Who controls the utilities. An explanation of who controls the management companies and what exactly they check

Where to turn to complain about the quality of housing services?

Where to turn to complain about the quality of housing and communal services. The specialist of the Regional Energy Commission of the Sverdlovsk Region will answer these questions.

What applications are received in the REC of the Sverdlovsk region?

The number of letters and phone calls about the work of enterprises of housing and communal services received by the Regional Energy Commission of the Sverdlovsk Region for the year is in the thousands. A significant part of them are citizens' appeals. Some issues are most directly related to the activities of the Commission, others, in fact, should be sent to other departments, as they are not within the competence of the REC of the Sverdlovsk region.

Most often, residents are concerned about the problems associated with the quality of the provided communal services, with the sanitary and epidemiological state of the housing stock, the validity of calculating the amount of the apartment fee.

However, one cannot agree with the assertion that the provision of answers by the performers is “delayed”.

Current legislation obliges public authorities to provide a response to any citizen's appeal within a month. In the REC of the Sverdlovsk region this requirement is strictly observed. At the same time, not a single ministry and department has the right to provide official explanations on issues beyond its competence.

Please explain, by what signs can a simple citizen understand if he addressed his question there or not?

For official explanations of legal acts, you should contact directly the body of state or municipal authority by which the legal act of interest was issued. So, for example, the Regional Energy Commission of the Sverdlovsk Region can only comment on the decisions adopted by the Commission. On matters not related to the jurisdiction of the Commission, we can only express our private opinion, but it cannot be regarded as an official interpretation of the rule of law.

Unfortunately, appeals received by the REC of the Sverdlovsk Region often have to be sent to the authorities directly authorized to resolve a particular issue. As you understand, it takes a certain amount of time to study a designated problem and all shipments to departmental affiliations. At least three to four days are lost as a result of citizens waiting. From our point of view, the reason is that when asking questions to state authorities, applicants do not always have a clear idea for themselves where to go.

For many, housing and communal services are inseparable concepts, and, therefore, someone alone should be responsible for them ...

In reality, this is not so. When it comes to the services provided by housing and communal services enterprises, you need to understand that they can be conditionally divided into two categories - housing and communal. What do utilities include? Electricity, gas, hot and cold water, sanitation, heating. Housing services are the maintenance and repair of housing and common property.

:
[continued]
Now let's try to determine in whose jurisdiction is the solution to a particular problem.

Where to turn, if we are talking, for example, about the poor technical condition of the housing stock or violation of the rules for using residential premises? These issues are the responsibility of the state housing inspectorate.

One of the most common questions on the part of citizens is the question of the structure and correctness of charging housing maintenance fees.

In accordance with applicable law, the approval of fees for citizens for a dwelling is in the competence of homeowners (HOAs, housing cooperatives ...) or local authorities. Therefore, on matters related to the payment of housing services, it is advisable for citizens to contact the management bodies of the HOA, housing cooperative, or the administration of the municipality at the place of residence, etc.

Do you doubt the correctness of the calculation made, for example, for interruptions in the supply of hot water? Contact the service provider represented by the management company, HOA, housing cooperative, etc.

What questions does the Regional Energy Commission of the Sverdlovsk Region answer?

We are responsible for tariffs and regulations. Today, many people confuse the concepts of “tariff” and “utility bills”. Meanwhile, the difference between them is significant. What is a tariff? This is the cost of one unit of utilities - 1 kWh. electricity, 1 Gcal. thermal energy, 1 cubic meter of natural gas or water, 1 kilogram of liquefied gas. Setting these values \u200b\u200bfor housing and communal services enterprises, the REC of the Sverdlovsk Region bears full responsibility for the economic feasibility of each of them. Tariffs for utilities are usually set once a year, and are not subject to change, with the exception of cases expressly provided for by federal law.

As for utility bills, it consists of two components - the tariff, multiplied by the volume of consumed services, and can change every month.

Thus, when there are complaints about the correctness of charging utility bills for a certain period of time, you should contact the authorities of the Federal Service for Supervision of Consumer Rights Protection and Human Welfare, as this is again a matter of protecting consumers' rights. But if the tariffs presented for payment do not correspond to the values \u200b\u200bapproved in the established order, please contact the REC of the Sverdlovsk Region.

In addition, the Regional Energy Commission of the Sverdlovsk Region establishes a limit index for changing the amount of citizens' fees for utilities. If this index is violated on the territory of the municipality, citizens have the right to contact us.

And if the answers of the above departments of the citizen are still not satisfied?

The arisen problem can be resolved at the discretion of citizens in the prosecution authorities or the court. After studying the case and confirming the facts of a violation of the law, the prosecutor's office has the right to issue a protest or send a representation to the persons who committed a violation.

As for the court, based on the results of the trial, the defendant (for example, the management company, HOA, housing cooperative, etc.) may be charged a sum of money that was unlawfully charged for payment of housing and communal services.

How to identify violations in the work of the management company and what to do if such violations are detected? Where to go if the UK does not fulfill the obligations prescribed in the contract, or unreasonably overestimates the tariffs for its services?

Evgenia Vladimirova, project manager, Rambler. Real Estate Rambler & Co

Ideally, the management company should save homeowners from all sorts of troubles in the maintenance of real estate. However, management companies often, on the contrary, can create additional problems for residents. We can say that the most frequent claims to the Criminal Code are misappropriation of funds, unjustified increase in tariffs, and unsatisfactory fulfillment of the obligations specified in the contract. In order to save yourself from unpleasant surprises, it is recommended to regularly find out what works the Criminal Code does and at what tariffs, to demand the elimination of deficiencies in the work if they are discovered. If representatives of the management company ignore these requirements, you should go with complaints to the State Housing Inspectorate. Also, the owner of the apartment can go to court.

It is worth noting that currently management companies cannot work without a license. Certification of the Criminal Code should improve the quality of the services provided, since the license for servicing an apartment building may either not be given initially or canceled after any problems in work have been identified.

Irina Gentsler, Head of the Housing Sector of the Institute for Urban Economics Foundation

Control by residents is imperative. Residents pay decent money to the management organization and must understand that they receive for this money whether the common property in the house is really properly maintained. Often, management companies perform visible cheap work - cleaning the entrance, yard, garbage collection. While nobody thinks about the condition of roofs and house building engineering systems. Everyone lives one day, and then it turns out that due to poor current maintenance, an expensive overhaul is required, for which owners must pay separately.

Firstly, it is necessary to require a regular report from the management company - at least once a year - with information about what works were planned, what were done, which were not done, and for what reason, to hear and discuss this report at the general meeting. Secondly, you need to analyze the information that the managing organization places on the official website and its website in accordance with the requirements of the information disclosure standard, how much they correspond to reality. And the active work of the council of the apartment building on the regular monitoring of the services and works carried out by the managing organization is very important.

Alena Abramovich, Head of Commercial Law Practice, Rights Law Firm.

Currently, there are a large number of disputes with management companies, including due to overstated tariffs. Often, property owners neglect their rights and obligations to control the activities of management companies, which leads to an additional fee for tariffs for services.

This increase in tariffs is the easiest way to "cash in" on the owners of premises through contractual relations with other companies, often affiliated with the management company. Tracking the correctness of invoices is problematic, especially on payment orders. Moreover, a regulation on changing tariffs unilaterally in connection with inflation is included in the house management agreement. Based on such a clause, management companies can raise and change tariffs for services as they like.

Thus, control over the activities of management companies helps not only reduce the possibility of fraudulent actions on unreasonably high tariffs, but also really track what owners' money is “spent” on.

If there are no improvements in the house, and prices are rising, this is the first “beacon” to change the management company.

The main ways to control the activities of management companies (in fact, like HOA), in accordance with the Housing Code, are:

annual reporting of the management company at meetings of homeowners (with the provision of a report on the work done, contracts concluded, new tariffs and the rationale for their adoption, etc.);
obligatory provision of any documentation related to the performance of the duties of the management company for the maintenance of the apartment building, at the request of the owners of the apartment building (at any time);
the opportunity to change the management company at the general meeting of owners at any time.

Naturally, it is better to start with general meetings. Carefully analyze the reporting, talk with a representative of the management company. If any serious difficulties arise, then simply change the company by the general meeting. Moreover, the RF LC provides for the possibility of both changing the way of managing an apartment building and simply choosing another management company.

Alexander Arsky, Associate Professor, Department of Marketing and Logistics, Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation

The delegation of authority to manage a residential building is a kind of community outsourcing implemented by the parties on the basis of a commercial agreement. From this follows the rights and obligations of the parties to the contract, which also include the submission of a report on the activities of the outsourcer for a certain period.

Payments are intended, therefore, misuse of funds by an outsourcer is a violation of the contract, as well as poor or unfair performance of their obligations.

The effectiveness of control depends on the conditions specified in the contract. So, for example, by providing the possibility of a sudden check of cash flows on the outsourcer’s bank account, the initiative group (“people's controllers”, “home asset”) may request details of payments for a certain period of time and, if there are questions or suspicions of their ineffective use, “call for answer "outsourcer.

Particular attention should be paid to carrying out scheduled repairs by an outsourcer at the expense of the residents of the house. The appointment of representatives of the residents of the house during the intermediate activation of construction and installation works will prevent their poor performance or overstatement of the construction budget.

Alexey Gordeychik, lawyer, candidate of legal sciences

In accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation, the owners bear the burden of maintaining property. The provisions of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation, providing for various methods of managing multi-apartment buildings, including concluding an agreement with a management company, are designed to facilitate, simplify the procedure for maintaining common property, but they do not relieve owners of liability associated with the presence of real estate. Therefore, it is possible and necessary to control the activities of the management company.

There are a lot of ways to control its activities. First of all, the management company is accountable to the general meeting of owners, its rights and obligations in relation to the subject of management should be determined by the contract. Secondly, the activity of housing and communal services enterprises is controlled by a mass of administrative bodies. Starting from firefighters and prosecutors, ending with bodies of tariff regulation of subjects. Thirdly, issues of judicial protection cannot be neglected. For example, repairs at the entrance should be made every 5 years. Is the UK late? What is not a reason for a lawsuit?

City dwellers mainly spend their lives in apartment buildings. Their service is carried out by a partnership of homeowners (HOA) or a management company - the final choice is by the owners. Residents hope for a clear and competent work of those who have been entrusted with common house property. But what to do and what to do if there is no benefit from the management company, its actions and decisions are illegal or it is completely inactive. It is important to understand and figure out where to complain about the management company, is there any real benefit from such complaints?

Homeowners, choosing a company, enter into an apartment building management agreement. If it is correctly drafted and complies with the law, it will explain to which body and for what specific reasons to file a complaint. Federal, regional and local laws detail this procedure, and the decision of the general meeting of owners approves the final choice of tenants.

Dear readers! Our articles talk about typical ways to resolve legal issues, but each case is unique.

If you want to know how to solve your particular problem - contact the online consultant form on the right or call below. It is fast and free!

What to complain about?

Most often, residents of the house complain about:

inadequate level or frequency of housing and communal services (HCS);
inadequate preparation of the house for the supply of housing and communal services, mainly on the eve of the heating season;
failure to provide the necessary interim or final report or inappropriate reporting to the management company;
procedural violations in holding a meeting of owners or not holding such a meeting;
failure to comply with other conditions of the apartment building management contract.

How to make and file a complaint?

The management company is obliged to professionally perform its functions and provide services of appropriate quality, as well as to account for the work done to those who pay for its work. Consequently, the residents of an apartment building have the full and legal right to any evasion of work in higher authorities. For instance:

cosmetic or major repairs are needed at the entrance;
broken elevator or chute;
apartments are poorly heated, or heating is completely absent;
bulbs in entrances, including a stairwell, are knocked out or burned out.

You can find out who to complain about the housing and utilities sector, and how exactly, by carefully studying the details of the law and understanding the general rules for writing a complaint.

Complaint form - arbitrary, written by hand or on a computer. It is obligatory to indicate the addressee, that is, the specific state body to which the appeal is directed. The name, patronymic, surname of the applicant, his contact information should be filled in: telephone for communication - home and mobile, e-mail, return postal address where the answer should be sent. It is recommended to indicate the registration address of the complainant or his representative or the PO box.

Directly in the text of the appeal, violations of the management company are listed, specific terms and duration of inappropriate actions, the exact address of the house, entrance, floor and apartment are indicated. It is advisable to provide links to regulations where violations are mentioned: Code of Administrative Offenses (CAO), Housing Code, Sanitary Rules and Norms (SanPin), Decisions of the city government, federal laws and other legislative acts. To mention a violation of a specific article and clause of an agreement with a management company.

The appeal must be stated in a clear and understandable language, legible handwriting and not allowing ambiguous interpretation of phrases. If necessary, additional documents are attached: photos of violations, contracts, reports or other documentary evidence of the company's illegal actions.

Claims may result in a request to fulfill any requirement to the extent necessary and clearly indicated by law. The essence of the complaint is certified by the applicant’s signature and its transcript, the date is stamped. When filing a collective appeal, information about each tenant is indicated.

Complaints to the management company and other government agencies should be written in duplicate. The first should be taken in the office of the organization and assigned an incoming number with a date. The second copy also affixes the number and date, and is handed over to the applicant. An explanation is given in what time frames and how the answer will be given. The deadline report begins on the day the application is submitted and, as a general rule of appeals to a government agency, is no more than 30 days. Shorter terms are also provided - based Federal Law "On Protection of Consumer Rights" A response to a claim to a management company must be received within 10 days.

Both complaints must contain the signature of the person who received him and his position. These formal requirements attest to the fact of appeal to the appropriate authority. If it is impossible to file a complaint in person, it must be sent by registered mail with a receipt of receipt.

Filing a complaint to a management company with a higher authority

If the complaint addressed to the management company remained unanswered or the answer did not satisfy the residents, then the question of where to complain about the housing and communal services has several answers. According to the procedural rules, an appeal of any action may occur with the participation of higher organizations, namely the housing inspectorate, Rospotrebnadzor, and the prosecutor's office. After the obligatory extrajudicial procedure, the statement of claim is sent to the judicial authorities.

Contacting the Housing Inspectorate

Contact the housing inspectorate for your region on the Internet. For example, here is the website of the State Housing Inspectorate of Moscow - https://www.mos.ru/mgi/

When contacting the housing inspectorate, you should be aware that it, as a state body, oversees:

proper implementation of housing operation rules;
compliance with standards and norms for the use of housing;
observing the timing and quality of preparation for the heating season;
compliance with standards for the receipt of utility services by residents;
the legitimacy and implementation of the norms of legislative acts when convening a general meeting of homeowners, the direct choice of the managing organization;
the implementation of the management company regulatory acts.

The work of the housing inspection is aimed at protecting the rights of apartment owners and preserving their homes. She is obliged to check how the management company performs its functions, and if it detects violations, it indicates the need to eliminate them. The approximate time frame for fulfilling such a requirement is one month. If violators are identified, the inspection has the right to bring the perpetrators to administrative punishment.

Housing Inspection Complaint Example
(click to enlarge)

In addition to the standard complaint procedure, on the sites of the regional housing inspectorate, you can use the service for online appeal to the supervisor.

Appeal to Rospotrebnadzor

Complaints to Rospotrebnadzor regarding managing organizations are received in the following cases:

non-compliance of the contract between the management company and the residents with the norms of the Federal Law "On Protection of Consumer Rights"
violation of the rights of residents to provide complete and reliable information about the provided housing and communal services;
the need to verify financial statements, including documents confirming payments, for compliance with their reality;
establishing the need and justification for changes in tariffs and fees for housing and communal services.

When contacting the Rospotrebnadzor, it lists what authorities the residents have already applied to and talk about the results of complaints. If violations are detected, Rospotrebnadzor is obliged to take the necessary measures to eliminate violations, after the audit, sanctions are possible against violators.

Filing an application is possible both personally and by filling out an online form on the website of a government agency.

Appeal to the prosecutor

You can also find prosecutors in your area on the Internet. Here is the website of the Moscow prosecutor's office - http://www.mosproc.ru/

The prosecution authorities take measures to identify violations by:

intentional or unintentional misappropriation of funds, expressed in economic crimes: robbery, fraud, misappropriation, embezzlement;
inaction or unlawful actions of supervisory or regulatory authorities.

The prosecutor's office checks and investigates all the circumstances of the case. According to its results, it will be possible to attract violators up to criminal liability.

Going to court

Having found out, for what reasons and to whom to complain about the management company, you can contact the judicial authorities. Procedural standards allow residents to write a statement of claim after a pre-trial settlement of the issue or an unsatisfactory result of the audit. The court will consider the appeal, if the matter concerns material requirements, and it is necessary to clarify the amount of compensation for the damage caused to the residents or property of the owners. For example, a dilapidated tree that was not cut in time or a poorly fastened pole fell onto a car, poorly cleared snow or an ice-covered walkway near the house caused injuries to residents.

According to civil law - article 28 of the Code of Civil Procedure (Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federation) - filing a statement of claim takes place at the location of the managing organization, unless a different jurisdiction has been determined by the contract. The requirements for the content of the claim are listed in article 131 Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federationaccording to which it should contain:

name and full details of the court, plaintiff and defendant, including their location;
the essence of the stated requirements is a description of the violation of the rights or interests of the plaintiff;
evidence of the justification of the statement of claim and the circumstances of the case;
monetary claims and their justification;
transfer of state bodies to which the plaintiff applied in pre-trial settlement;
necessary additional documents and their listing.

The claim must be accepted into production five days after filing or returned to the applicant with the requirement to eliminate the violations during its filing. Enforcement of court decisions is either voluntary or with the participation of bailiffs.

There are two misfortunes in our country: fools and roads. This stereotype is known far beyond the borders of Russia. If we are talking about the main non-stereotypical problems in the Russian Federation, then these will be: low salaries and unsatisfactory quality of housing. If everything is clear with the roads - this is an insoluble question, then with the provision of decent living conditions for people and the maintenance of houses - it is quite feasible. It is only important to understand who controls the housing and utilities management companies. The problems associated with the unprofessional management of organizations designed to ensure order and stability in the work of infrastructures stem from a number of significant shortcomings.

Important! These shortcomings entail a number of serious consequences that are not corrected from year to year and become only more dangerous. For activities, maintenance of residential buildings, the managing organization receives funds from the population. With this money, she must keep the facades of houses, the adjacent territory, public premises in good condition, organize garbage collection and provide communal services.

In practice, it looks different: only part of the funds received is allocated for the maintenance of houses and the repair of communications. HOA just start to steal the money of the population. Naturally, nobody likes it. People give earned money to strangers, they still do not receive the proper level of service for this. Now the activity is carried out in such a way that the partnerships conducted at the facilities are not transparent to consumers: there is no work schedule, no budget. In order to prevent HOAs from profiting at the expense of subscribers, in Russia there are regulatory bodies conducting supervision of the criminal code and control of housing and communal services.

Supervisory authorities

If you study what rights the owners of apartments have and know who exercises control over the managing organizations, then you can check the work of your UK. Today there are three positions from which control is exercised: federal, local and regional. Each level has its own control.

Federal level

Supervision at the state level is not the main level of control over HOAs. The main federal governing bodies prescribe only general principles of housing management and create additional methods.

Who controls the activities of management companies at the state level:

The Ministry of Construction - sets the procedure for agreeing on the basic norms of utilities, the procedure for obtaining the corresponding services by consumers and sets the quality parameters. It explains the "Rules for the provision of services for the supply of communal resources" of the Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation and gives recommendations in its implementation in practice. The Ministry of Construction sets economic standards for the control of energy carriers of heat and water.
Ministry of Energy - sets the national standard for providing residential and non-residential buildings with energy carriers, including gas, water, electricity and heat, according to the public schedule;
FAS - sets the basis for the formation of prices for energy consumption by the population, determines the upper and lower boundaries of tariff levels, helps to control the receipt of payments by consumers on the accounts of utilities.

Regional level

Direct monitoring of the implementation of the approved standards and additional instructions received from the national federal departments is carried out by municipal or regional authorities.

At the regional level, companies engaged in the maintenance and maintenance of residential buildings are subject to the following services:

Housing inspection - carries out checks that control the implementation by the Management companies and residents of the requirements of regional and state legislation:
functionality of residential premises;
redevelopment control in apartments;
operation and maintenance of public property in an apartment building;
the amount of payment for the maintenance of apartments;
change of status of premises and their appointments;
providing the house with energy supplies, setting the amount of payment for their consumption and methods of payment;
organization of funds for repairs.

Companies holding a license to manage real estate are not directly subordinate to local authorities - the housing inspectorate does not exercise specific control. But she controls the issuance of licenses to these companies and checks their activities to determine whether they meet the requirements.

The result of the audit is fixed by the protocol and sent with an order to the management company with a deadline for fixing the violations.

Homeowner Control

Do not forget that the homeowners themselves are powerful. Funds are coming from them to the budget. Therefore, their satisfaction should first of all be of interest to the management company. Residents of an apartment building have relations with the Criminal Code in accordance with a bilateral agreement, which sets forth the rights and obligations of both parties, which means that homeowners are entitled to demand that the second party conscientiously fulfill the terms of the agreement. How to check the housing and utilities management company yourself? If there are violations, they have the right to demand an unscheduled inspection. For this, it is necessary to send an application to the GLC with the relevant requirements. It is worth noting that applications submitted collectively are considered and executed faster. In their appeal, residents indicate contact information and may request a list of agreed rates from the management company. The application must be written in duplicate.

Information received from representatives of Ex. The company is analyzed and compared with the actual quality of the services we provide. For a more professional analysis, you can resort to the help of specialists. They will help to solve your problem. After that, the QC is checked for compliance with the specified data and the work actually performed. Inspectors may ask for the provision of cost accounting bookkeeping UK. Reports on financial documents are entitled to be required not only for the current financial year, but also for the previous few years from the archives of the organization.

If excessive tariffs are found or budgets for work are inflated, residents of the house can contact the prosecutor's office. They receive sufficient grounds to file a lawsuit and bring the matter to court. You can get a free consultation by contacting the consumer assistance center. They will help to draw up a collective complaint against the culprit and bring it to the controlling organization from above. It does not matter which course of action will be chosen: the Criminal Code will be checked, violations will be eliminated, and residents will be compensated for their losses and unlawful withdrawals will stop.

Auditing

An audit takes place in several ways. To make the work scheme of the Criminal Code more open, you can resort to an audit in the housing sector. They will be checked:

the actual costs incurred by the organization to the invoices issued on them:
compliance of the drawn up financial documents with the established rules of document circulation and assessment of the veracity of the information provided in them;
viewing the grounds for spending the budget (confirmation of the effectiveness and rationality of the chosen way of doing business).

Important! Summing up, the auditor performing the audit can, as an example, provide his own professional recommendations on the optimization and establishment of technological, financial and economic processes within the company. Advice on working with tax authorities may also be presented.

The audit is conducted in accordance with established regulations. It allows you to determine where each ruble of the funds invested by tenants is spent, and what percentage of expenses were really spent efficiently, and which goes “by the cash register” or is spent thoughtlessly.

Verification necessarily takes into account the following documents:

reports on spending money on public utilities at home;
estimates, with provided data on the costs of the necessary work on the maintenance and operation of an apartment building;
reports on expenses incurred in hiring for the performance of work by third-party contracting companies.

How to make and file a complaint?

If the management company does not fully fulfill its obligations, violates the terms of the contract and does not provide relevant reports on the work done, then the residents of the house have every right to file a complaint with higher authorities. This is done quickly and for free if you know the algorithm and your rights.

Sufficient grounds for applying:

common areas need maintenance, but it has not been performed for a long time, for example, damaged railings, broken light bulbs .;
elevators and refuse chutes are not properly maintained;
the heating in the rooms is weak.

The type of complaint is chosen at will: write manually or type on a computer and print - the regulatory body must accept it in any form. The application must indicate the state authority to which the appeal will be sent. In addition to your own contact information, do not forget to indicate in it a return address to which you can send a response. List all the violations noticed, indicate the exact address of the house, if necessary, and the specific location of the breakdown: entrance and floor. For completeness, use links to the Housing Code, indicating that these violations should not be. Do not forget to clearly indicate what result you want to achieve as a result of the verification and decision. If the application is submitted collectively: include in it the contact details of each applicant.

Compile the complaint in two copies and transfer both to a person at the center receiving the complaints from the population. They must assign the number of the incoming call and put the date of acceptance and return one copy to the complainant. The date set is set by the filing date of the application and from that moment on, a thirty-day countdown begins to provide a sure answer to the applicant.

Conclusion

CC are subordinated and controlled by central authorities, as well as by the owners of the premises themselves. Federal authorities only regulate their activities. They do not directly monitor. Who controls the work of management companies? The management company can be controlled by a supervisor: Rospotrebnadzor, the prosecutor's office and the housing inspectorate.