Is it possible to smoke near the entrance of a residential building or not? Let's dispel all doubts about this

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Smoking negatively affects the body of the smoker himself and those who inhale nicotine vapor. The Ministry of Health has long warned about this, but the state regulated the issue of protecting the health of citizens from the effects of tobacco smoke with the entry into force of Federal Law No. 15-FZ dated February 23, 2013 . It restricted smokers from spreading tobacco smoke in public places.

Amendments are regularly made to the Law, which lead to more and more citizens choosing to give up their addiction. We will tell you what measures will be applied to violators who smoke in the entrance or on the balcony in 2021.

Is smoking allowed near entrances?

In 2013, Law No. 15-FZ was adopted. It is designed to protect the health of Russians from the effects of tobacco smoke and the consequences of smoking. One of the measures provided for by law is a ban on smoking in certain places. Among them, according to paragraph 10 of Art. 12 of this law covers elevators and common areas inside residential apartment buildings - in particular, halls, staircases, elevators, etc.

However, the law does not establish restrictions on smoking outside of “prohibited areas.” So is it possible to smoke near the house or not? Smokers need to keep in mind:

1. Additional “prohibited zones” can be established at the regional or municipal level (Part 6, Article 12 of this law).
2. Although smoking outdoors is permitted by law, there are certain areas, including those near entrances, where the use of tobacco is expressly prohibited by law.

Specifically, you cannot smoke if the following are located near the entrance:

• playgrounds;
• territories of educational institutions (schools, kindergartens, etc.);
• medical institutions;
• transport stops, etc.

Important! All these restrictions apply specifically to the areas of sites, stops and relevant medical or educational institutions. From the point of view of the law, it is enough not to cross the border of the relevant area and move 15 m away from it - and there will no longer be a violation of the norms.

In addition to the possibility of smoking near the entrance, it is important to think about the question of whether smoking is allowed in the entrance. And it is unlikely that any smoker will receive a positive answer to this question.

Smoking Law | Where is smoking allowed? What is the punishment for smoking?

Punishment in 2021: what is the responsibility and how much will the fine be?

What punishment awaits smokers who do not comply with the requirements of the Law? Article 6.24 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation provides for administrative liability for violating the ban on smoking tobacco in the entrances of residential buildings with a fine of 500 to 1,500 rubles.

Persons over sixteen years of age are subject to administrative liability.

For smokers under this age, a police officer draws up a protocol, which records information about the number of full years, after which the materials are transferred to the PDN inspector, who makes a decision on registering the minor offender.

At what distance can and should you be?

However , there is an opinion that smoking is prohibited in the local area. Supporters of this version rely on the fact that, according to Part 1 of Art. 36 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation and clause 2 of the Rules for the maintenance of common property in an apartment building (approved by Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation dated August 13, 2006 No. 491), the property of the residents in the house also includes the land plot on which the house is located.

If we consider this opinion to be correct, then in order to smoke a resident must move outside the local area, and its boundaries are determined by the norms of land legislation and regulations on urban planning activities. On the ground, these boundaries are not always marked.

Where can you smoke in an apartment building?

For smokers in an apartment building, it remains possible to smoke tobacco only on a personal balcony or loggia or in the apartment itself. In these situations, they will still cause inconvenience to non-smoking citizens, but their circle will be significantly narrowed.

Neighbors who are forced to suffer from tobacco smoke entering their apartments from their balconies are unhappy with this relaxation. In this case, the law determines the boundaries of personal and public space. In particular, the smoker’s balcony is property owned by him, therefore it is impossible to take any measures of influence.

The only option for punishment may be the basis on which the use of open fire on balconies, loggias, in apartments, living rooms of dormitories, and hotel rooms is prohibited. In this case, you should be guided by clause 90 in Decree No. 390 “On the fire regime”.

What to do if neighbors prohibit smoking there?

Tobacco smoking is often the cause of conflicts between neighbors. And although smoking in the open air near the entrance is not prohibited, often residents of the building (especially from apartments on the first and second floors) demand to stop and prohibit the use of tobacco products near the entrance.

What should a smoker do? The options here could be:

1. Submit. This habit is really harmful, including for others.
2. Move 15 meters away. In this case, even by analogy of the law, there can be no claims.
3. Indicate that smoking is not prohibited near this area. However, this method is fraught with further development of the conflict.
4. Require a designated smoking room near the house.

It is necessary to take into account not only the norms of federal legislation. The use of tobacco products may be further limited by local regulations. In addition, if the tenant suffers from asthma or other diseases in which tobacco smoke seriously causes him suffering, he can go to court and seek compensation for moral damages from the smoker.

FAQ

The fight against smoking in hallways is a complex topic that raises many questions.

How to make an effective announcement banning smoking in the entrance?

When composing an advertisement, you can be guided by samples provided on the Internet. They are all different, but the main recommendation is to refer to the relevant law and provide details of the liability if it is broken. It is important not to resort to threats and emotional expression of your own indignation.

It would be advisable to mention that each of the residents of the house (not only the smoker’s neighbors) has the right to contact the police with a complaint about the violation. This will make it clear that the owners’ position on this issue is unanimous and the violators are in the minority.

You should not present information in a joking manner. This will give the impression that the warning is not serious.

Where is smoking allowed?

If residents wish to use the entrance as a smoking room, it is necessary to equip a special room with ventilation. This requires a coordinated decision between homeowners. It is adopted at a general meeting, which must be attended by more than 50% of the owners. The decision must be documented, i.e. included in the minutes of the meeting.

Only if this solution is available can the appropriate premises be equipped. It must be equipped in accordance with fire and sanitary safety standards.

Necessary conditions for special places

If the residents of the house decide to organize a smoking area near the entrance, it must meet the following requirements:

• Be marked with a special sign or the inscription “Smoking area”.
• Have ashtrays.
• Have artificial lighting for dark times.
• Do not violate sanitary legislation regarding maximum permissible concentrations of smoke and other combustion products in the air, as well as fire regulations.

In addition to outdoor smoking areas, it is permissible to arrange smoking rooms inside the residential building itself. However, they must be additionally equipped with:

1. A tightly closing door or other device that prevents the spread of smoke.
2. Forced supply and exhaust ventilation, which ensures air mixing and removal of contaminants to the outside.
3. Fire extinguishers.

Important! The allocation of smoking areas near entrances should be carried out on the basis of a decision of the general meeting of owners or the management company, if the owners have given it such a right. It is unacceptable to organize a “smoking room” on your own.

Where to complain

The authorized bodies that can impose penalties and regulate legal relations between neighbors regarding smoking are the district police officer and the state housing inspectorate.

These authorities must be contacted with a written complaint, which is presented in free form and can be sent by mail or by personal appearance at the authority.

The procedure for considering complaints in this situation is regulated by the Federal Law “On the Police” and the Federal Law “On the Procedure for Considering Citizens’ Appeals in the Russian Federation.”

Is it possible to reach an agreement peacefully?

A peaceful method of resolving possible disputes is the most preferable. In order to prevent other people from suffering from smoking, it is recommended to provide designated smoking areas. This option is permitted by law.

For this purpose, a special area can be equipped at the entrance, in which there must be ventilation equipment that sucks in tobacco smoke.

It is in this situation that smokers and their neighbors will be comfortable, who will be completely protected from smoke.

Thus, smoking in one’s living quarters is permitted, the main thing is that the rights and legitimate interests of third parties are not harmed or violated. If a conflict arises, you can try to resolve the issue peacefully or contact government authorities with a corresponding complaint.

Who can issue a fine?

The protection of public order in Russia is entirely entrusted to the police . There is no other organization dealing with this issue. The fine is imposed by police officers, including the local police officer, if the neighbor is an individual and violates the law “On protecting the health of citizens from the effects of environmental tobacco smoke and the consequences of tobacco consumption.”

You can write a statement to the fire department after collecting evidence - photographs of half-smoked cigarettes on the staircase, ashtrays that appeared spontaneously. In this case, firefighters can also issue a fine to the smoker, but this happens extremely rarely.

What to do if there is a cafe, office or hostel at the entrance, whose visitors regularly go out to the stairwell for a smoke break? In this case, you can contact not only the police, but also Rospotrebnadzor or fire services , since in this case the violator is a legal entity.

The fine for the owner of the establishment will be significantly higher, up to 100 thousand rubles. The violator can also be fined, and in this case it will be easier to call the police, since the district police officer is most often reluctant to respond to internal conflicts between neighbors.

How to bring to administrative responsibility?

To begin with, post appropriate notices on the entrance doors warning about the ban on smoking . Be sure to notify about the amount of the fine.

Talk to the violators, explaining to them that smoking in the entrance has been prohibited since 2013. If conversations do not help, act within the law.

1. Take a photo or video of the smoker. Many entrances now have CCTV cameras; to obtain materials from them, you can contact the housing and communal services department. Write a statement to the police, attaching the footage.
2. Involve non-smoking neighbors in resolving the conflict - there are probably people in the entrance who have small children, and they are not ready to put up with the situation of passive smoking.
3. If the law is regularly violated by guests of a mini-hotel or office located in the entrance, you can simultaneously send a collective statement to Rospotrebnadzor, the police and the fire department of the Ministry of Emergency Situations. In this case, the amount of fines from all organizations to a legal entity can be so impressive that the violators will probably think about whether it is worth bothering their neighbors in the future.
4. As a last resort, if neighbors chronically violate the rules of living in an apartment building, you can file a statement of claim in court, preferably signed by several people living in the entrance. The court may recognize the fact of harm to your health and issue the smoker a fine that is several times higher than the norms established by law.

Thus, in the Russian Federation, no one has the right to deprive residents of apartment buildings of clean air by involving everyone living in the entrance, including children, in passive smoking. Using Federal Law No. 15, it is possible and necessary to fight against violators using all available legal means, including verbally communicating to smokers information about whether smoking is allowed in the entrance.

Consequences of non-payment

What to do if your smoker neighbor did not respond to a fine? Article 20.25 of the Code of Administrative Offenses provides for certain sanctions for evading administrative punishment. Failure to pay a fine on time, including for smoking in public places, entails the imposition of a second fine, most often double the amount.

If this does not help, the violator may be arrested for up to 15 days or assigned community service . In addition, having an unpaid fine, the violator will not be able to cross the border of the Russian Federation and go on vacation or a business trip outside of Russia.

Is it possible to smoke a hookah near the entrance

Based on this provision, anyone living in the house has the right to fight for the implementation of the law. According to the law, in order to safely smoke near the entrances, there must be a specially equipped smoking room and there must be permission from the residents of the house. Each resident of the house, outraged by the constant smoking near the entrance, can bring the fight for clean air to the imposition of penalties on the violator. To do this, you just need to arm yourself with a video and photo confirming the smoking process and write a complaint to:

• Fire Supervision Service;
• Housing Management Company;
• local police department to your local police officer;
• sanitary and epidemiological control authorities.

And the actions of indignant non-smoking citizens are quite understandable and explainable.

What if the smoke bothers the neighbors? Today, in 2021, lawyers recommend not waiting for conflicts and penalties and resolving issues peacefully. In addition to Law No. 15-FZ, there are the Housing Code of the Russian Federation, the Code of the Russian Federation on Administrative Offences, Rules for the provision of public services to citizens and many other acts of protecting law and order.

Article 9, paragraph 4 of Law No. 15-FZ states that citizens have the right to exercise public control over the implementation of measures aimed at protecting public health. Therefore, each of the citizens who is indignant at the presence of smoke, the smoky conditions of the premises in the entrance, the huge number of bulls under the windows and near the entrances, will be right in their own way. Anti-tobacco actions" in other countries Ukraine - a year earlier than in Russia A year earlier than in Russia, a law making smoking unacceptable in public places came into force in Ukraine. The next stage - bill No. 2820 was officially registered in May 2015, and new, stricter rules will have to be in effect starting in 2017. Since the law on adjacent territories is also ambiguous, as in Russia, how to deal with smokers near entrances has not yet been determined. Moreover, the inspectorate for the protection of consumer rights has been appointed as authorized representatives to carry out control. Experience in protecting public health in Kazakhstan The law banning advertising of tobacco products was issued in Kazakhstan back in December 2003. The Code “On People’s Health and the Health Care System” came into force in October 2009.

Is it possible to smoke in the yard

If the citizen is unemployed, then even through the court and with the help of bailiffs it is not possible to recover the required amount. In this case, other sanctions may be applied to defaulters, which are represented by seizure of accounts, a ban on traveling abroad, as well as seizure and confiscation of property, and the money received from this process is used to pay off fines.

Rules for the implementation of punishment Often people are faced with the fact that their neighbors in the house or entrance constantly smoke in the wrong places, which leads to the fact that they have to regularly breathe in tobacco smoke. Usually, persuasion and requests do not in any way influence the violators, so we have to use other methods to bring them to justice.