The SC studied the dispute between the owner of the apartment and the management company about the replacement of broken mailboxes in the house. The dispute was notified by the information and legal portal Garant.ru.
Experts said that the boxes in this house had not been changed for a long time and had deteriorated. Therefore, they must be replaced. The public services responded that it was not their responsibility. The citizen had to go to court. But the court rejected the man.
The court referred to the terms of the management agreement for the apartment building. There is a relationship of services and works necessary to guarantee the correct maintenance of the common goods of the house. The document was approved by Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of April 3, 2013 No. 290. According to the district court, mailboxes are not part of common property. Therefore, its repair and replacement is only possible as an additional service, which must be included in the management contract.
The appeal agreed with this conclusion. But the Supreme Court is not. The Supreme Court considered that these decisions were made “with a significant violation of the rule of law and it is impossible to agree with them.” According to the high court, the management of an apartment building must provide favorable and safe living conditions for citizens. This is what article 161 of the Housing Code says.
“All current and urgent works and services in relation to the common assets of an apartment building are considered provided for in the contract under the rules for the maintenance of housing as a real estate object and must be carried out by management companies, regardless of that the relevant specific works and services be mentioned in the contract”, the Supreme Court explained to its colleagues.
The court clarified that not only mechanical, electrical, sanitary and other types of equipment are common goods, but also “other objects intended for the maintenance, operation and improvement of the house.” And the list is not exhaustive. This is written in the Rules for the maintenance of common property in an apartment building. There is also an order of the Ministry of Regional Development of the Russian Federation dated June 1, 2007 No. 45. Approved the regulation on the development, transfer, use and storage of operating instructions for an apartment building. There are recommendations for the maintenance and repair of mailboxes “as objects of common property in the house.”
Yes, and the Law “On Postal Communication” says that the repair and replacement of mailboxes are assigned to the owners of residential buildings or housing maintenance organizations. This is article 31 of the Federal Law of July 17, 1999 No. 176-FZ.
* Resolution of the Supreme Court No. 51-KG23-3-K8.
