Find out whether you have to pay for an intercom every month if there is no handset or it is disconnected, is it legal? Here you will find expert answers on whether an apartment needs an intercom and how to open the intercom without a key.
Answer:
Do I need an intercom? apartment building? The answer to this question should be given by the residents of the house in which it is planned to be installed. The undoubted advantage of placing it in front of the entrance will be to increase the overall level of security for each apartment owner by limiting access. This will affect the cleanliness of the entrance and the safety of elevators, mailboxes, and lighting system elements.
Of course, it may not be possible to do without negativity. Hooligan impulses of a certain category of people can influence the owners of intercoms, distracting them from their usual activities by answering useless calls from the street.
Many people are also confused by the fees charged for servicing the device. Do I have to pay for the intercom after it is installed? - here is another factor that makes citizens think about the advisability of placing it in the entrance and apartments. Legislatively, the fee for using an intercom is for any type utilities does not apply, but their maintenance is entrusted to the building management body. And therefore Management Company has the right to demand payment if:
- there is no agreement with a third party;
- payment for the service was approved by the general meeting;
- the management company has an agreement to collect money with the organization servicing the devices.
Is it possible to open the intercom without a key?
Is it possible to open the intercom without a key? This question is asked by many people who are left on the street without a magnetic key. door lock entrance. And in the entrance (for example, for four apartments) not a single neighbor is at home. What should a respectable citizen do in this case, so as not to wait for the return of relatives or a neighbor in the stairwell?
The intercom, like any programmable device, is available for external influence and complete reprogramming. To do this, it is enough to know a certain sequence of numbers that determine the entrance to the system for setting up the device code. At the creation stage, such a standard code is embedded in each model. And if during installation the password was not changed by the specialists of the company that serviced it, then you can easily get into the entrance of any house.
Depending on the brand of the device, you must comply different sequence actions and combinations of numbers and symbols. VIZIT intercoms open with the code “67#890” or “*#423”, and early versions— “12#345” or “*#4230”. Cyfral brand devices are programmed with the password “call, apartment number divisible by 100, call, 7272 (2323 or 7273).” On the Rainmann intercom, to enter the menu you need to dial “987654”, after the signal (double beep) you need to continue with “123456”. After the “P” symbol appears, press “8”.
Is it possible to reprogram the intercom key?
The key to the intercom, which each resident of the secure entrance has, is individual. But is it possible to reprogram the intercom key (if necessary) and how complicated is this procedure?
If the key is lost or falls into the hands of third parties, you should contact a specialized company that provides installation services for devices of this type.
Having contacted a company specialist, you need to explain the essence of the problem, leave a request and, after his arrival, work together to reprogram the key. For this, the so-called “master key” is used, which allows you to enter the device menu and switches it to password reading mode. After this, you need to bring your key to the reader. The information received from it will be saved in the device’s memory. At the end of this procedure, it is necessary to check the functionality of the reprogrammed key - the device should operate only after contact with the new key and with no other.
Free access to the entrance apartment building disrupts the peaceful living of apartment owners. During the cold season, such entrances often become a haven for noisy groups of teenagers or a place to sleep for people without a fixed place of residence. Residents' war with uninvited guests can sometimes end in tragedy.
In order to ensure the safety of living in an apartment building, intercoms are installed. Legal issues of holding this event cause disputes and contradictions between apartment owners. Let's figure out how to install an intercom in an apartment building in accordance with the law.
If not everyone needs an intercom
Installation of an intercom begins with a general meeting of residents of the entire house. The decision on the need to install the device is made if there is a positive answer from more than half of the total number owners.
Among the residents there are always those who are against the installation. Often these are pensioners who feel sorry for money. There are also residents who believe that restricting access to the entrance violates their rights. They are not going to install a telephone line at home, and it is not very convenient for them to run downstairs to let their guests in.
Despite the refusal of some owners to install an intercom (if there are less than 50%), the decision will be considered positive.
Who will do the installation
After making a decision about installation, residents have next question“At whose expense is the intercom installed?” The answer to this question can be found based on the way the house is managed.
Directly by apartment owners. IN in this case All owners independently find an organization that installs intercoms. They enter into an agreement with her and pay all the costs of installing the device and additional amounts associated with the installation of intercom handsets in the apartment and the purchase of keys. If the door at the entrance is old, installation of a new metal entrance door is also required.
The management of the house is carried out by the HOA or management company. It is these organizations that respectively take responsibility for installing the intercom. But as practice shows, companies can only pay part of the amount. The rest of the money comes from the residents' pockets. Residents pay additionally for the purchase of a full set of keys and installation of the handset.
Please note that after installing the intercom, all residents of the house must be told the code by which you can open the door if you have forgotten or lost the key.
In order to save money, you can install the intercom handset yourself. This does not require specialized education or special equipment. The main thing is to follow the instructions correctly. To install the handset, a telephone cable is laid to the apartment. The wires are connected to the tube according to the diagram. Attaching the handset to the wall with your own hands is not so difficult - just screw in a couple of screws and hang the handset on them.
Which intercom to choose
On Russian market There are many companies that manufacture intercom devices. High tech production allows us to produce improved models every year. What kind of intercom system there will be in the house is up to the owners to decide.
When choosing an intercom, you should pay attention to the switching system. Based on this parameter, coordinate and digital intercoms are distinguished. Their difference lies in the wire through which the connection to the apartments is made.
When installing a digital intercom, one line is laid to connect the switch with all apartments. The coordinate system is designed in such a way that each apartment will have a separate wire connecting it to the switch.
Today, digital intercoms are considered more reliable in operation. But their price is three times higher than the price of coordinate ones.
Another characteristic worth paying attention to is the type of connection. There are audio and video intercoms. The difference between them is the presence of a display on which you can see who is calling. The video intercom provides high security; thanks to it, no strangers will be able to get inside the entrance. But the cost of such devices is high. Apartment owners for the most part give preference to audio intercoms.
Who pays for intercom service
From the moment of installation, the intercom acquires the status of common property and belongs to all apartment owners in the building. According to current legislation, the residents themselves pay for the maintenance and upkeep of the property. After the intercom appears at the entrance, a new receipt will appear in your mailbox.
The obligation to pay amounts for the maintenance of this device is also assigned to those owners who did not install tubes in their apartments.
Previously, people did not think that someone could enter their entrance and cause damage to the property located in it. IN Soviet time there were wooden entrance doors, and on staircase landings Flowers were blooming in pots.
Perhaps the reason for the vandalism of the entrances was the dashing 90s, when the morality of the people wanted better. That's when they began to invent and install various means protection from ill-wishers. At first these were combination locks installed by housing and communal services, then they were replaced by intercoms. Let's see what else they will invent to protect common property.
Read others interesting articles on the site, leave comments and tell your friends about us!
An intercom is now available on the front door of almost every entrance of every self-respecting high-rise building. Some people only use a key; most apartments have intercoms. However, not all Volgograd residents have a contract for the maintenance of the intercom system. And whether it is available or not determines whether and when you have to pay. This question usually arises after the intercom breaks down, the electronic key stops opening the front door, or it’s impossible to dial into the apartment. Management specialists explained the nuances of paying for the intercom Rospotrebnadzor in the Volgograd region.
Usually, intercoms in entrances are installed free of charge; they only charge money for the keys. And then you receive monthly or quarterly receipts for payment for the maintenance and upkeep of the intercom. Some people pay them without thinking, others throw away bills, believing that they don’t owe anyone anything. Until the intercom breaks. And then sometimes it turns out that in order to fix the problem you need to pay off the existing debt or pay for repairs.
THERE IS AN AGREEMENT
In most cases, intercom companies enter into equipment maintenance agreements not with each resident individually, but with one general agreement at the entrance, - Rospotrebnadzor explained to KP-Volgograd. - Residents express their consent to conclude such an agreement by putting their signature and passport details in the annex to the agreement.
Several years later, few can remember whether there was such an agreement or not. But this does not change the fact itself. So even if you don't use the speaking handset inside your apartment, you will have to pay. A contract is a contract. And an intercom system is a set of equipment that is not limited to just a speaking handset.
Usually, if there is an agreement, then a specific surname is indicated in the receipts sent.
NO AGREEMENT
If the payer’s full name is not listed on the payment slip, this may well mean that the intercom company does not have information about your apartment and you did not take part in concluding the contract. If this is true, then the receipts are nothing more than a public offer.
By paying such receipts, you express your consent to receive the service. The offer is valid for one quarter or one month (depending on the charging period). You also have the right not to pay the receipt, that is, not to accept the offer. Debt cannot be formed on such receipts, experts explain.
So, if there is no agreement concluded between you and the company, you have no obligation to pay for services and debt. But the intercom company has no obligations to you either. And in order to call a technician to fix problems, you will have to pay for the service according to the price list, having received a receipt, contract or other document confirming payment.
If you have evidence of deliberate shutdown of equipment, or if you have legal grounds to receive intercom maintenance services free of charge, then you have the right to apply to law enforcement agencies and the court for restoration of violated rights, lawyers clarify.
We'll tell you how legal the monthly fee for an intercom is, whether you can refuse it on your own, and whether you need to pay for servicing the device during the warranty period.
– I’ve seen a lot of videos on the Internet about how intercom companies make money from monthly service fees. At the same time, there seems to be a letter from the government, which says that including the monthly fee for an intercom in a receipt for a utility service is illegal. It turns out that we do not have to pay for intercom service?
Over the past few years, the problem of “intercom” payments has begun to arise more and more often in society. At the same time, questions arise not only about how to terminate the contract with the service company, but also whether the monthly subscription fee is even legal.
According to the letter from the Ministry regional development dated 08/23/2010 No. 30665-IB/14, the intercom is common property in an apartment building, and its maintenance is included in the list and cost of work on maintaining the common property and is the responsibility of the management organization. The same letter states that charging owners for the “intercom service” service is unfounded and illegal.
However, as noted by the head of the Center for Public Control in the Housing and Public Utilities Sector of the Public Chamber Kirov region Sergey Ulitin, the decision to install an intercom and pay for it should be made at a general meeting of owners of an apartment building (), and if it was decided to include this fee in the general utility bill, then this is completely legal. But if the management company independently installed intercoms and subsequently charged the owners for them, then such actions are unlawful.
A similar answer was given by the department of Rospotrebnadzor in the Kirov region: the decision on how to pay for the intercom service is made exclusively at a meeting of homeowners.In addition, there are two more options for charging for the intercom: including it in the line for the maintenance of common property (with a corresponding increase in the amount) or a separate receipt for servicing the intercom.
What is the subscription fee for?
All services that the service organization is obliged to perform must be specified in detail in the contract. If a company does not perform its assigned duties properly, this may be a reason to refuse its services.
Unless otherwise provided by the contract, the subscription fee for servicing the intercom usually includes:
technical inspection of equipment (the timing of its implementation must be specified in the contract);
intercom handset repair;
repair of the intercom installation on the entrance door;
departure to repair the breakdown;
restoration of communication lines.
And here a completely logical question arises: does the service organization have the right to charge a fee for repairing equipment in the event of a breakdown, if residents pay a monthly subscription fee?
According to Sergei Ulitin, if there is a breakdown of the intercom installation at the entrance door to the entrance, that is, the common property of the house, then no additional fee should be charged, since the owners already pay for the maintenance of the common property of the house. As for repairing the intercom handset in an apartment, it all depends on the terms of the contract: if such work is specified in this document, then there is no need to pay additionally for repairs.
At the same time, as the Rospotrebnadzor department clarifies, the service company may not provide special reports on the performance of maintenance each time: the reporting procedure is determined solely by the terms of the contract. That is, these can be either periodic acts on the provision of services (once a month, a quarter or a year, for example), or entries in the accounting book of service companies or any other type of reporting.
– I bought an apartment and received a receipt for some kind of intercom service, although the intercom is common property, and I personally did not enter into any agreements. Well, that’s okay... I called to cancel the contract (I didn’t receive receipts), they told me that this is unrealistic, that it was the entrance that entered into the contract and they personally cannot terminate it with me. How can I terminate the contract with them?As Sergey Ulitin emphasizes, it is necessary to pay for the intercom as a common property if there is a decision of the general meeting of owners. That is, even if you personally did not enter into an agreement with the service company or were against it, but such a decision was made at the meeting by a majority vote, you will still have to pay. However, if we are talking about an intercom in an apartment, then this service can be canceled unilaterally, and then the amount of the subscription fee will be reduced. How much depends on the terms of the contract with the service organization. To do this, you need to notify the implementing organization. At the same time, the company does not have the right to take away the key to the intercom from you, since it provides access to the entrance, and therefore access to housing, and this right cannot be limited. But it is worth highlighting what kind of use of common property, that is, front door and an intercom installation on it, you still have to pay.
– The intercom in the house works terribly, or rather, it doesn’t work at all in the cold: just below 13 - 15 degrees below zero - it doesn’t open the door. Residents' children cannot get home when they come home from school; adults are usually absent at this time. We submitted many requests to the organization servicing the intercom, but the most they did was replace the cover plate. Please tell me how to correctly close a subscription service agreement and switch to repairs after the fact.
If the intercom does not work, and the fee is still charged, residents can request a recalculation from the service organization.
According to Sergei Ulitin, for this you need to submit a corresponding application to writing about the breakdown of the intercom and the failure to take measures to eliminate it within the time period established by the contract. If the organization refuses to recalculate, the owners have the right to challenge its actions in judicial procedure. To do this, you can contact the Kirov region, the prosecutor's office or the court.
If you want to change the terms of the contract or completely refuse the services of this service company and choose another, then such a decision must be made at a general meeting of residents by a majority vote.
By the way, in many cities of Russia there have already been trials on “intercom” issues, and, as practice shows, the court often sides with the residents. For example, positive decisions were made in Moscow, Voronezh, Krasnoyarsk and other cities.
– There is a guarantee for any equipment, including intercoms, and during its period all faults must be corrected free of charge. That is, at this time you can not pay a subscription fee?Guarantee period- this is the time during which the company undertakes to replace or repair equipment at its own expense if a manufacturing defect is detected in it. Usually it is equal to one year. As Rospotrebnadzor clarifies, according to the “” law, an organization is responsible for equipment defects only if their occurrence is not proven due to violations of operating rules, actions of third parties or other force majeure circumstances. In other words, not all breakdowns may fall under warranty, and if your intercom is periodically attacked, for example, by vandals, then this is not the fault of the service company.
However, as Sergey Ulitin notes, there is a broader concept - warranty service. In addition to repairing or replacing the product, it implies the provision of services for additional configuration, adjustment, technical support installed system. Depending on the terms of the contract, the period warranty service can range from three months before three years. And the intercom service fee begins to be charged immediately after the installation of the intercom system is completed and the acceptance certificate is signed. If the contract provides for monthly payment, the first payment is made one month after the start of using the equipment.
Thus, charging a monthly fee for servicing an intercom immediately after its installation does not contradict the law, and the funds collected go to maintaining the system and carrying out other work, that is, warranty obligations are only part of the subscriber service.
If you have questions that you can't find the answer to, send them to us and we'll try to answer them.
Prices for housing and communal services are growing every year, so owners of premises in apartment buildings want to know what they are paying for, which services are included in the receipt legally, and which services are being profited from by unscrupulous management organizations.
One of the services that consistently raises questions among residents is the installation and maintenance of an intercom. We will tell you what is the procedure for installing an intercom in an apartment building and in what cases the management organization has the right to charge a fee for it.
Intercom - common property of owners of premises in apartment buildings
The management organization, under the agreement for the management of an apartment building, undertakes to provide the owners of premises in this building with work and services for the proper maintenance and repair of common property (Part 2 of Article 162 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation).
The composition of the common property of the owners of premises in an apartment building is established by clause 2 of Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of August 13, 2006 No. 491. It includes:
- inter-apartment landings;
- stairs;
- corridors;
- technical basements containing utilities;
- other equipment serving more than one residential or non-residential premises.
Intercoms in apartment buildings are installed at the entrance to the entrance; they serve more than one room, therefore they are part of the general property of the apartment building. Automatically locking devices for the doors of apartment building entrances are also included in the common property in apartment buildings in accordance with clause 7 of Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation dated August 13, 2006 No. 491.
The procedure for installing and connecting an intercom
Installation and maintenance of an intercom are possible in two cases: such work and services are provided for in the management agreement of the apartment building or the corresponding decision was made at the general meeting of owners (Article 44 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation). We will tell you separately about the case when a management organization installs an intercom with its own money.
The management agreement for an apartment building may not provide for the maintenance of the intercom as part of the maintenance and repair of the common property of the apartment building. Then, in order to charge fees for the maintenance of locking devices, a decision by the OSS is required, according to which the owners can enter into an agreement for the maintenance of the intercom either directly with the contractor or with their management organization.
Even if the owners of only one entrance plan to install an intercom, to resolve this issue it is necessary to obtain the consent of other owners of premises in the apartment building (Article 36 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation).
At the general meeting, the owners can decide to include the fee for servicing the intercom in the payment document as part of the fee for the maintenance and repair of common property in the apartment building, according to Art. 155 Housing Code of the Russian Federation. Owners of premises in an apartment building can enter into an agreement directly with a contractor and receive separate receipts for servicing the intercom.
The management organization cannot require owners to pay for the separate service “Intercom Maintenance” (letter of the Ministry of Regional Development of the Russian Federation dated August 23, 2010 No. 30665-IB/14). The Ministry of Construction of the Russian Federation adheres to the same position in its letter dated April 11, 2016 No. 10686-AT/04 “On the maintenance and repair of common property in apartment buildings.”
If there is no decision of the general meeting of owners on installing an intercom or paying for its maintenance, and the management organization decided to install it on its own, it will not be able to subsequently charge the owners for installation and maintenance of the locking device.
Intercom service
Work and services, the provision and implementation of which is required to maintain the operation of the intercom, must be specified in the contract for the maintenance and repair of locking devices, concluded between the management and the contractor. Here is a sample list of them:
- technical inspection of equipment,
- intercom repair,
- visit to troubleshoot intercom problems,
- restoration of communication lines.
The service agreement, at the request of the owners, can provide for a different list of works and services.
If a contractor improperly fulfills its obligations under a service agreement, this may be a reason to refuse its services. A decision to change the contractor can only be made at a general meeting of owners of premises in the apartment building.
There are cases when the intercom does not work for several months, and the management organization transfers a fee to the contractor for its service and includes it in the receipt. In this case, any of the owners of premises in an apartment building can demand that the management organization make a recalculation from the day the intercom stopped working.
Determining the cost of intercom maintenance
Price Maintenance intercom is determined by the contract for the provision of services and performance of work by the contractor. As a rule, contractors themselves set the amount of fees for their services.
The management organization should remember that the amount of the fee for servicing locking devices, which they include in the tariff for the maintenance and repair of common property, must be justified. Any owner can contact the MA and request a transcript of the article on the maintenance and repair of the common property of an apartment building (clauses 10, 10.1 of Article 161 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation).
Conduct general meeting owners and resolving the issue of paying for an intercom in an apartment building is much easier with the help of.