A detailed guide on where to go and what to do if the neighbors from above are flooded
Unfortunately, residents of high-rise buildings are not immune from floods. Neighbors can inadvertently cause an accident. So, the neighbors from above flooded. What to do in a similar situation? First, go up to them and assess the situation. It is quite possible that it is dry there. Another option is to not open the doors. We will help you to figure out further actions without panic.
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The neighbors flooded from above: what to do, the first events
Many people are familiar with the picture when, at the entrance, you are greeted by slippers floating to the threshold. So what if the neighbors upstairs flooded the apartment? First of all, it is necessary to notify them of the flooding.
- It may happen that they are not at home or they are simply afraid to open the doors. In this case, you must immediately call the emergency gang. It is imperative to clarify the name of the dispatcher who received the signal. Specialists will cut off the water supply before the residents arrive home.
- it may happen that the water does not stop in your apartment. In this case, tenants from below will soon visit you. There is no need to conflict in this situation. Everyone became hostage to circumstances.
Safety measures against short circuiting
You need to worry about the safety of your family. De-energize electrical devices to avoid short circuits. The easiest way to do this is to turn off the switch for main dashboard... If there is no access to the general power system, you must turn off the sockets all electrical appliances.
Damage mitigation measures
It would seem that you first need to quickly remove the water to prevent even greater consequences. But the first thing that experts advise to do if the neighbors from above are flooded is to photograph the consequences of the flood.This may be necessary when drawing up an appeal to the court authorities and for a reliable assessment of losses. If the water continues to arrive, especially valuable items and documents need to be rescued.
Flooded by neighbors from above: what to do, where to go
Only competent and consistent actions will help to recover the damage as much as possible in the future. The consequences can be dire. But now is not the time or place to give vent to emotions. Actions must be competent and deliberate.
Determination of the culpable flooding
The owners of the upper apartment are not always to blame for the emergency.
- There are times when this is caused by a mistake by public utilities, or a breakthrough occurred in the water intake system, which is located in a common building junction. The culprit is the housing maintenance service or management organization. They are fully responsible for the serviceability of engineering networks;
- if the neighbors are to blame, it is necessary to establish who is the owner of the apartment. In case of guilt of the homeowners, you can try to negotiate without involving the judiciary. Invite them to your apartment, visually show all the damage. It is possible that they will admit guilt and pay damages in cash or help make repairs.
- if tenants live on top, and the accident occurred due to their negligence, the owner of the property will have to keep the answer. He is obliged to reimburse the losses caused by the tenants, and only then deal with the tenants;
- a situation may arise when neighbors from above rent premises under a social housing lease agreement. In this case, the owner is the municipal authorities or state entities. It is necessary to familiarize yourself in detail with the lease agreement, which should spell out the responsibility of each party.
We fix the fact of flooding correctly
The final result of damages will depend on the correct actions to fix flooding.
- First of all, all damage should be photographed or filmed;
- then you need to draw up an act. It is drawn up in any form in 3 copies. One is transferred to the neighbors from above. The second one is in the housing department or vehicle. The third copy remains with the victims.
The act is drawn up in the presence of neighbors from above and 2 witnesses. In writing, it is necessary to record the place and time of the incident, describe the consequences of the flood and give a rough estimate of the damage. If it is not possible to conduct a preliminary assessment, you can determine the need to apply for an independent assessment report.
The guilty party can refuse to sign the act; this must also be indicated in the document and confirmed by the signatures of witnesses.
Peaceful settlement option
According to the Civil Code of Article 1064, the perpetrator of the damage is obliged to fully compensate the injured party for all damage caused to the tenants or property. In this regard, if the guilty party is identified, it will not be possible to avoid compensation.
The best outcome is voluntary material damage coverage. The culprit does not always have the means to compensate, but admits his guilt. In this case, you can draw up an amicable agreement, in which you should fix the amount and frequency of compensation. It is better to draw up such a document with the help of a lawyer and register it at a notary office.
Appeal to the courts
But what to do if the neighbors from above are constantly flooding and refuse to voluntarily cover losses associated with flooding, is to apply to the judicial authorities.The assessment of moral damage will have to be proven, the court can reduce the total amount by its decision.
It is important! If the amount of damage does not exceed 50,000 rubles, you should apply to the magistrate's court.If the estimated cost exceeds this size, the solution to the problem lies with the federal court.
A solution to the problem through an insurance company
Even after a positive decision of the court, neighbors may delay payments. The only way out for this situation is timely property insurance. Of course, if the apartment was not insured before the unpleasant situation, insurance will not help. The contract for the provision of insurance services is drawn up in advance. Then the question will not arise: what to do if the apartment is flooded.
In order for the insurance company to reimburse all losses, the following conditions must be met:
- The agreement must contain the clause of insurance against flooding. In other words, from any water flows entering the apartment;
- The subject of insurance must be both the apartment and the items in it.
If the first point is not specified in the contract, the insurance company will not compensate for the damage at all. If only the second item is missing, the amount to be reimbursed will be extremely small.
If all the rules are observed, the actions of the injured party are as follows:
- inform the organization about the occurrence of an insured event;
- if necessary, notify of the need for an appraisal examination:
- draw up a preliminary act with representatives of the service organization;
- transfer all documents to insurers for calculating and receiving compensation.
We prepare documents for the court correctly
It is necessary to prepare the following package of documents for applying to the court:
- a claim for compensation for material and (optionally) moral damage;
- a copy of the statement, drawn up in any form, on the flooding of the apartment:
- documents confirming the ownership of the residential premises;
- if any, an expert examination with an assessment of harm:
- an estimate for repair work.
Bailiffs - features of work
After a positive decision, the injured party receives a writ of execution, which, together with the application, is submitted to the bailiff of the territorial location.The application should indicate the bank details to which the amount of damage will be received. After a while, a bailiff will be assigned to the case, who needs to be reminded of himself with some frequency. He has a lot of cases in production, and unnecessary reminders will help speed up the process of obtaining the amount of damage.
Conclusion
In the article, we reflected in as much detail as possible all possible situations, where to go if neighbors from above are drowning. As you can see, the best and fastest outcome of the case is a peaceful solution. Negligence of neighbors is not always the cause of flooding. You need to listen to their point of view, in addition, you can try to solve everything without litigation.
The whole process of registration of the flooding will be told by an operative in the video.