How can the culprit appeal the assessment of an apartment flooding expert?

Reasons for apartment flooding

There are several reasons why apartments usually flood. They are divided depending on the specific culprit:

Neighbors' fault	Wine REU or Criminal Code (Article 161 of the RF Housing Code)
Burst of water or gas supply pipe	Roof leakage (relevant during periods of rain or melting snow)
The owner forgot to turn off the tap in the bathroom or kitchen	Pipe rupture in interfloor ceilings. Water may be leaking from your neighbors, but it's actually not their fault.
Breakdown of household appliances (e.g. washing machine)	Water hammer. Occurs due to pressure failure in pipes

According to paragraph 1 of Art. 1064 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, the culprit is obliged to fully compensate for the damage caused to the victim’s property. The latter has the right to claim an amount in excess of compensation for damaged property to compensate for moral damage, but only in court.

How is an independent examination carried out?

At the initial stage, after detecting a flood, the victim calls a technician from the REU, who will search for the source of the leak and fix it. If the neighbor from above is flooding, but he is not at home, the common riser is blocked, and the REU is looking for the owner of the property.

The victim's further actions look like this:

He calls a specialist from the management company to draw up a flood report. In most cases, a telephone call is sufficient, but if the company does not send it within 1-2 days, it is recommended to send a written request by registered mail with return receipt requested, or bring it in person and ask for an acceptance mark on one copy.
After receiving the flooding certificate, an independent examination is carried out, based on the results of which a conclusion is issued.

The conclusion usually contains the following information:

View	What is included
Cost of work	The average market cost for wallpapering, painting, flooring and other types of repair work is taken into account
Price of finishing materials	It is calculated based on average indicators, taking into account the condition of the apartment before flooding. If it has undergone ordinary repairs, you will not be able to claim money as for European-quality finishing.
Other expenses	This includes sanitizing the premises, dismantling, etc.

Based on the assessment results, the specialist issues a conclusion, which will indicate two amounts: with or without wear and tear. The victim can independently contact the culprit with a document and ask him to pay the money voluntarily. If both amounts do not suit the parties, an average value can be found by agreement.

Automotive technical examination is a study of the causes and circumstances of road traffic accidents (RTA), a study of the technical condition of vehicles, individual components, assemblies, parts by a specialist expert with special knowledge and experience in this field.

Automotive commodity examination is a study of vehicles in order to establish the market value, estimate the residual value, the amount of loss of marketable value of vehicles, as well as the amount of damage caused to them as a result of an accident.

Biological examination is the study of various objects of plant and animal origin (blood, hair, excretions of humans and animals), their species (origin from an animal or a person) and group affiliation, and identification of a person using DNA analysis.

Accounting examination is a study of accounting records and reporting in order to identify the presence or absence of distortions or any errors, determine the cause of formation and other factors influencing the occurrence of errors (distortions).

Land management examination is a study of a land plot by a specialist (expert) who has special knowledge in the field of land management, cadastral activities, and the formation of land plots. The need for this independent examination arises when challenging the boundaries of a site, land division, or the legality of buildings located on the site.

Art criticism is an expert study of objects (products, objects, texts) in order to determine the historical, artistic or cultural value, time and place of their creation, authenticity and affiliation with a specific author.

Computer technical expertise is an engineering and technical study of the state of hardware (for example, system units of personal computers) and components, information media (hard drives, floppy disks, etc.), software, search for hidden information, reconstruction of information, research of all kinds programs and databases.

Linguistic examination is the study of text, both oral and written, mainly for the purpose of determining the truth (falsity) of words and phrases as offensive, extremist, defaming honor and dignity.

Fire-technical examination is a study of the causes of the fire, the source of the fire, the conditions of occurrence, the nature of the fire and its consequences, including the establishment of material damage caused by the fire.

Portrait examination is a study conducted with the aim of identifying a person’s personality based on external features recorded on various objective images.

Handwriting examination is a study of handwriting in order to identify the artist of a signature, manuscript, short note, etc.

Psychological examination is the study of non-pathological phenomena of the human psyche in order to determine the influence of the characteristics of his mental state on behavior at the time being studied, including determining the state of affect.

Construction and technical expertise is the study of construction projects, as well as territories functionally related to these objects. This independent examination is necessary when controversial issues arise between the customer and the contractor in assessing the quality and actual volumes of construction or repairs, to assess damage in the event of a fire, flooding of a property, etc., when inspecting buildings and structures, including utility networks and communications in order to determine their technical condition.

Technical examination of documents - examination of details and materials of documents in order to establish the method of production (falsification) of a given document (passport, agreement, money, etc.), the use of printing devices, examination of document materials, restoration of the contents of damaged documents.

Commodity examination is the study of consumer and industrial goods, including for the purpose of evaluating them. It is most often carried out when resolving disputes between the buyer and seller regarding issues of inadequate quality of goods.

Trace examination is the study of various traces left at the scene of an accident (road accident) or crime. Traceological examination can establish the mechanism of formation of traces and determine the object that left the traces under study. To determine the involvement of a specific vehicle (including its damage) in an accident, a transport and trace examination is carried out.

Phonoscopic and videoscopic examinations are the study of phonograms and video recordings in order to establish the identity of the speaker from recorded oral speech, from video images, to identify signs of the use of editing, and so on.

Phototechnical examination is the study of photographic materials, as well as photographs and the technical means that were used to make them. This examination makes it possible to identify objects depicted in photographic images and determine whether retouching or editing was applied to photographic images.

You can conduct a professional independent examination in St. Petersburg LES LENEXP at the address: St. Petersburg, st. Komsomol, 41, office 219. Contact us if you need results! Our examinations and assessments are accepted by all courts of the Russian Federation (including the Arbitration Court of St. Petersburg and the Leningrad Region).

How to challenge an assessment

If the culprit and the victim failed to reach a consensus, the latter goes to court demanding full compensation for losses (Article 15 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation). In addition to the claim, he encloses an expert opinion and a flooding certificate. Based on these documents, the judge makes a decision on the amount of compensation.

If you disagree with the decision, the culprit can appeal it through the appeal procedure. To do this you need to do the following:

Arrange with your neighbor to have his apartment inspected by another expert.
Contact another independent expert and get an opinion.
If the victim does not allow his apartment to be inspected, a conclusion is drawn up on the basis of a flooding report, which indicates the degree of wear and tear of the repair and describes all damaged items.
Submit an appeal to the court, attaching a copy of the expert report, which will indicate a lesser amount of damage.

In addition to court, disagreements can be resolved peacefully. For this purpose, a re-examination is also carried out by another company and, if the victim agrees with its conclusion, the culprit pays the amount and keeps all receipts. It is advisable to take a receipt confirming that there are no claims.

“After receiving a claim with a calculation of all repair costs, the district court must decide whether there was a flood or not. This is done by checking the act from the Criminal Code. If there are doubts regarding the increased amount of damage, the court appoints an expert examination on its part. Based on this, a decision is made.”

Supreme Court of the Russian Federation.

Example No. 1. Appealing a court decision on flooding

Baranov V.V. Upon returning home, he discovered that the corridor of his apartment was completely flooded due to the fault of his upstairs neighbor, A.K. Ryzhkov. The wallpaper, laminate flooring, hallway and table were damaged. He contacted an expert bureau; according to the results of the examination, Ryzhkov had to compensate for damage in the amount of 500,000 rubles. The culprit did not agree with this and refused to pay the money. Then Baranov V.V. filed a lawsuit in the district court to recover funds forcibly. The court in its decision obliged Ryzhkov A.K. pay the full amount.

After this, the culprit filed an appeal to the regional court, having previously conducted an independent examination in another company. According to the results, the amount of damage was reduced to 300,000 rubles.

How to invalidate the bay act

Invalidity of the Apartment Bay Act

OFTEN, THE culprit of the flood or the INJURED PARTY, for one reason or another, is not satisfied with the Act on the flood of the apartment. In this case, the interested person may try to cancel this document, pointing out in court that it is inadmissible or unreliable.

Is it possible to challenge the act of flooding an apartment?

AN APARTMENT OCCUPATION ACT is a document that does not have a single established form, therefore, when drawing it up, one should rely on established practice and generally accepted models. The appeal procedure is not established by law, which makes filing appeals to courts and other authorities a pointless exercise.

Formally, it is impossible to recognize the act of flooding as invalid: if such claims are filed, the courts make a negative decision, indicating that this document does not give rise to rights and obligations, but only states the fact of flooding.

But an interested person can contact the Management Company with a request to draw up a repeat act, this time in accordance with all the rules.

If the dispute is resolved in court, then the interested person can take a different route, namely, object to the claim and contribute to the exclusion of the Act from the list of evidence in a civil case.
And the expert’s conclusion submitted to the case can be questioned by ordering the preparation of a review of this document, which should show the presence of violations in its preparation.

The reasons for this may be the following:

WHEN DRAFTING THE ACT ON THE BAY, THE APARTMENTS WERE NOT INVITED

the culprit of the incident. In this case, the guilty party is deprived of the opportunity to see with his own eyes the scale of the damage and compare it with what is stated in the report. In addition, the defendant cannot add his comments to the Act, which indicates a clear “bias” in favor of the victim.

If the culprit of the spill was notified of the inspection, but ignored it, this cannot serve as a basis for canceling the Act.

IMPROPER DRAFTING OF THE INSPECTION ACT, its execution with gross violations of the requirements of the law (or rather, the conclusions that real practice has drawn from it), as well as the position of the Supreme Court on disputes regarding domestic flooding or due to the fault of the Capital Repair Fund in the event of a leak from the roof of the building.

The most common mistakes are:

absence or error in the address of the affected housing;
lack of indications in the report on the date and time of flooding;
insufficiently detailed description of the list of damages;
incomplete description of the damaged furniture, equipment or goods;
absence of signatures of commission members, seal of the Managing Organization, etc.

DRAFTING AN INSPECTION REPORT BY UNAUTHORIZED PERSONS. As is known, a representative of the operating organization, neighbor-witnesses, the victim and the alleged culprit of the accident take part in the preparation of the document. It is advisable to have independent witnesses, a lawyer or a bay expert present at the inspection.

Who signs the Apartment Bay Act? The same persons mentioned above. However, the reliability of the Act is questioned if, for example, the representative of the HOA or management company did not have the authority to sign such documents, or the Act does not indicate all the owners of the affected premises or apartment from which the flood occurred.

If the composition of the commission is not indicated or it is impossible to determine who and what status is in relation to the damaged housing, then in court the opponent may file a petition to exclude such an Act from the evidence in the case.

THE INSPECTION ACT WAS DONE IN ABSTRACT, without actually going to the site and inspecting the residential premises. This is the most compelling reason to challenge the Apartment Bay Act. Judicial practice knows dozens of cases involving real bays with large property damage that were lost for this reason, and an appeal will not help here.

Don’t put your budget at risk - only agree to a real study by the Management Company of the causes and consequences of the flood, or better yet, immediately call a lawyer you know.

THE ACT CONTAINS CORRECTIONS, erasures, etc. - any text that differs in the method of application, style or handwriting from the main text. In other words, you should not make edits to a printed document by hand, just as you should not experiment with handwritten ones. Any correction must be signed by all members of the commission.

An act written by hand, the content of the text in which will differ more from the opponent’s copy, will be clearly recognized as falsified.

A COPY OF THE ACT ON THE BAY OF THE RESIDENTIAL PREMISES WAS SUBMITTED TO THE COURT. In this case, the party that provided the copy does not have the original document. The fact is that procedural legislation places special requirements on evidence - it must be presented in the form of originals or duly certified copies.

It should be taken into account that a copy of the document issued by the Management Company (or HOA), certified by the signature of an official and the seal of the organization, has the force of an original document.

The procedure for invalidating the act of baying

SO, WHEN A CLAIM FOR LOCKING OF AN APARTMENT is brought to court, the plaintiff or defendant must file a corresponding petition in the process in order to exclude the Inspection Report from the list of evidence for a fair consideration of the case. How to do this correctly in a trial?

As always, there are several options:

1) The plaintiff or defendant in legal proceedings may draw the judge’s attention to the fact that the Act, for one reason or another, is unacceptable (unreliable) evidence. A citizen has the right to present evidence refuting the facts stated in the act.

If the party’s arguments convince the judge, he will not take into account the illegal inspection act: this document will not be considered as evidence. If, despite all the arguments, the court bases its decision on the Inspection Report, the plaintiff or defendant can file an appeal to a higher authority within 30 days from the date of the unjust decision.

It should be noted that the judge evaluates the evidence (including the Act) according to his inner conviction.
Therefore, it is impossible to predict in advance how certain errors made when drawing up the Act will affect the judge’s opinion.
At the same time, the court’s doubts will not be voiced to the parties; during the trial it may even seem that the document was accepted without comments or rejected as unreliable.
For this reason, the interested party should carefully consider its position and select compelling arguments to justify it.
A professional Bay Area lawyer can help in solving this problem.

2) The plaintiff or defendant has the right to file a petition to exclude the Act from the case materials. This possibility follows from Art. 35 of the Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federation, which gives the parties the right to apply to the court with any petitions. In addition, if a party believes that the Act is false or falsified, it must make a corresponding statement about this.

It is worth noting that a statement about falsification of evidence “does not work” without a statement about an examination of authenticity.
Therefore, if you decide to report a forgery, prepare a request for an examination, as well as money for its conduct.
But in the case of compensation for damage under insurance, the insurer may unilaterally refuse to pay, suspecting falsification of the report.

Here is an example of a successful exclusion of the act of flooding an apartment from the list of evidence:

The man filed a claim with the Preobrazhensky District Court of Moscow to recover the amount of damage caused by the flooding of his apartment by his neighbors.
The inspection report served as one of the evidence in the case.
The defendant drew the court's attention to the fact that the document was drawn up without his participation, the reasons for the leak were not stated in the Report, and a specialist from the Management Company, who allegedly participated in the inspection, was not even in the apartment.
In addition, it turned out that the specified specialist did not have the authority to draw up such Acts.
Taking these circumstances into account, the court considered the inspection report unreliable evidence and did not take it into account when making a decision.
The defendant managed to win the trial, proving that he had nothing to do with the leak - at least according to the documents!

Summarizing the above, let's focus on the most important points:

In the literal sense of the word, an “appeal” against the act of flooding an apartment is not filed, since this document does not give rise to rights and obligations, but only states the fact of the incident; it is the task of the court to establish guilt.
When an act is drawn up with violations, the interested party can report this to the court. If the judge finds that evidence is inadmissible or unreliable, he will not take it into account when making a decision.
An interested party may also petition to exclude the act from the materials of the civil case, citing gross violations in its preparation, as well as if the plaintiff does not have the original document.
The defendant has the right to declare falsification (forgery) of the Gulf Act, and at the same time, an appropriate examination will be required, with payment at the expense of the party that ultimately loses the trial.

on ““How to invalidate the bay act””

Marlene:
10/28/2020 at 07:41
When drawing up the flood report, it was signed by the tenants. Is such an act considered illegal?
Read also: Free land from the state: a myth or a gift of fate?
Answer
Armen:
10/28/2020 at 07:48
Is the management organization obliged to draw up a repeated act on the bay?
Answer
Vladimir:
01/06/2021 at 01:45
If the act for flooding an apartment was drawn up illegally with an excess of the flooded area, and in addition, the defendants were not present at the time the act was drawn up, and the appraisal examination carried out its study on this act, and the defendants do not recognize either the act, which they did not sign, or the examination with significant inflated damage figures . What needs to be done for this? In addition, the flooding was not the fault of the defendants, since the boiler room mechanic, when he turned on the system, knew that the battery was being replaced. But he justifies himself by the fact that he carried out the master’s order. Who is to blame for this if the locksmith was warned?
Answer
Galina:
01/14/2021 at 01:28
The act of the flood was drawn up with a violation: the act indicated one person to the commission, the time and date were not indicated, the place was not indicated, and the reason for the flood was not stamped on the act. The culprit of the flood was not present (in the act there is a record of yellow dried spots on the walls, yellow dried spots on the ceiling) can such act to be valid in court?
Answer
Alexander:
02/12/2021 at 09:56
In the plumbing closet located in the corridor of the 13th floor, due to damage to the last shut-off device, the ball valve, the neighbors' apartment on the lower floor was broken into. The act was signed 3 days later only by the chairman of the HOA, the locksmith and the concierge and the owner of the apartment. underlying. The defendant was not notified of the drawing up of the act and did not sign it. The crane belongs to the general equipment of the house (clause 5 of Rules 491), but the court awarded the defendant, and not the HOA, compensation for damages - the insurance company, which filed a claim in court by way of subrogation, neither the appeal nor the cassation satisfied the defendant’s claims of innocence.
Answer
Marina:
03/03/2021 at 00:07
Hello. The ACT may be valid if signed by only one share owner, the second was not in the city at the moment. Moreover, I didn’t even know about it! Is it a valid ACT? And the reason for the heating was the cold water supply pipe, the pipe was installed by the developer in the floor behind the screed, but they made a screw for me and I signed the ACT without reading it well. Is it possible now to somehow challenge it? no one lived in the apartment, no common property, who is responsible?
Answer
Irina:
03/07/2021 at 00:53
Hello. If the act on the flood was drawn up with violations (one of the commission members from the management company was not present, the time and date when the flood occurred is not indicated). At the same time, the flooding occurred on Saturday, the report began to be drawn up on Saturday (photos and video recordings were taken on the day of the flood), the report itself was drawn up on Tuesday (the inspection date is indicated in the report as Saturday) in the presence of the culprit, who refused to sign it, which was recorded on the report and there are 2 signatures (and the signatures are not from the commission). How legal is such an act? And is it possible to draw up a repeat one, without violations?
Answer
Sergey:
03/24/2021 at 09:27
Flooding Act. A commission consisting of representatives of: 1) Management company Full name 2) Service organization Full name 3) Service organization Full name in the presence of the owner Full name, drew up an act, but there was no signature from the representative of the management company. The act was approved by the director of the management company (full name, signature, stamp - everything is there) Question - is such an act valid? Second: In the act, an addition was made in a different handwriting about the failure of the gas meter, signed by the owner of the apartment. This addition is not included in the copy of the Management Company. The question is: is this action a forgery of a document with corresponding liability?
Answer
Elena:
03/25/2021 at 17:04
Good afternoon Neighbors on the floor below filed a lawsuit for damages due to the flood. Provided 3 certificates in 2 years. In fact, there was no flooding from my apartment; the leak was due to the riser pipes. But they persistently blame me. I wrote to the HOA about replacing the riser pipes. I didn’t know that the neighbors were drawing up acts of flooding of their apartment. I did not participate in the inspection; the reports state that “the probable cause of the flooding is flooding from the apartments up the riser above.” There are no witnesses to this flooding. Signature of the chairman of the HOA, one of the owners of the lower apartment and a plumber. The damage is not described in the reports, only “traces of a leak were found on the ceiling near the riser pipes.” At the moment, according to my application, the riser pipes have been changed. A forensic examination assessed the presence of damage to the plaintiff and its cost after replacing the riser pipes. Although the neighbors knew that an examination was scheduled and took a piece of the riser pipe for themselves, drawing up a report that there were two holes on the side of my apartment, made with a screwdriver or a drill))) The neighbors have had no leaks since the riser was replaced. But they filed a lawsuit, and the chairman of the HOA signed their version of the acts and also the act of replacing the riser pipes, where it is written about “holes with a drill.” What is the likelihood that I will still prove my innocence in court?
Answer
Elena:
03/25/2021 at 17:10
I have an act of replacing the riser pipes with the signature of the plumber who directly did the replacement, it states that “damage to the riser pipe of the hot water supply was discovered due to wear in the interfloor ceiling between the apartments,” the chairman of the HOA did not sign this act, which is noted by the chief accountant HOA. There are also my statements to the HOA about replacing the riser pipe. That is, the owner of the HOA in collusion with the plaintiff.
Answer
Julia:
03/30/2021 at 18:27
Good afternoon Tell me, in the alternative flooding act, neighbors must be on the commission. Could these be people, for example, from another city who were valid when the act was drawn up?
Answer
Sergey:
04/04/2021 at 22:14
Good afternoon, Please tell me if after the flood, while before the trial, the victim refuses repairs at my expense and demands monetary compensation, obviously exaggerating the consequences of the flood. The act was drawn up only 10 days after the application to the Criminal Code, without my participation. In this case, the victim is one of the owners of the communal apartment, and the other owners do not participate in the dialogue in any way. Will these circumstances be taken into account if the case goes to court? Thank you!
Answer
Evgeny Volkov:
04/07/2021 at 10:31
Hello, Tell me, there was a flood of neighbors from below from our apartment (tenants live in it, I am the owner of the apartment), the neighbor called the management company and they concluded that we had a leak in the corrugation, but there was no photo recording, the report was not drawn up on the spot, signatures There are no tenants, nor my (landlady), I was not notified about the drawing up of the act. After 2 weeks, the victim calls and says that she has the document in her hands, and I didn’t even know about it. The signatures on the act are limited to representatives of the management company. We have an apartment on the 5th floor, and the flooded apartment is on the 3rd; the flood went around the 4th floor and immediately flooded the 3rd!) Please advise what should I do now?
Answer
Ksenia:
05/11/2021 at 13:07
Good afternoon We have the Pik Comfort Management Company and it categorically refuses to draw up an Act on the flooding of the apartment, which occurred due to the fault of the developer (PIK Group). The management company was informed immediately after the leak was discovered, after several days of silence they were invited to a pre-trial inspection of the damaged apartment - they didn’t come, but they put their entry number on the invitation (somehow to indicate on the application that it was accepted, a stamp, a signature - they didn’t do it). I sent a complaint to the Moscow Housing Inspectorate about the inaction of the Criminal Code. The only thing I have is a Commission Inspection Report for the apartment, made 3 weeks later, where the PIK Group engineer recorded the leak and the consequences (defects) - but this is not a Flooding Report drawn up by an authorized representative of the Management Company. What do you advise? From your article it follows that there is no way to protect myself from an unscrupulous criminal code if I sue - they will always say that the Act was not drawn up and this is true, because. they stubbornly refuse to give it.
Answer
Andrey:
05/18/2021 at 15:06
Hello! I flooded the neighbors below (the management company’s spill certificate was not drawn up). We agreed that I would eliminate the consequences of the flood on my own. When some of the work was completed, the neighbor refused my further work and contacted the management company and they drew up an inspection report without me and told me to sign it. Moreover, my neighbor bought wallpaper at my expense. Please advise what I should do now.
Answer
Michael:
06/29/2021 at 15:52
Hello, please tell me how to protest the amount of damage. The non-residential premises on the 1st floor are flooded. The victim presents the amount taking into account the idle time of the non-residential premises, is this legal? The inspection report was drawn up without the participation of the alleged culprit, has not yet been presented, and the conditions for its preparation are unknown. The victim was asked to repair the damage on his own, but he refused. One gets the feeling that he wants to make money on this problem. How to challenge (and is it necessary before the court?) The inspection report and does the Victim have the right to refuse the proposed repair? Does he have the right to claim damages from the downtime of the premises? At the same time, there is an advertisement on the websites for the sale of this premises, i.e. it's not for rent
Answer
Tatiana:
07/06/2021 at 01:26
Good afternoon, The Bay Act was drawn up by the Criminal Code in absentia. There was no commission. The culprit of the bay was not invited. The act was not signed by either the injured party or the guilty party. Please tell me whether it would be correct to file a complaint to the director of the Criminal Code about violations in the preparation of the act, demanding that it be repeated in person in compliance with all requirements?
Answer
Asya:
07/14/2021 at 11:00
Hello. It is stated that without a guilty party, the Flooding Act is considered invalid. But the problem is that the guilty party was not identified at the time of inspection of the apartment for drawing up the Report: the result of the flooding was a clogged pipe, and the management company has yet to figure out whose fault it is. Will such an Act be considered invalid?
Answer
Olesya:
08/11/2021 at 19:24
Hello! Tell me, there was an influx of neighbors downstairs from our apartment, in which the tenants live (I am the owner). The neighbor from below came, they fixed everything, he told the landlady you don’t have to tell me, my apartment is insured. A year later I was summoned to court. It turns out that the insurance company filed a claim for damages i.e. the amount that she paid to the insurer. The inspection report of the residential building was drawn up without me and even without the participation of the tenants. And the inspection report by the insurance company was carried out a month after the flooding. Can inspection reports be considered invalid?
Answer
Evgeniya:
08/16/2021 at 19:31
Hello. The act on the bay was drawn up without us; we did not know about its existence for 7 months until we received a subpoena. The report dated November 18 states that “on November 8, a domestic flood occurred from the apartment (our apartment is indicated). The tenant of the apartment (our apartment) did not open the door.” But no one came to us or asked for an inspection. After receiving the claim, we contacted the Criminal Code to obtain the certificate, but received a written refusal to issue it to us. Tell me, please, is it possible to invalidate such an act and refuse the claim? The act bears the signature of the plaintiff (without decoding) and 2 signatures of representatives of the Criminal Code. (one is the chief engineer, the second is without indicating the position, only last name and initials)
Answer
Christina:
08/19/2021 at 19:41
Hello. We flooded the neighbors from below (flooding in the toilet) a month ago, the injured party was silent for a month, walked by, and a month later called an engineer and a commission to draw up a report. The report indicates a leak on the ceiling in the toilet, mold on the wallpaper in the kitchen and mold under the Lenolium in the kitchen, and wet Lenolium in the hallway. Everything in our apartment is dry and there are no leaks in the kitchen or hallway. Please tell me what to do?
Answer
Lyudmila:
10.21.2021 at 21:53
Good afternoon. My apartment is located on the last 5th floor of an old house, there is no central heating riser in my apartment, the pipes go from the floor and without shut-off taps to a cast-iron radiator. On the battery, even when I bought the apartment 10 years ago, there were ball valves for bleeding air. For 10 years, every heating season a plumber came from the management company and bled the air from the radiators. Sometimes we, the residents, did this at the request of our neighbors downstairs. This year, the heating was turned on, and the roofing felts ball valve was accidentally opened, in short, a leak occurred, and the apartment below was flooded. At the same time, two days earlier, through a single dispatch (the number and time of the application is available), I called for commissioning of the central heating center in my apartment. There was no response to the request. The heating was turned on, and both me and the neighbor below flooded. Today, a neighbor called and said that in his Flood Report there is an entry that the culprit of the flood is my apartment, and the phrase “the taps are open like May’s.” The neighbor, the victim, is angry because... One of the first was in my apartment, even before the emergency service arrived, and saw that it was not Mayevsky faucets, but an ordinary ball valve with a handle, which had been installed for many years and no one had changed it. He said that he had also seen my Filling Act, which also indicated “Mayevsky’s faucet,” which is not untrue. Please tell me, in my case, only a construction and technical examination will correctly determine whether the tap on the radiator is a common property of the house? Could the management company be at fault in the described case?
Answer
Lyudmila:
10.21.2021 at 22:04
I'll add. All these years, when they started the central heating system through the riser, they always asked, they called from the control room demanding to bleed the air from the batteries, that the neighbors were freezing, etc. I believed that the batteries installed in my apartment were common property and served not only my apartment. And when they flooded, the management company blames everything on the owner. Who should change the valve for bleeding air and monitor its serviceability?
Answer
Victoria:
10.22.2021 at 19:45
Hello, the neighbors downstairs on the 1st floor were flooded, the hot water meter burst, the flooded apartment has three owners in equal shares, must all owners sign the deed? One owner filed a lawsuit, the rest as third parties. Is this considered a general claim? Monetary compensation will be on one owner, his part of the apartment?
Answer
Guilder:
02.11.2021 at 10:57
Hello, the Criminal Code has drawn up 4 reports of flooding from higher-level apartments. But the reason was in my apartment. At the same time, I offered to sort out my boner. But they stubbornly insisted that the apartment above was to blame. She dismantled the slabs and is demanding a refund. Can I recover costs from the Management Company in court for drawing up incorrect acts?
Answer
Alina:
20.11.2021 at 18:22
Hello, the neighbors downstairs were flooded, the deed was drawn up without me or witnesses, can the deed be declared invalid in court?
Answer
Vladimir:
12/17/2021 at 19:31
Hello! We had a flood. When I tried to turn off the inlet valve, it simply came off instantly. The neighbors were flooded. The faucet in fact simply rusted, or rather the thread from the riser pipe rusted, the condition of the pipe and faucet was recorded by me in the photo. An act was drawn up which simply indicated the mechanical damage. I signed it, there were no copies. I am also not the owner of the premises, my mother and other brothers are. The neighbors conducted an independent assessment and are preparing a lawsuit, it is not yet clear against whom, perhaps directly against the Criminal Code and against us. My mother went to the Criminal Code for a copy of the act, but did not take it, since it was written in the act that I allegedly interfered with the operation of the crane without permission and damaged it as a result of repair work. We are confident in our innocence, since the faucet is a common property and the management company is responsible for its maintenance. The Criminal Code also refers to the fact that I have no right to touch this tap or turn it off at all. How can you defend yourself in court, challenge the act, and also convince the judge to conduct a technical examination.
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Documentation

To appeal a court decision, the culprit will need the following:

A copy of the decision of the magistrate's court.
A copy of the expert opinion received for the first time.
Original and copy of the counter-expert assessment made at the initiative of the culprit.
Receipt for payment of state duty.
Passport and photocopy.
Property ownership documents.

Objection, example

Important! If the flood occurred due to improper installation of the water or heat supply system, the victim demands compensation from the culprit, but he, in turn, can file a lawsuit to recover damages from the organization that installed the pipes.

Why is expertise needed?

A petition to appoint an examination for the flooding of an apartment is prepared if the party to whom the demands are presented does not agree with their essence. For example, the management company may insist on its innocence, or the neighbors above may insist on the amount of the claim.

According to Art. 79 of the Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federation, answers to questions requiring special knowledge can only be obtained as a result of an examination.

It is worth understanding that the applicant is responsible for paying for the services of a professional who will be entrusted to answer the questions posed. However, if the court decision turns out to be in favor of the party who filed the petition, the costs incurred may be recovered from the losing participant in the process.

The main objective of this procedure is to obtain answers to controversial questions. Therefore, it is necessary to approach the compilation of their list as thoughtfully as possible. Once comments are received, there should be no doubt about the interpretation of the examination results.

Here are a few examples of current issues, based on which you can prepare your own list:

What caused the apartment to flood?
What caused the damage to the ceiling in the room?
Was the damage caused to the apartment the result of repairs carried out in another room?
What is the cost of repairing the damage caused?

The examination can also be carried out on your own initiative, before the trial. It is better to do this 3 to 5 days after the incident, when hidden damage becomes obvious.

Price

The cost of expert bureau services is not regulated by law, because these are private companies. During legal proceedings, you will have to pay a state fee in accordance with Art. 333.19 Tax Code of the Russian Federation:

For damage up to 20,000 rubles. – 4% of the amount, but not less than 400 rubles.
From 20,001 to 100,000 rubles. – 800 rubles, as well as 3% of the amount over 20,000 rubles.
From 100,001 to 200,000 rubles. – 3,200 rubles, plus 2% of the amount over 100,000 rubles.
From 200,001 to 1,000,000 rubles. – 5,200 rub. and 1% of the amount over 200,000 rubles.
From 1,000,000 rub. – 13,200 and 0.5% of the amount over 1,000,000 rubles, maximum – 60,000 rubles.

Example No. 2. Calculation of the cost of state duty

According to the expert, the amount of damage is 600,000 rubles. In order to claim compensation from the culprit, the victim must pay a state fee. This also includes guilty parties who want to reduce the amount of payment. The duty is calculated as follows:

600,000 – 200,000 = 400,000 rub. 1% is paid from this amount, i.e. 4,000 rub.

4,000 + 5,200 = 9,200 rub. (interest plus fixed rate = total amount due).

FAQ

Question No. 1. What to do if, during the renovation process, the contractor flooded the neighbor’s apartment below? Who is considered guilty?

If the repairs have not yet been completed, and the problem arose as a result of incorrect actions of the craftsmen, the neighbor in any case files a claim against the home owner, and he has the right to claim money from the contractor.

Question No. 2. Who should compensate for the damage if repairs in the corridor were damaged due to a burst pipe in the entrance?

All equipment located outside the apartment is on the balance sheet of the management companies. They must pay compensation for the damage.

Most common mistakes

Mistake #1. Contacting an expert company a week/month after the court decision.

This is a very long time. It is advisable to make an assessment within the next 1-2 days. If this is not possible (the neighbor has made repairs or does not allow entry into the apartment), a flooding certificate will be sufficient.

Mistake #2. If you avoid meeting with your injured neighbor, you can evade compensation for damage.

No. In this case, the owner of the flooded home will go to court, and in case of failure to appear, the case will be transferred to the bailiffs to claim the damage as part of enforcement proceedings in a forced manner.

How to prepare an application

A petition to appoint an examination for the flooding of an apartment does not imply following a strict form - the law does not establish requirements for writing such statements. However, given the significance of this document, the structure of appeals to the court developed by practicing lawyers is traditionally followed.

We list the points that must be recorded in the application:

A cap
Information about the applicant: procedural role, full name (or name of organization), residential address.
Information about other participants and third parties.
Title (please note: must be in the format “Application for the appointment of a construction (or forensic) examination”).

Descriptive part
Reasons why the applicant insists on conducting an examination.
Link to Art. 79 of the Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federation as the basis for the appeal.
Please schedule an examination.

List of questions that will be posed to the expert.
Indication of the institution where the study will be conducted.
Indication of the person who is responsible for paying for the expert’s services.
List of attached documents.
Signature, date.

If one of the parties has already provided an independent expert's opinion, their opponents in the competition may apply to the court with a request to order a forensic examination.

Separately, it is worth noting the fact that the expert may need additional documents to prepare answers: checks, certificates of work performed, a report on the flooding of the premises drawn up after the incident.