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- Seal or court: who will be saved by the ban on disconnecting housing and communal services
Seal or court: who will be saved by the ban on disconnecting housing and communal services
A bill is being discussed in the State Duma that will prohibit resource supply organizations and management companies from arbitrarily restricting the supply of utilities without a court decision. The authors of the initiative are confident that the new rule will protect socially vulnerable citizens from the arbitrariness of suppliers. However, opinions are divided in the industry: some see the project as a step towards justice, while others see it as a threat to the stability of payments and the collapse of the judicial system. Details can be found in the Izvestia article.
Don't look for draconian methods
The amendments should affect only individuals — homeowners and users of premises in apartment buildings. As the authors of the initiative emphasize, the purpose of the proposal is to protect citizens, including the disabled, pensioners, as well as families with children who find themselves in a difficult life or financial situation, from possible abuse by management companies. Making changes will help to avoid cases when the termination of the provision of public services becomes a threat to people's health or lives.
The deputies of the State Duma emphasize that it is poor citizens who most often become victims of "punitive" measures of public utilities.:
— Receptions of citizens have shown that it is precisely the poor, the most vulnerable categories, that blackouts are practiced everywhere. After all, it is always easier to apply the harshest punishment. We remind you of the RSO (resource supply organization. — Izvestia), that she works in the most sensitive social sector of the economy and is obliged to interact with the debtor, and not look for draconian methods, — says Vladimir Koshelev, first deputy chairman of the State Duma Committee on Construction and Housing and one of the authors of the bill.
The deputy noted that this work will require resources: the creation of additional jobs, court costs.
The Consumer Union of Russia believes that service providers have long been given too broad powers, and the balance of interests is shifted against citizens.
— The rules for the provision of public services are not written to protect consumers, but to protect those whom we hire for our money. I support the proposal: the contractor must prove in court that he has the right to suspend the service. The consumer does not have to be a professional in housing and communal services. A professional stands on the other side of the contract, and he is obliged to act according to the law," said Anatoly Golov, co—chairman of the Consumer Union of Russia.
Concerns of utilities and businesses
Management companies and resource providers, on the contrary, are afraid that the judicial procedure will become a brake on debt collection and demotivate disciplined taxpayers.
— This bill will not change anything for residents: and now it is not so easy to turn off the service, the procedure is strictly regulated. But if you demand a court decision for each case, it will cause an avalanche of lawsuits," said Alexander Kozlov, chairman of the Council on Professional Qualifications in Housing and Communal Services, deputy of the Moscow City Duma.
Lina Tkachenko, head of the Association of Real Estate Service Companies (AKON), supports this point of view.
— This innovation will increase the burden on the courts and reduce payment discipline. I am not aware of any cases of abuse by the Criminal Code or the RSO. The bill will increase the time, costs and losses of public utilities. In addition, the Criminal Code already provides for punishment for the illegal termination of electricity or water supply — this norm, it seems, has simply been forgotten," she complains.
A similar opinion is also expressed by Sergey Kostyuchenkov, Chairman of the Committee on Entrepreneurship in the Housing and Communal Services sector of the Tula Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
— Utilities sometimes abuse the right to disconnect, but this is not widespread. The new law will turn the work of suppliers into an endless race for debtors. Court fees and costs will negate efforts, and payments will start to be delayed more often, he believes.
Possible risks and hidden problems for the industry
A lively discussion broke out in the professional community of housing and communal services about the consequences of legislative innovation.
— The risks are obvious: the "rapid response" tool in the form of disconnection will disappear and the debt will grow. Judicial enforcement takes time and effort. But if we bring the system of supervision and pre—trial procedures to perfection, the law is able to discipline the industry and make it more transparent," said Alexey Yatsenko, CEO of Comfort Group and an expert at the Public Council under the Ministry of Construction.
Nikita Chulochnikov, an expert in the field of housing and communal services, also touches upon the problem of the legal burden.
— The introduction of such a requirement will lead to an increase in the number of court cases. To relieve the system, it is necessary to oblige the parties to use mediation, a pre—trial settlement procedure, first. This will make it possible to resolve conflicts peacefully without resorting to court, and will save money for the justice system and the citizens themselves," he emphasizes.
Tatiana Vepretskaya, director of the National Housing Congress Association and an expert at the OS of the Ministry of Construction, recalls that even today, disconnection is an extreme measure.
— Organizations are required to notify the debtor of the debt more than once and only after that limit the filing. Usually, no more than 0.1% of debtors are disconnected. But the threat of disconnection itself remains an effective incentive to pay, which is why the state's attention is focused on the procedure," the expert notes.
Social dimension and justice
Some of the participants in the discussion are convinced that the main goal of the innovation is not a simple change in order, but the restoration of social justice.
— Those who cannot pay often suffer for debts. However, the same pennies accrued on debt are able to offset the costs of suppliers. We should not apply the harshest measures to the most vulnerable," Vladimir Koshelev believes.
At the same time, other experts remind us that honest taxpayers are already bearing the burden of other people's debts.
— Conscientious tenants are forced to partially cover debts for the maintenance of property and capital repairs. The total debt on communal services in Russia reaches 1.5 trillion rubles. I think it's fair that a person should not receive a resource if they don't pay for it, so I don't support this initiative," said State Duma deputy Svetlana Razvorotneva.
According to her, such a measure (shutdown) effectively stimulates payment, since the threat of cutting off the same electricity is the only serious lever of influence on utility debtors.
Vladimir Prokhorov, the head of Udacha, a member of the General Council of Delovaya Rossiya, suggests a balanced approach.
— Among the reasons for non-payments is not only irresponsibility. People can get into difficult life circumstances. The court, as a third party, is able to cool down hotheads, force public utilities to act legally, and bailiffs to actually collect debts," he says.
In his opinion, there will be no massive increase in non-payments, because most of the citizens are trying to pay on time.
He explains his position by saying that people can really get into various circumstances beyond their control. For example, young families who purchase housing are not always aware of the existence of encumbrances and possible restrictions. A similar situation occurs in the rental market, when the tenant does not know and, moreover, cannot verify the existence of debts from the apartment owner. In general, situations with disconnection from communications are potentially dangerous for bona fide neighboring taxpayers, Prokhorov is sure.
What awaits the housing and communal services market
This initiative actually opens up a discussion about a new housing and communal services model, where the balance of rights and responsibilities of participants should be redistributed. Experts see the risk of delaying settlements between tenants, management companies and resource supply organizations, but they also recognize that the need for transparency and social sensitivity in the industry is overdue.
— It is necessary not to narrow the possibilities of utilities, but to improve the mechanisms of assistance to defaulters, to develop debt restructuring and subsidy systems. Then we will reduce conflicts by maintaining payment discipline," notes Alexander Kozlov.
In the future, analysts believe, the industry will receive an incentive to develop pre-trial forms of settlement, mediators and digital platforms for real-time debt accounting will appear.
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