First aid for a pipe burst

Where to call if a pipe burst in your apartment

If you find a leaking pipe, hurry up and ask a plumber, whom the house management organization (DUK) must send. You should also go there if the pipe has already burst.

You can find information about which company services a specific address via the Internet, you can also look at advertisements at the entrance or see its name on the rent receipt. It is better to keep such numbers at hand, specifying them in advance. You can contact management specialists on weekdays during business hours. Most often they also have some kind of emergency number that is available 24 hours a day.

If a leak occurs when the DUK is not working, you need to call either its emergency dispatcher or the emergency repair service in the city.

The dispatcher will contact specialists and send them to the scene of the incident. You must understand that such actions can only be resorted to if the pipe is leaking so badly that it is impossible to cope with the problem on your own.

When troubleshooting a problem in the apartment, the owner of the property will have to pay for the work of specialists.

What to do if a hot or cold water pipe bursts

If a leak occurs in pipes with cold or hot water, you should contact the employees of the Management Company or DEZ . They will send plumbers, and if the damage is serious, they will contact the emergency services themselves. If it is after hours, immediately dial the Vodokanal repair service number. The dispatcher will send specialists to you. After eliminating the accident, ask to draw up a report indicating the location of the leak and the cause of the problem.

Residents often get confused and don’t know what to do to prevent water from flooding all the lower floors . When a pipe bursts and water arrives quickly, the actions fit into the following scheme:

Who to call

IF you have a pipe burst in your apartment, the decision of what to do first is easy. The leak must be stopped immediately. So, let's call:

manager of the management company;
or to the locksmith on duty;
and if they do not respond, then to the city emergency repair service.

The dispatcher is obliged to immediately notify his employees on duty about the incident and provide them with the address to which they must urgently go to fix the leak. Before they arrive, it is necessary to minimize or completely block the water flow on your own, as far as possible.

It should be borne in mind that it makes sense to urgently disturb the dispatcher and mechanics only in the case when a strong leak cannot be stopped independently. In many situations, to do this, it is enough to simply close the valve that controls the water supply from the common building riser to the apartment.

Where to go if your sewer breaks

The unpleasant “aroma” of sewage drains appears not only in old houses where the pipes have already worn out, but also in new high-rise buildings. In the latter case, the cause is errors in system installation. If you notice a sewer smell, you should first check your communications. This is especially true for apartment owners who carried out redevelopment and changed the location of plumbing fixtures. Often after this, stagnation forms in the drain pipes, which is the cause of the stench.

If you are sure that the sewer system has broken in the basement, you need to notify the utility company about this. At the same time, you should not write a collective statement; it requires a longer consideration. The complaint must be submitted in writing, requiring mandatory registration.

The management company is obliged to take care of eliminating the leak. If necessary, utility workers clean and disinfect the premises.

In the event that a sewerage break occurs on the street, the emergency utility service must be responsible for its elimination. On weekdays, the incident must be reported to the emergency department or management company that services the site. If the accident occurred on a weekend or after hours, you should contact the city emergency service dispatcher.

If the leak is in your apartment, also contact the company that manages the utilities in your home or call an independent plumber.

If the heating pipe is leaking

If a heating pipe bursts in an apartment, use all available absorbent means: rags, sponges. Be careful, the temperature of the liquid is high enough to cause burns. A rag wrapped around the pipe will help reduce the water pressure. It is urgent to call the emergency service of the Vodokanal branch.

The arriving specialists will shut down the heating system in the house. Before they arrive, take measures to avoid flooding your neighbors or at least minimize the consequences of a leak. Open the windows to lower the coolant temperature.

Who pays for damages in the event of a heating system failure?

Citizens living in the apartment are responsible for accidents that occur on the territory of the apartment. However, when radiators and heating pipes burst, the culprit may be improper pressure distribution in the system. Often, the court on the question of who is to blame for the accident takes the side of the residents. This can happen even if the case falls within the boundaries given in the LC. Utility workers will also be found guilty if DUK specialists carried out repairs, but the installation was performed poorly and the radiator leaked.

Who pays for damage if a vertical water pipe breaks?

The situation when a leaking riser causes a flood in an apartment is very unpleasant. But it’s even more difficult if the apartments located below were damaged due to the accident. Neighbors have the right to demand compensation for damage, and it often amounts to a considerable amount. However, the owners of the apartment are not always to blame for the accident. The Housing Code clearly defines who is responsible for an accident. If the section of pipe up to the shut-off device fails, the HOA or the management company are considered to be the culprits. In other cases, the owners of the apartment bear responsibility for the damage caused. They are also required to monitor the health of the system and promptly report problems.

Who is to blame in this situation

Residents of apartment buildings quite often encounter the problem of leaking pipes or risers. There can be many reasons for creating such a problem. One of them is the wear and tear of pipes, since many apartment buildings were built during the Soviet period.

Over the period of many years of use of pipes, they become unusable.

One of the responsibilities of public utilities is to ensure that the communication systems used by residents of an apartment building are in good technical condition. Residents are responsible for independently maintaining the proper condition of communications and pipes inside the apartment.

Attention! According to the norms of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation, the distribution of responsibilities for maintaining pipes in good condition is carried out between:

Homeowners association or management company in the case when a pipe breakthrough occurred before the shut-off device;
owners when the cause of the breakthrough is discovered after the shut-off device. As a rule, pipe repair work is carried out at the expense of the apartment owner.

Repair work by utility services is also carried out at the expense of utility payments made every month by the owners.

Thus, it turns out that repairs or replacement of pipes are carried out at the expense of the owners of apartments in an apartment building.

The damage caused by an accident is usually extensive. Therefore, first of all, the owners themselves must monitor the serviceability of communication systems.

Who is to blame if neighbors are injured due to a pipe leak?

In a non-privatized, municipal apartment

Government decree number 491, which defines the rules for maintaining common property, states that maintenance and repair of the water supply system is carried out at the expense of residents. As for the replacement of pipes, it is carried out during the renovation of the entire building. Funds for this are allocated from voluntary contributions made by residents. This is also stated in Article 67 of the RF Housing Code.

Responsibility for the proper operation of the water supply and sewerage lies with the HOA. Utility workers are required to regularly check equipment and, if necessary, repair or replace it. However, it must be taken into account that if a leak occurs on the territory of the apartment, its residents will have to pay for the damage, even if they are not the owners.

If your upstairs neighbors flooded you and there are facts confirming their negligence, you should demand compensation for damage from them.

In a privatized apartment

Homeowners, as well as citizens living under a social tenancy agreement, are required to pay utility bills. The technical serviceability of the sewerage, water supply and heating systems is monitored either by special organizations with which the HOA has entered into a contract, or by the management company. Planned replacement of equipment is carried out during major repairs, at the expense of paid contributions. If the apartment owner wishes to replace the pipes ahead of schedule, this will have to be done at his own expense.

Both in the case of municipal housing and in privatized apartments, employees of housing maintenance offices are required to regularly check equipment. Residents are notified of such events in advance. After the inspection, the owner or tenant signs the inspection report. Residents who interfere with the inspection of technical systems are found guilty if a riser burst or a pipe burst in their apartment .

If a common riser fails, residents need to record this fact, draw up an individual (or collective) statement, accompanying it with photos or video materials. The latter is not necessary, but desirable. The application is handed over to the employees of the housing office, keeping a copy for yourself. It may be useful when going to court.

Where to go if the apartment is owned by a housing cooperative

Housing cooperative is a group of private owners who are owners of property on the basis of equity participation. To put it simply, residents of cooperative houses, as well as residents of municipal high-rise buildings, have to pay for the maintenance and repair of the local area and common property.

Until the full payment of the cost of the cooperative apartment, its owner is the housing cooperative. After repayment of all contributions, the living space becomes the property of the shareholder. The organization of maintenance of such residential properties is no different from municipal buildings. Maintenance is carried out by the association of owners of cooperative housing (HOA) through an agreement with the Management Company, or independently. In some cooperatives, management is carried out by housing cooperatives. But most often they do not carry out any work on their own, but only enter into an agreement with the management company.

Hired specialists are required to carry out routine and scheduled repairs of equipment in cooperative houses. But the residents of the cooperative building will have to pay for it out of their own pockets.

As Art. 110 clause 2 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation, owners of cooperative housing participate in the maintenance of the house. If a pipe burst occurs on the territory of an apartment, its owner is recognized as the culprit.

Who is responsible for the accident

It is this question - who is to blame, who should thoroughly repair communications and compensate for possible damage from a leak - that arises acutely immediately after the accident is stopped.

In private cottages, all internal communications are clearly the sphere of interests and responsibility of the owner of the house. As for pipes on and off site, those responsible for their repair and maintenance are usually specified in an agreement with the owner of the networks (for example, a city water utility or a specialized private company).

Apartment flooding

But what if a pipe burst in a city apartment?

There are two options:

If a pipe burst occurs on the riser or in the interval from it to the first tap in the apartment, then you need to contact the building management company. Common property is their area of responsibility, and their duty will be to eliminate the breach and its consequences;
In other cases, the owner of the apartment bears all responsibility. Therefore, preventive maintenance of pipes must be taken seriously.

If it happens that a water pipe breaks and floods your neighbors, you will need to establish the cost of the damage caused. There are several ways to do this:

Together with the victims, calculate the market value of the damaged items and, by mutual agreement of the parties, pay this amount. It is imperative to draw up an act indicating the amount of damage caused or the method of determining its value. After agreeing on the figure, an annex to the deed is made, which indicates that both parties agree to this amount. If at the time of drawing up the annex to the act the entire amount has been paid, you can indicate there that the money was transferred to the victim and the parties no longer have claims against each other. Or you will have to demand a receipt from your neighbor stating that he received money as compensation;
Together with the party affected by the flood, you can determine the necessary materials and their quantity for independent purchase, repair, restoration and replacement of things lost and damaged during the flooding of the apartment.

If it is not possible to find a common language with neighbors, the amount of damage can be determined in one of the following ways:

Hire an independent expert. Payment for his services will need to be negotiated with the victims: either both parties chip in, or only one of them pays. If someone disagrees with the expert's assessment, another can be hired; otherwise, you will need to go to court;
Go to court. If neighbors cannot come to a consensus regarding the amount of damage, an opinion from an independent party is necessary. All kinds of evidence should be prepared: this could be photographs of the apartment, witness statements, a written report, other available documentation - everything that will help the court to assess losses from flooding as fully as possible.

Crack in a pipe
Expert advice

Vitaly, lawyer:

“Representatives of the operating organization must be called to draw up the report. They are required to appear. If they don’t go, you need to write a telegram in which the request form indicates where and when you need to come to draw up a report on the fact of a break in the water supply pipe (hot or cold). At the time of drawing up the act, you need to bring a couple of witnesses (representatives of the injured party can also act as such). The report should indicate the time and place of the accident, a description of the pipe and damage (ceiling paint has peeled off, wallpaper has been damaged over an area of so many square meters, etc.). After replacing the pipe, the dismantled damaged section must be preserved. If your neighbors are flooded and you have to go to court, then this piece of pipe may be needed to establish the cause of the accident.”

You need to make sure that the photo/video contains the following information, if possible:

Correct time and date. If these are snapshots, then this data should be displayed on each of them;
Information about the location would be helpful. Modern devices have a geolocation function - you can use it;
If this is a video, then you need to turn on the microphone and comment on everything that happens in the frame;
You definitely need to rent the room as a whole;
Close-ups of specific damage are taken: wet wallpaper, swollen floors, water-filled equipment;
You definitely need to capture the pipe break itself close-up and along with the rest of the room.

Who should I complain to about the inaction of utility companies?

It is no secret that employees of DUKs or DEZs do not always respond to residents’ complaints in a timely manner. Meanwhile, their main responsibility is to create a comfortable living environment for residents in the entrusted territory. It is their work that citizens pay for on a monthly basis using housing and communal services receipts. Since utility companies are service providers, Rospotrebnadzor is responsible for monitoring the quality of their provision. The owner of the property also monitors the work of the DUK. If the company does not fulfill its obligations, he has the right to refuse its services.