Calling a plumber to your home from the housing office in 2021: where to call, price

Do I need to pay for calling an electrician or plumber if the apartment owner already pays monthly fees?

Image source: Lori Photobank

As a rule, conflicts with the homeowners association or management company arise among the residents of the house due to unreasonably high monthly payments, in the opinion of the owners. In addition, residents often wonder whether they should pay for an electrician or plumber to perform minor repairs. What if we are talking about additional services - for example, replacing demagnetized entry cards, repairing intercoms in an apartment or locks in mailboxes? Do I need to pay in these cases, and is there any alternative? We asked our experts these questions.

What is included in the list of free services of the management company

The functions of the management company assume that the services provided are aimed at emergency repair of breakdowns or scheduled maintenance. Thus, calling a plumber to your home from the housing office (now the management office) is completely free:

for maintenance of communications;
to carry out repair work in the event of an accident involving elements of heating, sewerage, and water supply systems.

Accordingly, no actions to repair or replace pipes, batteries, meters, plumbing are included in this list.

Payment for work

The cost of utilities in apartments depends on several factors. The following are taken into account:

type of home;
total area;
number of registered people;
indicators taken from meters;
features of the agreements reflected in the agreement between the owner and the management company.

If the owner pays in good faith for the provided housing and communal services, then an emergency call to a plumber can be made free of charge. Usually, if a pipe bursts or the sewer is clogged, then such problems with plumbing equipment cannot be put on hold. The assistance of such a specialist is especially important in the event of an accident at night.

Do I need to pay for the call?

In fact, there are no free services in the public utilities sector . Each call or minor repair is paid by the homeowner through membership fees on the corresponding line in the receipt. The list of services included in the maintenance of housing is regulated by the Housing Code in Article 154. You need to pay for the services provided by the plumber, if they are included in the paid list, and not for calling him. More information about the responsibilities of housing and communal services for the maintenance and repair of housing can be found here.

The list of services and the amount of payment is determined by a meeting of HOA members. This explains the difference in tariffs for minor repairs. In one case, it may be established that the services of a plumber are paid “on the spot”, in another - that the fee for simple work of such a plumber is included in the monthly payment.

Free and paid services

The answer to this question comes from the following regulatory documents:

Article 36 of the Housing Code;
Government Decree of August 13, 2006 No. 491 (as amended on March 26, 2014).

They regulate the issue of ownership of communications and responsibility for them, as well as the list of property for the maintenance of which management companies are responsible.

At the expense of management companies (management companies), repairs of common house equipment are carried out, even if part of it is located in a privatized apartment.

The following objects are repaired free of charge:

common house pipes with hot and cold water (risers) and their branches to the first connection point with the outlet pipeline;
common house heating pipes up to the first point of connection with the owner’s heating pipes;
common house drainage systems and their branches up to the first connection point.

The following services are provided free of charge in the owner’s apartment:

replacing leaky gaskets;
elimination of obstruction of pipes if it was formed through no fault of the owner;
eliminating leaks;
replacement of leaky flexible pipes at plumbing connections;
adjustment of the flush tank;
eliminating pipe leaks due to wear and tear;
repair and replacement of used heating batteries;
purging radiators during the heating season in order to prevent them from becoming airborne;
services for replacing plumbing fixtures if their service life has not expired.

Example: A faucet that has reached the end of its service life must be replaced free of charge.

The list of paid services covers all types of work that can be carried out with equipment belonging to a specific owner:

repair and replacement of sinks, faucets, bathtubs, taps, toilets, water heaters and other fittings whose service life has not expired, but is carried out at the whim of the owner;
covering risers;
connecting a washing machine;
replacement of working batteries and pipes;
clearing a blockage caused by the homeowner.

The updated list should be found in the list of paid services of your management company. Such price lists must be placed in a visible place for the attention of consumers.

ATTENTION: plumber's services are paid for using a receipt for payment through a bank, and not into the hands of a specialist. Also, such a receipt (work order) for paid services can be issued immediately upon acceptance of the application by the Criminal Code.

We talked about free housing and communal services in this article.

Call a plumber

Depending on the nature of the problem, a specialist may come from a management company, a homeowners association, or a private company that carries out urgent plumbing work. The process of calling a plumber at your place of residence, including free of charge, depends on the rules established by each company.

From the management company

In the event of a breakdown of common house equipment or an accident, the company must independently carry out the necessary repair work to restore the system. Plumbing problems in the apartment are eliminated after contacting the management company and reviewing the application. At night, on weekends and on holidays, the company usually has plumbers on duty.

If the work is included in the free list, then the call must be made without the requirement to pay a fee before or after the service is provided. However, in any other case, you can call a plumber from the management company, but he will take money for his work.

What exceptions to the rule are there?

If you replace a standard heated towel rail, which was installed during the construction of the house, without agreeing with the DUK, you may be denied free repairs. She has the right to draw up an act stating that unapproved changes have been made to the hot water supply system and may not provide you with free service. You may even be forced to bring everything back to design condition.

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Some houses have heated towel rails that are not built into the water supply system, but connected to it. They can be turned off and the circulation of hot water in the house will not be disrupted. In such a situation, the management company is responsible for repairing the equipment up to the first locking device. For example, if a leak on a heated towel rail occurs on the thread up to the tap, DUK will fix it for free. If the leak is elsewhere, the homeowner will have to pay to have it fixed.

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Paid locksmith services

The service agreement contains information about additional services provided only for a fee. This usually involves repairing the tenant’s property inside the apartment:

radiators;
plumbing;
gas and electric water heaters.

The management company draws up a price list with prices for the services provided. And residents have the right to review the document either by telephone, or in person, in the office, or when submitting an application. At the time of settlement, the customer is given a check or receipt for payment. If the repair turns out to be of poor quality, the payment document will be the basis for applying for a refund for the service rendered in bad faith.

Job description of plumbing mechanic

General provisions

Terms:
plumber (hereinafter referred to as Specialist) is a specialist with specialized secondary education and work experience (...) years.
This instruction establishes the job duties, rights and responsibilities of the Enterprise Specialist (name of the institution).
Appointment to the position of plumber and dismissal from it is carried out on the basis of an order from the manager (full name, document number).
The specialist reports to (position, full name).
Qualification requirements. The specialist should know:
device and methods for repairing parts of SSTO made of steel and polymer pipes;
types and purpose of sanitary materials, tools and equipment, their rules of application and operation;
methods of drilling and punching holes;
rules for testing equipment and fittings, as well as methods for identifying defective areas and their subsequent elimination;
rules for the operation and installation of sanitary and heating appliances, as well as methods for preparing and testing boilers, boilers, air heaters and pumps;
methods for marking installation sites for devices and fasteners.

Responsibilities

In the event of breakdowns and malfunctions in the operation of the systems entrusted to him, the plumber is obliged to promptly carry out their repair, adjustment, installation, adjustment and testing. Depending on the situation, he is obliged to take the following actions:
install and seal fasteners for pipelines and devices;
fasten parts and devices;
group and install radiators at the repair site;
control and carry out transportation of pipeline parts, sanitary fixtures and related cargo;
sort pipes, fittings, fastenings and fittings;
prepare plumbing tow, the necessary solutions and auxiliary materials;
disassemble, repair and assemble parts and components of the equipment;
identify defective areas when testing the CTTO and replace them;
drill or punch holes in structures;
mark the installation locations of control and measuring instruments;
equip pipes and fittings of risers, bolts with nuts, pipes with couplings and locknuts.
The plumber is obliged to:
Ensure proper trouble-free operation of the equipment entrusted to him, their correct operation and timely high-quality repairs.
Study the operating conditions of the equipment in order to minimize their wear and costs on materials.
Carry out tests of the technical equipment after each repair, as well as an audit of tools, materials and equipment.
Prepare the equipment entrusted to him for commissioning.
Participate in the development of measures to identify the causes of premature wear of equipment, its prevention, elimination and improvement of their reliability.
When executing requests from the public, act in accordance with the established List (name of the document), issue receipts according to the Price List.
Comply with the internal regulations of the institution.
Comply with safety and fire safety regulations, which is noted in the Journal (name, no.).
Comply with the rules and regulations governing the operation of the enterprise.
Providing timely reports on your activities, identified and corrected shortcomings of the operational management system, as well as proposals for optimizing your activities and the activities of subordinate employees.

Rights

The specialist has the right to:

issuing instructions, tasks and instructions to subordinates if they relate to his job responsibilities;
contacting the management of the enterprise on operational issues provided for in this instruction, and timely receiving complete information from it;
requesting and receiving necessary materials and documents related to his work issues;
involving employees of related departments in solving the tasks assigned to him with the permission of the manager.

Read other useful articles from our experts about housing and communal services. Find out about the calculation of rent and other payments, what MKD and concession are, as well as job descriptions of the foreman, chief engineer and emergency dispatcher.

Responsibility

The specialist is responsible in the following cases:

For improper performance or failure to fulfill the duties provided for in this job description - within the limits determined by the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.
For causing material damage - within the limits determined by the Civil Code of the Russian Federation and the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.
For offenses committed in the course of their activities - within the limits determined by the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation and the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

As can be seen from the regulatory document, the plumber himself is a forced person. If residents are required to pay for the provision of free services, or the quality and timing of services do not fit into the norms, or the management company simply does not want to provide them, then the interests of the owners will be protected by the Law “On the Protection of Consumer Rights” and Art. 310 Civil Code of the Russian Federation.

In order to exercise their rights, the owner must:

submit a claim to the Criminal Code in writing;
send a complaint to the State Housing Inspectorate;
file a claim.

After this, the injured apartment owner can recover monetary compensation from the management company equal to half the amount of the fine awarded to her.

If asked to pay

We asked participants in the real estate market to answer the question, where can you complain if we are talking about things that have already been paid through monthly installments, but the called master or dispatcher still demands to pay? If there is no monthly fee for services, that is, they are conditionally “paid” and there is some kind of price list for them, then can homeowners disagree with this price list and make adjustments to it?

“There is a price list for the list of paid services, which is usually posted on the HOA website or on stands,” says Svetlana Matveeva (MIEL-Network of Real Estate Offices). – That is, it must be freely available and brought to the attention of the residents of the house. If some services are included in the membership fee, for example, payment for the work of a plumber, and the called master or dispatcher demands an additional payment for them, then you must write an application addressed to the chairman of the HOA. If apartment owners do not agree with the price list, they can discuss this issue at a general meeting.”

Examples when management specialists were obliged to remove blockages, but did not do so

Below are a few examples of the management company’s disregard for the problems of clients submitting applications on a first-come, first-served basis:

The toilet is clogged. The man independently found out that it was the toilet that was clogged, contacted the Criminal Code, and left a statement asking for the blockages to be cleared as soon as possible. The application was accepted and told to expect a plumber in 2 days. No one showed up on time, and attempts to clarify the reasons for unprofessional behavior failed. As a result, the person decided to speed up the process and turned to RICO. The problem was solved within two hours.
The riser is clogged. The RICO craftsmen changed the internal wiring (installed hidden communications), everything was beautifully designed, and the satisfied customer accepted the job. But during commissioning (when opening the water supply valves), a lack of pressure was discovered. A subsequent inspection revealed problems with the riser capacity. The client decided to call a representative of the management company (for free, after all), and the result of the call surprised him. The plumber who arrived refused to remove the blockage and suggested turning to “those people who changed the pipes,” they say, it was their job. With the hint “always ready to help for a modest payment.” As a result, the customer, together with a representative of RICO, went to the management company’s office, wrote a complaint, and three days later got a visit from a new technician. But not to remove the blockage, but to completely replace the riser pipes.

The conclusion is simple. Workers of the management company can and should be involved in removing blockages in Khabarovsk, but on the condition that the riser or an adjacent fragment of pipes is clogged. In other situations, it is better to immediately call RICO. This approach will help save nerves and time.