What to do if the neighbors flooded from above: where to go and what documents are needed

Troubles always happen suddenly. After all, we usually do not expect bad news. But no one has yet managed to live a life without setbacks, annoying incidents and minor dirty tricks, the negative impact of which can be significantly reduced if we meet disaster fully equipped.

One of such emergency can be a flood. In order to survive an annoying event without unnecessary stress and with minimal financial losses, you need to know what to do if the neighbors have flooded from above, how to eliminate the consequences of the “flood” and resolve contentious issues.

The answers to these questions have been studied by us and are described in detail in the article. The information will help identify the culprit of the flood and receive compensation for damage to property. Remember, forewarned, means armed.

What to do during the flood

If you heard the sound of a spring drop at the wrong time of the year and in a place where there are no icicles, for example, in your bathroom, you need to urgently find out what happened. Alas, there was a leak from the top floor. This is a nuisance, but not grief.

You need to get together and immediately begin to act, because a lot depends on your competent actions now. And we will tell you what to do if the neighbors have flooded your apartment.

Well, if at the time of flooding of your apartment you were lucky enough to be at home: in this case, as a rule, large-scale damage can be avoided if measures are taken in time and the water is shut off

De-energize your own housing is only necessary if the leak is really large-scale. A small spot on the ceiling is not a significant hazard. But the flood can lead to a short circuit somewhere inside the wall or to electric shock present in the apartment.

An automatic fuse, popularly called a cork, must be sought in the shield located in the entrance; You should know exactly which of them is yours, so as not to de-energize by mistake the neighbors

To de-energize your apartment, you need to press the red button on the automatic jam. You can bring the circuit breaker of the circuit breaker to the off position. If the waterfall does not stop, its source should be blocked.

You can do this like this:

• if the neighbors are on top of the house, warn them that it’s flooding you - let them close the tap;
• if they are away, you should call the management company - let them send an emergency service to shut off the water.

By the way, in the future, emergency service officers will draw up an act on the flooding of your living quarters.

This is a modern valve and it looks pretty decent, but if you try to cope with old equipment on your own, then there is a high probability of exacerbating the situation

What can not be done:

• Do not break the doors to the apartment of neighbors, otherwise you can fall under the scope of Art. 139 of the Criminal Code, which refers to criminal liability for violation of the inviolability of another's housing;
• if you have unhindered access to a shut-off valve that shuts off the water supply to the entire staircase, you can use it, but if you subsequently detect damage to equipment or property from your actions, you will have to answer.

In any case, you need to act collectively, quickly, but without panic. Then they will be able to protect their interests, and at the same time they will not infringe upon others.

Search for the cause of the flooding

To determine the person responsible for the flooding of your apartment, you need to find out in which place a water leak formed. After all, neighbors who forgot to close the tap are, oddly enough, not the most common cause of leaks.

Often there is a breakthrough in the riser water supply. This situation is especially relevant for old houses with worn communications, where pipelines require replacement. In this case, the procedure for determining the culprit is more complicated than in the situation with the crane, which they forgot to close.

Do not rush to blame the neighbors for the emergency, even if the water flows from their apartment

So, if a breakthrough happened in the water supply system, then the perpetrators may be:

• a management company (CC), if a leak is detected before the first disconnecting device, for example, a shut-off valve in the upper apartment;
• neighbors from above, if the leak is after the specified disconnecting device - tap.

Such an algorithm for determining the culprit of the accident is established by the Rules for the maintenance of common property in an apartment building (hereinafter referred to as the Rules), approved by Resolution No. 491 of the Government of the Russian Federation of August 13, 2006, as well as by the Civil Code of the Russian Federation (Civil Code) and the Housing Code of the Russian Federation (LC RF) .

Art. 210 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation establishes the liability of owners for the maintenance of their property. According to Art. 36 LCD RF and Art.290 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, the owners of residential premises are the owners of the communications of the whole house on the basis of shared ownership.

The contract concluded by the owners with the management company delegates responsibility for the safety of communal building communications to managers.

The first disconnecting device (locking ball valve) in the apartment - a kind of dividing point, delimiting the areas of responsibility: before the crane - the company, and after - the owner of the apartment. It is defined in clause 5 of part 1 of the Rules.

But when breaking through the heating system, no distinctions exist. Regardless of the location of the heated towel rail, risers and radiators, their breakthrough entails the responsibility of the management company (Clause 6, Part 1 of the Rules). Moreover, judicial practice on the application of this legislative act already exists.

However, there are exceptions to this rule. If the apartment has been independently re-equipped with the heating system and the company responsible for the condition and maintenance of the house, no one has been informed about this, the owner of the converted apartment will be responsible for the leak.

How is the fact of the bay recorded?

The consequences of the gulf of the apartment must be fixed by an act, for the preparation of which you need a representative of the management company. It must be called immediately.

While it is not there, no time can be lost;

1. Take a photo and video of the damage. Your photos and video will be evidence in court if litigation becomes inevitable.
2. Invite your neighbors. Two or three people will be enough for them to act as witnesses when drawing up the act.

If by this time the representative of the management company has not yet approached, you can begin to draw up an act without it.

Representatives of the management company are not always able to immediately appear to inspect the apartment and draw up an act: you can collect a commission from the neighbors and draw up the necessary document yourself

The procedure for drawing up the act

So, you need to draw up an act on the consequences of the gulf of the apartment.

It must include the following data:

• document's name;
• full address of the affected apartment;
• date of act: day, month, year;
• the composition of the commission is transferred in full; it includes: the victim (you), neighbors who are invited as witnesses, the person responsible for the damage (if any) and the representative of the management company (if any); do not forget to indicate the position of the representative of the Criminal Code;
• essence of what happened: briefly list the facts, describe the apartment.

For example, the drafter of the act may indicate that he (full name) drew up this act in the process of examining apartment N, located at the address (full address) upon the fact of the bay from apartment N, located on the floor above.

The affected apartment is located on a certain floor of an N-storey building with N rooms. If the cause of the accident is identified, it must be indicated. Otherwise, you can write the alleged reason.

Go to narrative

At the beginning of this part of the act should be written: "The Commission set the day of the examination ...". Not all the consequences of flooding can occur immediately. Sometimes it takes 2-3 days. If new consequences are discovered (parquet rose, for example), it will be necessary to add these facts to the act.

Initially, the parquet may not look damaged, but after a few days, when the coating begins to dry, it may become completely unusable.

It is also necessary to mention that the act was drawn up according to an external examination. With instrumental control, the scale of troubles can turn out to be more significant, because not every breakdown is visible "by eye".

It is necessary to carefully record all information about traces of flooding:

• what premises are they located in;
• where exactly are - ceiling, walls, floors;
• intensity of available tracks;
• we list all the affected property - furniture, appliances, parquet, interior elements.

If the owner of the apartment in which the leak occurred allows, you can include in the act a description of the location of the bay. Everything that you see in this apartment must be included in the act: wet floor, emergency water supply with a crack, etc.

When conducting photo and video shooting, it is necessary to mention this fact in the act. Subsequently, it is desirable to print photographs and assure them of all members of the commission. If the person who caused the damage refused to sign the act, that's okay: you just need to fix this fact in the document.

Despite the fact that there can be many damages and a description of them will take a lot of time, do it: your determination will not leave the culprit behind the illusions that he will come out of the water dry

Approximately the same in terms of content, an act with the obligatory indication of the cause of the accident should be made by a representative of the management company. Make sure that he indicates everything that you consider important. If you have any contentious issues, feel free to comment. The finished document must be supplemented by a defective statement.

When managers are to blame for the accident, they try to distort or “not replace” the essential facts that determine their guilt, because they want to avoid liability or reduce its volume.

Remember that your goals are different, yours is compensation for damage. The management company must provide you with one copy of its act.

By the way, if the affected apartment is not privatized, you should carefully study your social tenancy agreement, since the state is the owner of such housing.

Pre-trial Problem Solving

Remember that your goal is not a quarrel with your neighbors, but compensation for the damage done to you. Always the best way out is to come to an agreement without resorting to court and forget about this annoying situation.

Talking with neighbors about the pre-trial compensation for the damage done is not necessary immediately, but after 2-3 days from the date of flooding. During this time, as a rule, all latent defects appear, the cause of which was the accident.

The amount of damage becomes apparent, as well as the amount of work ahead. Make a written complaint with an estimate of upcoming damage repair work.

Try not to bring the matter to court: firstly, a peaceful resolution of the issue saves you time and effort, and secondly, you still live close by

It happens that the culprits immediately pay the victims the full amount, but such facts are more likely exceptions than the rule. But even just the consent of the neighbors or the Criminal Code to compensate the damage caused through their fault - this is already good.

It is necessary to draw up in writing and notarize the agreement on such reimbursement with the date of final settlement. Do not neglect the services of a notary public, even if it seems to you that you are confident in the intentions of the opposite side. An agreement on the upcoming work signed by the parties is attached to the agreement.

The fact that settlements between the parties to the conflict have been completed can be verified by a receipt that the victim issues to the culprit. It should be indicated that the amount of damage caused by the accident has been fully repaid and the injured party no longer has material claims.

What if you still have to go to court?

If the attempt to peacefully resolve the conflict did not find a response from the perpetrator of the accident, you will have to go to court. There is nothing wrong with this, except that the process may be delayed, and the real payments due to you will not arrive as soon as we would like.

Be aware that after filing a lawsuit with the judiciary, you will not be able to proceed with the repair work, because a retrial may be scheduled. Nevertheless, if other options are exhausted, we go to court.

Preparatory stage

It is necessary to invite a competent specialist who has the right to assess the damage caused.Where else should I go and whom to use if the neighbors flooded and caused damage? You can attract an expert from the Chamber of Commerce or a specialized organization of appraisers.

The examination should be carried out officially with the preparation of:

• service agreement;
• act of performance of work;
• receipts for payment, etc.

The costs of the expert assessment may be included in the total amount of damage to be paid by the guilty party.

Such a notification telegram should be sent to the culprit of the accident in advance so that he has the opportunity to be present during an independent examination (+)

By the way, the guilty party must be notified of the date and time of the examination. For this, a telegram is sent to the culprits 4-5 days before the agreed date. If they are absent at the appointed time, an appropriate note should be made in the act of examination.

How is the examination carried out?

Damage to the flooded apartment should be inspected at the agreed time. The expert should provide for inspection all the damage, as well as the act of the bay and documentation for the damaged furniture and household appliances.

The victim is interested in the inspection being carried out as carefully as possible, and all the facts regarding the damage from the accident are recorded in the expert’s opinion. The ready-made opinion of the appraiser is an important, but not the only document that must be submitted to the court.

We collect documents for the court

To consider the case in court, the following documents must be submitted:

• statement of claim - the composition of the information that should be contained in the statement of claim is given in Art. 131 Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federation;
• copy of the act on the consequences of the gulf of the apartmentdrawn up and signed on the day of flooding;
• cost estimate to eliminate the consequences of the accident;
• independent examination certificate - an indication of the cause of flooding, an assessment of material damage;
• estimate documentation on the costs of appraisal work;
• title documents for an apartment - a contract of sale, gift, inheritance, etc.

Pay attention to the total amount of damage indicated by you in the statement of claim. If it does not exceed 50,000 rubles, then, according to Art. 23 Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federation (Clause 5, Part 1), the case may be considered in a magistrate court. If this amount is exceeded, the lawsuit is filed with the district court at the location of the defendant in accordance with Art. 22 Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federation.

The amount of damage found affects the amount of state duty that you will be paid for the consideration of the case in court.

If an independent appraisal was not made before the start of the appeal to the judicial authorities, a construction and technical examination will be obligatory appointed by the court.

Unfortunately, the flooding of an apartment is far from being as rare a situation as we would like, and if it was repeated in the course of an existing trial, then materials on it can be attached to an existing case

It may happen that, during the trial, a new flooding of the affected apartment occurs. Then you need to draw up the inspection report again, adjust the estimate and submit these documents to the court so that they are added to the existing case.

Recovery of the awarded amount

When the court decides in favor of the injured party, you will receive a writ of execution. Now you should turn to the bailiffs to force the culprit to enforce the court decision.

You must come to the bailiff service (territorial department) on the reception day. Take along your identification documents, a writ of execution issued by the court, and your bank details for transferring funds to pay for the damage.

On the spot you have to write a statement on the basis of which enforcement proceedings will be instituted.

The bailiff who is entrusted with the work in your case leads several similar cases of varying degrees of difficulty at once, so do not forget to remind him of yourself

Although it takes only five days to execute a court decision under the law, the procedure can take much longer. To expedite it, after a few days from the date of your application, find out which of the specialists is entrusted with your case.

You need a phone and a full name bailiff. Your business with him is one of many, therefore, only systematically reminding him of yourself, you will finally achieve the desired result.

In order not to become the culprit of the flood yourself, you must timely inspect the water pipes in the apartment, check the tightness of the connections and monitor the condition of the taps. Partially reduce the risks by installing in the bathroom leak sensor - anti-flood system.

If the trouble happened and you flooded the neighbors, we recommend that you familiarize yourself with the information provided in this article.

Conclusions and useful video on the topic

This video will help you organize your information about what to do when neighbors from above have flooded your apartment.

The consultation of the assistant prosecutor of the Avtozavodsky district of the city of Tolyatti will allow you not only to properly navigate the documentation that the court will need, but also to think about whether it is worth insuring your property against flooding.

Now you know exactly in what sequence you need to act to compensate for damage to property when the apartment is flooded.

Save the list of documents that you may need when applying to the court to be always fully prepared. Act calmly, do not give vent to emotions and try to come to an amicable pre-trial agreement for the sake of preserving your nerves, time and energy.

Have something to supplement? Or want to share your experience in resolving issues after flooding by neighbors from above? You can leave comments on the publication and participate in discussions. The contact form is located in the lower block.