svetlana Burtseva. She also draws attention to the fact that you cannot pay off the debt at the airport or present a payment receipt to customs officers. Migration and customs services act only on the basis of decisions to lift restrictions issued by bailiffs and official notification from them.
Wash the windows and recalculate: 17 ways to save on utilities
Read on topic
The Supreme Court explained the procedure for suspending the provision of utility services to defaulters
On March 5, the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation issued Resolution No. 47-AD19-2 in the case of bringing to administrative responsibility the head of a management company who ordered the installation of a plug in the sewer system of a debtor for utilities.
In July 2021, LLC “Manager” sent a notice to the Orenburg resident about the presence of overdue debt for the maintenance of residential premises in the amount of about 50 thousand rubles. In October of the same year, the debtor's provision of public sewerage services was suspended by installing a plug in the apartment sewage system.
This fact forced the owner of the apartment to contact the prosecutor's office of the Orenburg region. A case of administrative offense was initiated against the head of the Criminal Code in the person of Sergei Bezrukov. Subsequently, the magistrate fined the general director of the company 50 thousand rubles. for committing an administrative offense under Part 2 of Art. 14.1.3 Code of Administrative Offences. The judge's decision survived appeal and cassation.
When making decisions, the courts were guided by the fact that the offender’s guilt was fully proven by the case materials, according to which the sewerage utility service was suspended by the Criminal Code without reason. At the same time, the courts imposed an administrative penalty in the minimum amount provided for by the above article of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation.
The head of the Criminal Code filed a cassation appeal to the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, pointing out the illegal nature of the court decisions made against him, but the judge of the highest court did not find grounds to satisfy it.
With reference to sub. “a” clause 117 of the Rules for the provision of utility services to owners and users of premises in apartment buildings and residential buildings (approved by Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of May 6, 2011 No. 354) The Supreme Court explained that the contractor limits or suspends the provision of utility services, having previously notified this consumer when the latter does not pay in full.
In turn, underpayment of a service by a consumer is understood to mean that he has a debt to pay for 1 utility service, exceeding the sum of two monthly amounts of its payment, calculated on the basis of the standard for its consumption, regardless of the presence/absence of an individual or common (apartment) metering device and the tariff for the corresponding type of communal resource. In this case, there is no agreement on debt repayment between the executor and the consumer-debtor or the latter does not comply with its terms.
The above Rules detail the procedure for introducing restrictive measures against the debtor. Thus, the executor warns the debtor that in case of failure to repay the debt within 20 days from the date of his notification, the utility service may first be limited and then suspended or immediately suspended in the absence of the technical possibility of limiting it. The introduction of restrictive measures against the debtor is possible only if he fails to repay the debt within the period established in the warning.
As the Supreme Court explained, from the case materials it follows that the Criminal Code did not prove the fact of sending the owner of the apartment a notice of debt for the sewerage utility service, since the consumer’s debt for each type of utility service is calculated separately, and a specific (incomplete) payment is subject to limitation or suspension in the event of incomplete payment by the consumer. paid) utility service. At the same time, the Court noted that in the notice sent to the debtor, the company did not reflect the presence or absence of the technical possibility of introducing restrictions on public services. There is no information in the case materials that the volume of supply of a utility resource was temporarily reduced to the consumer. In this regard, the Supreme Court pointed out the inadmissibility of suspending a utility service without going through the stage of its limitation, if there is a technical possibility for the latter.
With reference to the Resolution of the Plenum of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation dated June 27, 2021 No. 22, the Court explained that the mere existence of a debt to pay for a utility service cannot serve as an unconditional basis for its suspension or restriction, which must be proportionate to the violation committed by the tenant (owner) , do not go beyond the limits of actions necessary to suppress it, do not violate the rights and legitimate interests of others and do not create a threat to the life and health of others. These restrictive measures must not violate the established requirements for the suitability of residential premises for permanent residence of citizens.
Taking into account the above, the Court concluded that the management of the apartment building was carried out in violation of licensing requirements, and the controversial utility service was suspended illegally. Due to the actions of the Criminal Code, the sanitary and hygienic living conditions in the apartment and the established requirements for the suitability of residential premises for permanent residence of citizens were violated. Thus, the Supreme Court upheld the judicial acts of the lower authorities.
Moscow AP lawyer Alina Emelyanova noted the relevance of the Supreme Court ruling for judicial practice in disputes related to the provision of housing and communal services. The expert suggested that the document will contribute to the formation of uniform judicial practice and will reduce the number of violations of the law by management companies.
In turn, the project manager of the Bureau of Chartered Attorneys “Freitak and Sons” Viktor Spesivov did not agree with the conclusions of the Court, the ruling of which “makes a depressing impression.”
“The Criminal Code already has few practical levers to combat persistent defaulters of utility services. Judicial practice quite often recognizes the suspension of public services as illegal if procedural aspects are not observed. And in this part (the management company’s failure to indicate the specific amount of the defaulter’s debt for sewerage), the resolution of the RF Armed Forces confirmed the current position,” noted Viktor Spesivov. “Courts often resort to the concept of proportionality between the suspension of public services and the existing debt (although this approach of the courts is overly broad and unfounded).”
The expert noted that, based on the decision of the Supreme Court, any suspension of public services, in fact, violates the established requirements for the suitability of residential premises for permanent residence of citizens. “Consequently, now judicial practice may take the path of closing the last loopholes for the Criminal Code in order to suspend utility services to persistent defaulters, which could lead to aggravation of the already close to catastrophic situation in the housing and communal services sector. And conscientious payers will suffer because of this, who will not receive quality services due to malicious defaulters and the lack of real mechanisms to hold them accountable thanks to such judicial practice,” concluded Viktor Spesivov.
How to avoid?
You can avoid interruption of water supply in a private home by providing evidence to the Criminal Code that timely payment for the service was not possible due to objective reasons.
The debtor tenant can present to the Criminal Code documents proving that he has a difficult financial situation. This could be a document about arrears of wages or a certificate of unemployed status.
You can avoid turning off the cold water supply in your home by presenting a document stating that a minor or a disabled person lives in it.
The consumer-debtor can also provide the Criminal Code with a document about the emergency condition of the house or invite an employee to confirm the fact that the suspension of water supply, like heating, can damage the property, violate the rights of other residents and render the entire house unusable.
Stopping the DHW supply without warning
The country's legal acts provide for turning off hot water supply without first informing residents of a private or apartment building.
Such cases are due to the following factors:
- emergency situations, natural disasters, if what happens threatens the life or health of residents of the house or others;
- the likelihood of such situations arising with further danger to citizens.
The last factor may include an impending accident at the boiler house of the microdistrict.
Turning off hot water is also provided for in other cases, without advance notice to the individual consumer.
The following situations are included in this category:
- unauthorized connection of the client to the water supply pipe;
- communication in the user’s apartment is in an emergency or faulty condition;
- creation of an emergency by the owner of the property;
- requirement of authorized organizations;
- illegal modification by the owner of communication structures.
The latter case includes equipping the bathroom with a heated floor from the hot water supply network.
Other conditions not listed are subject to prior notification to the client before disconnection. If a resource supply company violates regulations, a citizen has the right to appeal to the court.
