Sample letter to Moscow Vodokanal about poor quality water

In what cases should a claim be made for the work of a water utility?

All violations by the water utility can be divided into three large groups:

provision of water supply services of inadequate quality;
incorrect calculation and charging of payments for water supply;
other violations committed during the operation of the water utility.

Poor quality water supply

The quality criteria for water supply are strictly regulated by law and cannot be violated by the water utility. In particular, when providing water supply services, a number of conditions must be met.

Important! The heat supply organization, not the water utility, is responsible for the temperature of hot water.

Water composition

In accordance with Article 23 of the Federal Law “On Water Supply and Sanitation,” drinking water must be supplied through centralized cold water supply systems. SanPiN 2.1.4.1074-01 describes in detail the standards for chemical substances, the content of which is permissible in drinking water.

If you have doubts about the compliance of the supplied water with these standards, you can contact directly any laboratory of the Sanitary and Epidemiological Service (SES) to conduct a paid examination of water quality.

Water pressure

The problem of low pressure in water supply networks is not only that water barely flows from the tap. Breakdowns of household appliances (for example, washing machines and dishwashers) and water supply systems are also possible.

The standard water pressure in residential buildings is established by building codes and regulations (SNiP) No. 2.04.02-84. The level of water pressure in the apartment can be determined independently by the speed of filling the container. However, for subsequent contact with the water utility and other authorities, it is better to invite representatives of the management company, HOA or just neighbors, measure the pressure with a pressure gauge and draw up a report.

Note! In the event of a breakdown of household appliances due to poor water quality or low pressure in the water supply, the consumer has the right to demand reimbursement from the water utility for the cost of repair or replacement.

Water cut off

Article 21 of the Federal Law “On Water Supply and Sanitation” regulates the procedure for turning off water. Thus, the basis for an unscheduled shutdown can only be cases strictly defined by law:

accident in the water supply system;
significant deterioration in water quality;
the need to increase water supply to fire sites;
discharge of unacceptable substances into the water supply system;
obstruction by the subscriber of access to representatives of the water utility or to control sewer wells for sampling wastewater.

In addition, the water utility is obliged to notify consumers about the reason for turning off the water within 24 hours from the moment of shutdown.

If a water utility carries out a planned water shutdown due to non-payment (more than 2 months), repair work or other reasons specified by law, it is obliged to notify subscribers of the shutdown at least 24 hours in advance.

In the event of a long-term water outage, the municipality is obliged to provide residents with the minimum required amount of water.

If there was no proper notice of disconnection, or the disconnection occurred without legal grounds, the consumer’s rights should be considered violated.

Sample complaint

Consultation on document preparation

Incorrect calculation and charging of payments

According to Part 2 of Article 157 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation, tariffs for utility services are approved by the state authorities of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation.

For example, in Moscow this is done by the Department of Economic Policy and Development of the City of Moscow. Vodokanal does not have the right to deviate from the approved tariffs when calculating payments.

If the water utility incorrectly calculated the payment for water (for example, calculated the amount according to the standard, and not according to the meter), it is obliged to pay the consumer a fine in the amount of fifty percent of the excess amount of the accrued fee (Article 156 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation). In this case, two conditions must be met:

The violation was not the fault of the consumer (for example, he could have provided incorrect meter readings).
The consumer managed to pay the erroneously charged amount.

Sample complaint

Consultation on document preparation

Other cases of violation by the water utility

The water utility is responsible not only for water supply and sewerage, but also for the maintenance of water supply and sewerage networks. Therefore, in the event of damage to property or health of citizens during construction and repair work on networks, the water utility organization will bear responsibility.

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How to complain to the prosecutor's office via the Internet?

To determine where to complain about a water utility, you need to understand the seriousness of the situation; in most cases, it is enough to file an appeal only with the management company. But if the Criminal Code does not respond to messages from residents, then it will need to be sent to higher authorities.

The authority to which the complaint must be filed is determined depending on the reason for the appeal.

Management Company. This is the first instance where a resident should turn. Appeals are allowed in writing or in the form of a call. After notifying the management company about the presence of problems with the supplied water, a response should be received, in accordance with which actions to resolve the situation begin.
City Administration. If the management company cannot eliminate the deficiency, then the complaint is sent to the city or district administration.
Housing inspection. This organization is responsible for maintaining the house in good condition and monitors the condition of the housing stock.
Rospotrebnadzor. The issue with organizations that provide low-quality housing and communal services will be resolved.
Government services. Filing a complaint online is only available to those persons who are registered on the government portal. But not all authorities can submit an appeal remotely.
Prosecutor's office. An appeal is required only if all previous authorities failed to give the required result.
Court. The claim being drawn up must be directed at the organization providing the service.

We invite you to familiarize yourself with: Sample appeal against a magistrate’s decision – how to write the document correctly?

If it is necessary to assert their rights, users of housing and communal services can rely on Federal Law No. 416 and RF PP No. 354, which spell out all the nuances regulating the rules of hot and cold water supply.

Hot water

It follows from regulatory documents that hot water must be supplied constantly. Stopping the hot water supply is allowed only in the following cases:

accident on the highway (outage duration no more than 24 hours);
the need to carry out minor work (the duration of continuous shutdown is no more than 4 hours, and per day - no more than 8 hours);
prevention or carrying out major work on utility networks (outage duration no more than 14 days).

If the hot water is turned off not on the above grounds, then the resident of the house has every right to file a complaint with the regulatory authorities.

Also, the right to complain is provided if the specified deadlines for the work were not taken into account. The responsible person will be the company providing the services.

The penalty used is a cost reduction of 0.15% for every hour of downtime.

You always have several options, that is, several departments and authorities that will have to consider your appeal and where to file a complaint against the management company VODOKANAL PLUS. With the help of our article, you will figure out in what case - where to write a complaint against the management company and what it is advisable to include in the text of the appeal.

and also we must not forget about judicial protection of your rights, that is, you can apply to

You always have several options, that is, several departments and authorities that will have to consider your appeal and where to file a complaint against the Vodokanal management company. With the help of our article, you will figure out in what case - where to write a complaint against the management company and what it is advisable to include in the text of the appeal.

Where to complain

Such an agreement must spell out the responsibilities of each party and indicate the measures to be taken in case of non-compliance with the clauses of the agreement.

If there are no violations on your part in relation to the water utility, then you can safely complain about the actions of the other party to the contract. And the inaction of the other party may be punishable.

There are certain regulatory authorities that will help restore justice and resolve issues between the residents of the house and the water utility:

Rospotrebnadzor;
Housing Inspection;
Prosecutor's office.

After detecting a malfunction or accident, it is necessary to record the fact of what happened. Confirmation may be a video recording, evidence from witnesses, but special weight will be given to documentary evidence of what happened, which can be obtained by contacting housing and communal services employees.

If the fact of an unscheduled shutdown of water supply is proven, this can cause great trouble for the water utility, and the organization itself may be required to pay monetary compensation to the residents of the house for the damage caused.

You always have several options, that is, several departments and authorities that will have to consider your appeal and where to file a complaint against the management company Nakhodka Vodokanal. With the help of our article, you will figure out in what case - where to write a complaint against the management company and what it is advisable to include in the text of the appeal.

Where can I complain about a water utility?

First you should try submitting a request to the water utility. It is important to send the appeal in writing in order to subsequently have proof of such an appeal. If an application to the water utility does not help solve the problem, you should contact state regulatory authorities.

Important! The water utility organization, as a rule, exists in the form of a state unitary enterprise or municipal unitary enterprise (unitary enterprise), i.e. is not a government agency. Consequently, contacting the water utility will constitute a claim to which the water utility is not obliged to respond. The procedure for filing complaints with government authorities (Rospotrebnadzor, State Housing Inspectorate, Prosecutor's Office) is regulated by Federal Law No. 59-FZ dated May 2, 2006 “On the procedure for considering appeals from citizens of the Russian Federation.” In accordance with this law, all appeals must be considered within 30 days without fail, and they must be answered on the merits.

Rospotrebnadzor

Water supply is a consumer service, therefore legislation on the protection of consumer rights is applicable to the work of the water utility. Therefore, you can file a complaint against the water utility with Rospotrebnadzor. This body verifies the circumstances set out in the complaint against the water utility. If violations are detected, he can issue an order to the organization to eliminate them.

You can call the department, come to a personal appointment, or send a complaint to the water utility by mail. The telephone number and address of the regional office of Rospotrebnadzor can be found on the website ХХ.rospotrebnadzor.ru, where ХХ is the region number, for example, 22.rospotrebnadzor.ru. On the same website you can leave an appeal electronically (authorization through government services will be required).

State Housing Inspectorate (GZHI)

The responsibilities of the GZHI include monitoring compliance with housing legislation, in particular ensuring the rights of citizens when providing them with housing and utility services. Contacts of the regional inspection can be found on the official website of the head of the region.

For example, contacts of the State Property Committee of Moscow can be found here. You can file a complaint against the water utility in person, through an electronic reception desk or by mail.

Prosecutor's office

If the above-mentioned organizations did not help solve the problem, you need to write a complaint against the water utility to the prosecutor's office. The prosecutor's office is a supervisory body whose powers include conducting unscheduled inspections of activities based on the circumstances set out in the complaint.

You should write a written appeal to the prosecutor's office and send it by mail or take it personally to the prosecutor at your place of residence. You can find the nearest prosecutor's office using the Prosecutor General's Office website.

If the water utility’s offense is not criminal in nature, you can write to the online reception of the prosecutor’s office.

Are you tired of reading? We’ll tell you over the phone and answer your questions.

How to correctly write a complaint against Management Company VODOKANAL PLUS

Water supply is one of the blessings of civilization, but housing and communal services often cause problems for their clients. This is due to a lack of interest in their own work, high costs of maintaining networks, as well as the human factor in the ranks of officials.

Reasons

Vodokanal is responsible for maintaining city water supply networks. Any violations of the law and the rules of work/water supply may entail the need to file a complaint with various authorities.

However, it should be remembered that complaints may often remain unanswered, which gives you a reason to contact other bodies whose responsibilities include control over government entities. The grounds for filing a complaint against Vodokanal can be very different.

Here are some of them:

unsubstantiated debts for water that you did not use (for example, from a water pump on the street that has not been working for a long time);
insufficient water pressure in home pipes;
long repair works on the street, as well as noise from them;
unsafe circumstances of the work - for example, it takes a long time to fill up the ground dug up to replace pipes, which can cause harm to people and animals;
unsafe situations with manhole covers on roads;
low-quality water with impurities of metals and other substances (expertise is needed);
flooding of houses due to inaction of services;
cessation of water supply for no reason and for periods exceeding legal norms;
emergency state of communications.

Where to complain

You can file a complaint against the water utility to different authorities, depending on the violation. Below we will look at each of them in more detail.

HOA and Vodokanal

As a rule, relations with the water utility are regulated by management companies of residential buildings or authorized housing and communal services organizations. Therefore, if something happens to the water supply inside or near the house, it makes sense to first file a complaint with the Criminal Code. This must be done only in writing in the following ways:

In person, at the reception of citizens of your management company, the complaint is submitted in two copies so that the company representative signs one of them. Evidence of the violation must be provided in copies;
by registered mail with notification to the management company - usually used if company representatives refuse to accept the complaint personally. Sending the letter via Russian Post will ensure that your application cannot be rejected.

If the management company cannot solve the problem (for example, pipes or repair work were not carried out in the jurisdiction of the management company), an appeal should be sent to Vodokanal itself.

As a rule, it is a division of the Administration of your city, so information about addresses and reception hours should be found on the administration’s website.

Filing a complaint with a water supply organization or city water utility is possible in three ways:

a written request using a registered letter with notification addressed to the head of Vodokanal;
personal submission of a written complaint to the office;
filling out an online form on the appropriate resource (often not available in all regions).

Copies of evidence, photographs, videos and other evidence confirming the problem must be attached to the complaint. Such a complaint will be considered for 30 days.

Prosecutor's office

If any violation of laws occurs, lawyers advise contacting the prosecutor's office immediately.

However, according to the law, this may be unlawful if you do not send a copy of the complaint to the Vodokanal itself or the Criminal Code along with an appeal to law enforcement agencies.

It is necessary to list the filing authorities at the very beginning of the text of the complaint, so that the prosecutor has an idea of your lawful actions and does not refuse to consider the application.

The prosecutor's office is able to consider complaints that relate to any offenses on the part of the water utility or the management company.

This is especially true for the unlawful collection of funds for the use of water from long-closed pumps, increased payments, incomprehensible interest or penalties for long-standing billing periods, etc.

After the prosecutor's office considers your complaint, a trial may be held if Vodokanal's violations are too serious and require compensation (for example, cases of open manholes that caused injuries to people or pets).

Filing a complaint to the prosecutor's office is carried out through the following channels:

personally to an employee of the prosecutor's office against a signature on one of the copies;
personally to the prosecutor at an official reception of citizens with the printed text of the complaint;
by mail to the territorial prosecutor's office at the place of your residence (or the problem arose);
using an electronic form on the website of the Moscow Prosecutor General's Office with subsequent redirection of the complaint to the local authority (additional 7 days for consideration).

Upon registration of a complaint, the prosecutor is obliged to conduct an inspection of the actions or inactions of the water utility and make a decision regarding the situation that has arisen. If a decision cannot be made by law (which is rare), the prosecutor's office will send you an explanatory answer about where else you can turn and whether it is possible at all.

Rospotrebnadzor

This organization will consider your complaint if it concerns the provision of low-quality services by the water utility or violation of clauses of the contract with you (if you have a contract).

Most often, complaints about improper bills, delayed repairs, insufficient water pressure in pipes, etc. are considered.

Any violation of your consumer rights will be investigated, and after that Rospotrebnadzor will issue an order to Vodokanal or the responsible organization. The complaint is filed through the official channels of the department:

personal submission or registered mail to the address of the territorial body of Rospotrebnadzor with copies of evidence and documents;
online submission on the website with a limit of 2000 characters for appeal.

How to compose

There are several simple rules for drawing up any appeal. Since you are going to send a complaint to government authorities, they must be followed for a successful consideration of the case.

First, make sure that you have evidence of an offense - without compelling reasons, the complaint may not be considered. Copies of documents or digital records will greatly speed up the verification process.

If everything is in order with the evidence, you can begin to compile the text. It requires:

adhere to polite and formal speech, without stooping to threats and abuse;
clearly describe the situation without embellishing it or inventing anything;
confirm your words with laws, regulations, agreements with Vodokanal, as well as the evidence that you have;
demand from the authorized organization lawful actions commensurate with the offense;
indicate who the complaint is from and where the response needs to be given;
indicate the full name of the water utility, as well as the organization to which you are filing a complaint;
subscribe and date your request.

Sample

Sample complaint against Vodokanal.doc

Vodokanal provides technical maintenance of water supply networks. Usually this is a structural unit of the administration of a locality or a separate organization.

Interacts with subscribers through the management company.

Vodokanal maintains urban water supply networks. The most common reasons for requests:

Unreasonable collection of fees for water supply, issuance of debt, refusal to recalculate and write off.
Supply of water of inadequate quality, with foreign impurities and odor. This is a serious violation that requires the involvement of specialists from Rospotrebnadzor, identifying the causes and establishing damage to the environment. Liability is possible up to and including criminal.
Failure to eliminate faults in the area of responsibility: lengthy repairs of underground pipes, lack of covers on manholes.
Lack of water supply for a long time.

As a rule, the consumer enters into an agreement with the management company, and that, in turn, with the Vodokanal enterprise. Therefore, when questions arise about water supply, you should find out the problems at the level of the management company (problems can arise inside the house), and then proceed with your complaints to the resource supplier.

Water shortages often cause huge problems. Even greater inconveniences are caused by unscheduled shutdowns of hot and cold water, accidents on the heating pipeline and other unforeseen situations. If you find yourself in such a situation, you need to contact the water utility.

We suggest you read: How to correctly draw up an appeal against a decision of a magistrate

But this service does not always act promptly. In some situations, homes may be left without water for very long periods of time. Citizens immediately have a question about how to act in such a situation, how to force the water utility to act quickly.

You can learn various methods of influence from this article.

When to complain

In the event of an unscheduled water outage in your apartment, it is best to act immediately. In most cases, this situation is associated with some kind of accident, and it can happen on any pipeline or in the house itself.

Such accidents must be eliminated in the shortest possible time by water utility employees, but their actions very often do not differ in speed. In this case, it is necessary to use various options for influencing the water utility.

To do this, you should contact the regulatory authorities that monitor the fulfillment of their duties by the water utility.

You should contact any regulatory authority with a well-drafted claim, and you can ask lawyers for help in drafting it.

Lawyers working in this area have extensive experience in such cases and will help you draw up a competent document that will have weight in all regulatory authorities.

If necessary, you can use their services not only online, but also arrange a personal meeting. It should be borne in mind that using the services of a lawyer will entail certain financial costs, but at the same time it will instill confidence in you and help you achieve results.

Where to complain

keeping the common areas of an apartment building clean;
garbage removal;
making payments for utilities, preparing and transferring payment documents to owners;
recalculation of the amount of utility bills in case of failure to submit meter readings;
submission of reports on the expenditure of funds for current and major repairs of an apartment building;
provision, upon written request of the owner of the residential premises, of certificates regarding his calculations from the financial personal account;
current and major repairs of common property
24-hour emergency dispatch service for an apartment building;
ensuring the provision of utility services to property owners (water supply, sewerage, heating, electricity, gas supply);
informing residential property owners about the duration and causes of interruptions in the provision of utility services;
liquidation of emergency situations and their consequences.

the cleaning of the common areas of the apartment building was done poorly;
did not remove garbage or containers with bulky waste;
did not make payments for utilities, prepare and transfer payment documents to the owners within the terms specified in the contract;
did not recalculate the amount of utility bills in case of failure to submit meter readings;
did not submit reports on the expenditure of funds for current and major repairs of an apartment building;
did not provide, at the written request of the owner of the residential premises, certificates of his calculations from the financial personal account;
did not carry out (poorly performed) current or major repairs of common property
did not provide 24-hour emergency dispatch service for the apartment building;
did not ensure the provision of utility services to the owners of the premises (water supply, sanitation, heating, electricity supply, gas supply);
did not inform the owners of residential premises about the duration and reasons for interruptions in the provision of utility services;
did not eliminate the emergency situation and (or) its consequences;
they treated me rudely and rudely;
they impose additional paid services (concierge, janitor, additional plumber on duty, etc.), it is proposed to pay for current or major repairs not according to the receipt under the pretext of unscheduled work, etc.;
The management company accepted a commercial proposal regarding the use of common property without putting this issue on the agenda of the next meeting of homeowners and without voting on this issue, violating the rights of the owners of residential premises;
other.

extorting money from me for services and work provided under the contract and already paid for on the receipt;
insulted me (write under what circumstances this happened);
committed fraudulent actions against the owners of residential premises of an apartment building (describe what they involved);
violated the inviolability of my home (describe how this happened);
they stole the money I deposited into my personal account as an advance for the provision of utilities;
other unlawful actions of management company employees

the cleaning of the common areas of the apartment building was done poorly;
did not remove snow, garbage or containers with bulky waste;
did not make payments for utilities, prepare and transfer payment documents to the owners within the terms specified in the contract;
did not recalculate the amount of utility bills in case of failure to submit meter readings;
did not submit reports on the expenditure of funds for current and major repairs of an apartment building;
did not provide, at the written request of the owner of the residential premises, certificates of his calculations from the financial personal account;
did not carry out (poorly performed) current or major repairs of common property
did not provide 24-hour emergency dispatch service for the apartment building;
did not ensure the provision of utility services to the owners of the premises (water supply, sanitation, heating, electricity supply, gas supply);
did not inform the owners of residential premises about the duration and reasons for interruptions in the provision of utility services;
did not eliminate the emergency situation and (or) its consequences;
they treated me rudely and rudely;
other.

recognize the actions of the Criminal Code as illegal;
oblige the management company to eliminate violations of housing legislation and fulfill obligations under the apartment building management agreement using the efforts and resources of the Management Company;
oblige the management company to recalculate the amounts of utility bills (to compensate for the losses I have incurred);
oblige the Criminal Code to compensate for the moral damage caused to me.

recognize the actions of the Criminal Code as illegal;
stop the commission of criminal acts;
bring those responsible to justice;
oblige the management company to eliminate the violations;
oblige the management company to recalculate the amounts of utility bills (to compensate for the losses I have incurred).

Prosecutor's office

How to properly draw up and submit a claim?

The correctness of the appeal, the completeness of the facts stated in it and the presence of evidence of violations on the part of the water utility directly affect the quality of consideration of the appeal and the outcome of the case. If the appeal is sent to the water utility, it should be called a claim. A complaint is sent to government authorities.

As a rule, a violation by a water utility of the rules for the provision of water supply services affects not one, but several consumers: residents of one house, and sometimes an entire area. Therefore, it is better to draw up a collective complaint and collect signatures from residents. As a rule, regulatory authorities respond to collective complaints more quickly.

The complaint should begin with a header that indicates the contacts of the sender and the organization to which the document is sent. In order to receive an accurate answer, it is important to provide your information: full name, return address and telephone number.

Next, you need to state the essence of the complaint, supporting your arguments with evidence and the law. It is necessary to indicate:

address of the house where the problem occurred;
date and circumstances of discovery of the problem;
the essence of the violation by the water utility;
links to regulations;
requirements and deadlines for completion;
if necessary, return the overpaid amount - account details (for example, if a claim is written to the water utility for an unreasonable debt);
for a claim to a water utility - the intention to go to court in case of failure to comply with the stated requirements;
date and signature.

Copies of all relevant documents are attached to the complaint. The maximum amount of evidence should be collected: acts of identification of the problem, witness statements, photographs, etc.

Sample complaint

Consultation on document preparation

If the complaint is submitted in person, you must come to the appointment with two copies of the complaint. One must be submitted to the office; on the second, a representative of the organization must put a mark indicating acceptance of the complaint and the date.

By mail, the complaint must be sent by registered mail with return receipt requested. The postal receipt should be retained for possible production in court.

Next, you should wait for the return receipt, which will indicate the date of receipt of the complaint. It is from this date that the deadline for fulfilling the requirements specified in the complaint is considered.

If the case goes to court

As a rule, control authorities, if necessary, initiate recourse to court. However, if this does not happen, the violated rights are not restored, and the losses are not compensated, you can go to court yourself. To do this, you need to draw up a statement of claim based on a previously drawn up appeal.

It should be noted that the following requirements can additionally be included in the claim:

on the payment of a penalty in the amount of three percent of the price of the service for each day of delay and its calculation (Article 28 of the Law “On the Protection of Consumer Rights”);
on the payment of interest for the use of other people's funds in accordance with Art. 395 Civil Code of the Russian Federation;
on reimbursement of legal expenses if the plaintiff applied for paid legal assistance;
on compensation for moral damage. The court may award monetary damages to compensate the plaintiff for his emotional distress.

In addition, when satisfying the plaintiff’s property claims, the court also orders a fine from the executor in the amount of 50% of the claim price for untimely fulfillment of the consumer’s requirements.

The state fee for going to court in cases of consumer rights protection is not paid. If an application of a non-property nature is submitted (for example, to restore water quality), a state fee of 300 rubles is paid.

The statement of claim can be submitted to the court in person or sent by mail.