The procedure for collecting utility debts from Russians this year

According to the new Federal Law (as amended on March 2, 2016 N 45-FZ), the collection of utility bills will be carried out by order and this will become a private practice for the courts. Before going to court, the resource supply company must comply with the notification procedure.

What is the procedure for collecting utility debts?

The Law on Debt Collection for Utilities establishes clear regulations for the actions of housing departments in relation to debtor citizens. The order is:

• identifying the period during which the user does not pay for utilities (at least 3 months);
• preliminary notification by sending a letter to the address where the service was provided or by posting a list of debtors (the law on utility debts requires the supplier to provide written evidence of compliance with the notification procedure, so registered letters with return receipt are often sent);
• if within the next 30 days there is no payment for housing and communal services or the user of the resource does not appear for reconciliation, the company sends a second notification;
• Failure by the debtor to comply with the last requirement leads to the need to collect debts through a court order or court decision.

Features of collecting utility debts:

1. There is an option for pre-trial and trial proceedings (compliance with the first of these is mandatory).
2. Involves the imposition of penalties for failure to fulfill obligations.
3. If the debtor, after the last notification and before the resource supplying organization applies to the magistrate, makes full/partial repayment of the debt, the trial may be postponed.

How can a utility debtor challenge a court order?

Writ proceedings for the collection of utility debts are a simplified procedure for considering a case and have some features:

• the parties are not present during the examination of the case in court;
• the decision is made on the basis of documents provided by the plaintiff, which suggest an obvious outcome and do not require proof.

Collecting debts for utility services through court orders is allowed only in the following cases:

1. The amount of debt is insignificant (no more than 500 rubles) and is documented.
2. The debt was formed due to non-payment of utilities.
3. The plaintiff knows the whereabouts of the debtor.

Failure to comply with the above requirements, the defendant’s disagreement with the amounts of debt, the absence of reconciliation acts from the plaintiff, entails the right to appeal the court document by filing an application to cancel the court order.

The application must contain:

• the name of the judicial authority that issued the order;
• FULL NAME. applicant and full contact details;
• clarifying information on the appealed order:
  • date of issue;
  • number;
  • FULL NAME. judges;
  • content of the document.
• an indication of the reason for appealing the document;
• confirmation of the position by reference to a legal norm;
• the date of receipt of the court order that is the subject of the challenge.

It is important to consider the following:

1. It is submitted to the same court that issued the document.
2. The appeal must be made within 10 days from the date of issue.

What happens if you ignore a court order?

After 10 days from the date of issuance of the court order, it comes into force, this entails the following consequences:

• utility debts will be forcibly written off by a bailiff;
• the defendant no longer has the right to demand an appeal against the document (exceptions include cases regarding missing a deadline for a valid reason).

What are the deadlines for debt collection?

Utility debts are subject to the statute of limitations rule. According to this norm, housing departments do not have the right to collect debts for which the three-year period preceding the day of applying for protection of rights has expired.

In case of failure to comply with the limitation period, the debtor has the right to challenge the court order, decision and demand a proportionate reduction of the debt, as well as the amount of fines.

What are the fines for debtors for housing and communal services?

As measures of liability for non-payment of the burden of housing and communal services, the following consequences are provided:

• sanctions of a material nature in the form of penalties (fines are accrued for each day of delay, their size depends on the refinancing rate);
• restriction of resource supply;
• eviction from living space.

When applying these measures, it is important to observe some nuances, including the following:

1. The amount of penalties for utility debts cannot exceed the amount of the principal debt.
2. Eviction from occupied living space is permissible only if living in a municipal, non-privatized apartment.
3. Disconnection from the resource supply cannot be made in relation to the heating and cold water supply of the apartment.

Russians are required to make monthly payments for utilities, including heating, water consumption, major repairs, and electricity, regardless of whether they personally live in the apartment or rent it out.

Persons who have debts under this burden may be subject to penalties, fines, up to and including eviction from a communal or municipal apartment.