Controversial issues regarding payment of utility bills (Kotov V.)

Disputes about who pays utility bills: the registered owner or the owner arise when another person, not the owner, lives and uses utilities. Who owns the property pays for it. This rule is established by Art. 153 of the Housing Code.

It does not matter who is registered in the apartment and where the owner of the property is located. The obligation to pay rent rests with the owner.

If the rent is not paid, unpleasant consequences will inevitably arise. The management company can go to court and calculate penalties for each day of delay.

  • 1 Who pays for housing and communal services: owner or tenant
  • 2 Who pays if the owner leaves
  • 3 How to force a registered person to pay
  • 4 Who pays for the children
  • 5 Personal account section - a way to solve the problem
  • 6 Controversial issues are decided by the court
  • 7 Consequences for defaulters

Who pays for housing and communal services: the owner or the tenant


When renting, disputes often arise over who should pay for utilities. The owner will be in for an unpleasant surprise if the tenants leave unpaid telephone calls or lights on everywhere, and a large electricity bill will come.

All financial issues need to be sorted out before the tenants move in. It is necessary to determine by agreement the procedure for paying utility bills.

2 payment options:

  1. Tenants pay their own bills.
  2. They transfer the money to the owner, and he already pays the bills.

To avoid unnecessary disputes over who should pay for utilities, a security deposit is taken. It serves as insurance against the actions of unscrupulous temporary residents.

After all, tenants can move out without paying anything. Then you will have to spend time proving justice in court. That’s why a deposit is needed to insure against such unpleasant situations.

What do utilities include?

What do the services include?

According to the latest changes, the right to use public services has: The owner of an apartment or other residential premises with his family; Citizens who received living space from the cooperative; Tenants of housing in an apartment building; Tenants of apartment building premises.

payments In Russia, the law provides for a clear procedure for paying for housing and communal services.

In order not to find yourself in a difficult situation and not be involved in litigation, you should know about all the nuances of the legislation in this area. The obligation to pay for consumed utilities applies to all users.

These include citizens, or individuals, and enterprises - legal entities.

Who pays if the owner leaves?


The owner of the home may live in another city for a long time, but he will still have to pay utility bills if the management company was not notified of the move.

You must submit an application to the management of the management company or HOA. This statement will serve as the basis for recalculation. A new calculation is made if the owner is away for five days, provided that there are no meters.

If the application is made after the fact, then in order to agree to recalculate the utility bill, you must provide evidence of residence in another city.

Eviction of one of the owners

When one of the shareholders does not pay utility bills, questions arise about his eviction from the living space. Co-owners often cannot resolve this issue on their own, so they have to involve a management company.

Penalties (a type of penalty) begin to accrue after 30 days of non-payment of rent debts. And they are equal to 1/300

. If the owner does not pay for three months, the fine will already be equal to 1/130 of the refinancing rate.

If a child under 18 years of age is not registered in the apartment, the management organization has the right to limit or turn off the supply of utilities (switching off hot water, electricity).

If a citizen pays off the debt, the supply of utilities will resume, and penalties will no longer be accrued. Otherwise, the matter will be resolved through court.

According to Act 3 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation, no one can evict a tenant from his property, or restrict access to utilities, except for representatives of the management company. But the Criminal Code does not have the right to evict a person from an apartment, even if he is a debtor

. Only the court has the right to do this.

If the owner does not live in the apartment for more than 6 months, he can be discharged. The reason for eviction is also rent arrears.

Important! If the case reaches the court, which gives a positive answer, the owner must vacate the living space within 2 months. If he does not meet the allotted time, his eviction will be controlled by representatives of the authorities

. Article 31 of the RF Housing Code specifies the procedure for eviction of a debtor.

For other owners, you need to know that no one can force you to pay other people’s bills for using utilities.

How to force a registered person to pay


It seems that property owners have nowhere to go, whether they like it or not, and they will have to pay for housing and communal services.

However, there is one trump card that can be used. It is possible that the management of the HOA or management company will refuse to recalculate payments, even if the owner proves that he lived in another place. But there is a way to force a registered citizen to pay utility bills.

2 signs of a service consumer:

  • use of housing legally;
  • consumption of utility resources.

Important! The Government approved the rules on how housing and utility services are provided. The procedure is regulated in detail by Resolution No. 354 of 05/06/2011. The consumer of services is obliged to pay for them in full and on time. This means that those who do not consume them do not pay for housing and communal services.

If the owner of the home is not registered and does not live there, but another person is there and enjoys the benefits of civilization, then he must pay off the debt alone.

It may be difficult to force a registered person to pay, so the question of who pays: the owner or the registered person will be decided by the court.

What utilities do I need to pay for?

Dear readers! The articles describe only typical (template) situations and methods for solving them. It is worth considering that each case is unique, and solving a separate issue requires an individual approach

.
To find out how to act specifically in your case, we recommend using a free consultation by calling the number for Moscow and Moscow Region, +7 (812) 309-13-76 for St. Petersburg and the Leningrad region
.

The general concept of public services is understood as the provision of certain services that are used by residents of the premises, namely:

  • Water supply services: cold and hot water;
  • sewerage (water disposal);
  • electricity supply services;
  • Gas supply services, if such a resource is used;
  • Heating services in winter;
  • Solid waste removal services;
  • Elevator operation.

You also need to pay for the maintenance of the entire house:

  • current repairs of common areas;
  • cleaning stairs, elevators, areas near apartments;
  • maintenance of intercom and entrance doors;
  • maintenance of general building communications;
  • cleaning the local area;
  • roof maintenance and repair;
  • other similar works.

Payment is made to the accounts of resource or service providers at tariffs established by the state. All residents, without exception, are required to pay, and the rates do not depend on who is the owner of the property.

Dear readers! The articles describe only typical (template) situations and methods for solving them. It is worth considering that each case is unique, and solving a separate issue requires an individual approach

.
To find out how to act specifically in your case, we recommend using a free consultation by calling the number for Moscow and Moscow Region, +7 (812) 309-13-76 for St. Petersburg and the Leningrad region
.

The list of utility services is approved by Article 154 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation.

If there is an HOA in the house, then most likely the residents are obliged to pay the labor of the employees of this organization. For this purpose, mandatory contributions in a certain amount are introduced.

Who pays for the children


The question of who pays for housing and communal services: children or parents does not cause controversy until the children turn 18 years old. After this the situation changes.

Family members of the owner of the apartment are jointly and severally liable. Therefore, responsibility for debts falls on them too. Other conditions on how to pay receipts may be established by agreement. For example, if there is 1 owner and 4 family members, then all five must be responsible for paying the bills issued by the management company.

Their parents pay for young children. If the child is registered with his father, the mother is not registered, and the father also pays child support, then this does not exempt him from paying the issued receipts.

Should the owner of the room pay rent, he himself is not registered, but he accommodates tenants

1. If there are meters for both electricity and water, etc. – then all calculations are made exclusively BY THE COUNTER. However, even if no one is registered in the apartment, then all the same, receipts (for water, for example) are issued per person - as employees of energy supply organizations say - “for the actual opportunity to turn on the tap at any time, and for the fact that such a utility service is provided at all ( i.e. water runs through pipes, etc.).”

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"eleven. Failure to use the premises by owners, tenants and other persons is not grounds for failure to pay for residential premises and utilities. In the temporary absence of citizens, payment for certain types of utility services, calculated on the basis of consumption standards, is carried out taking into account the recalculation of payments for the period of temporary absence of citizens in the manner approved by the Government of the Russian Federation.”

Personal account section - a way to solve the problem


When real estate is in shared ownership, payment responsibilities are allowed to be divided.

The question of who officially pays utility bills: the registered owner or the owner, is resolved as follows:

  1. Owners of real estate shares send an application to the management company for the division of payments. Each of them attaches documents to their part of the property.
  2. After the management of the management company makes a decision, the first and second owners pay for their part of the property. People receive two receipts for one personal account.

Who is required to pay utility bills?

This article describes in detail who pays for the apartment, the owner or the registered owner, and everything you need to know about it. It is more pleasant to collect money than to spend it. But you have to pay for utilities, no matter how sorry it would be to part with the banknotes. Such conditions are dictated by Article 153 of the Housing Code.

Info

Moreover, the calculation begins from the moment a certain person officially becomes obligated to pay utility bills. This responsibility is assigned to the tenant of a specific premises after the social tenancy agreement has been concluded and it has entered into legal force. Paid utilities The housing stock can be used in different ways - the home may have an owner, but at the same time another person will use it.

In this case, a dispute often arises as to who pays for the apartment, the owner or the registered owner.

Controversial issues are decided by the court


When one owner constantly pays for another person, sooner or later a conflict may begin. A bona fide owner has every chance to prove his case if payment documents confirming the fact of payment have been preserved. The time to file a claim in court is three years.

It’s not for nothing that they say that a miser pays twice. The defendant will have to pay legal costs if he loses the dispute.

But if the co-owner presents certificates of registration in another place and payment of housing and communal services there, then there will be no grounds for paying compensation.

The absentee owner is responsible for paying for maintenance, repairs and heating. The amount of payment directly depends on the square footage of living space in the property. Therefore, it will not be possible to completely free yourself from responsibilities.

Consequences for defaulters


Letting go and not paying at all is a dangerous decision. The management company will charge penalties. The homeowner risks being left without electricity, water and heating. After all, utility companies have the right to suspend the supply of resources when there is no payment for them.

It happens that registration of residents has ended, but utility companies continue to issue bills for payment, as before. Then you need to take certificates of registration of residents, as well as a certificate of family composition. You should contact the management of the management company with these documents.

Before registering tenants, you should think carefully, because the owner will bear responsibilities to public utilities. Moreover, the more registered, the higher the costs for homeowners. To force registered citizens to pay, they will have to file a lawsuit.

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