Smoking in public places is prohibited by law at the federal level.Such places include the common areas of residential buildings.
However, not all residents are ready to comply with the legal requirements.While conscientious citizens smoke in their apartments, unscrupulous citizens prefer to smoke in the stairwell, causing inconvenience to their neighbors.
Where can you smoke in an apartment building?
Federal Law 15-FZ of February 23, 2013 aims to protect the health of citizens from the effects of tobacco smoke and to regulate the use of tobacco and tobacco products.Article 12 of the Smoking Act lists the premises, objects and areas where it is forbidden to smoke products containing tobacco.Pursuant to Part 1, Clause 10 of Law 15-FZ, smoking is prohibited in elevators and other common areas of residential buildings.The law does not define the places where smoking is permitted, but based on the list of prohibited places, it can be established that smoking is allowed in residential buildings:
- in the apartment, on the balcony of the apartment;
- in specially designated smoking areas.
Is smoking allowed at or near the entrance?
15-FZ contains a direct reference to the prohibition of smoking in entrances, since the entrance is a public space.But the law does not say anything about whether you can smoke not in the entrance of the house, but near it.That is, there is no direct ban, but only if the place chosen for smoking near the entrance does not belong to a playground, educational, sports or medical institution.
There is an important nuance.The law ensures the right of subjects to independently restrict the use of tobacco products in certain places.The authorities of some regions used this right and banned smoking closer than 15 meters from the entrance.
Is it possible to smoke electronic cigarettes and IQOS?
To date, legal restrictions only apply to products containing tobacco and its derivatives.IQOS, which is fashionable today, uses pressed tobacco sticks, so the smoking system is classified as a tobacco product and is banned.Liquid for electronic cigarettes does not contain tobacco, which means that there are no restrictions on these gadgets.
Therefore, you can only ask your neighbor not to smoke electronic cigarettes in the entrance, as it will not be possible to prohibit it by law.
Is it possible to smoke hookah in the entrance?
It's hard to imagine smoking hookah on the steps of an apartment building.But if one of the residents comes up with such an idea, we must remember that the legality of such an action directly depends on the composition of the smoking mixture.The presence of tobacco in the mixture immediately transfers hookah smoking at the entrance to the category of administrative violations.If there is no tobacco in the mixture, smoking a hookah on the stairs is not prohibited by law.
When can you complain to your neighbor because he smokes in the entrance?
The fight against neighbors who smoke in the entrance is not only a right, but also a duty of every resident of the house.In this way, they protect their own health and the health of other people, including children living near them.If one of the neighbors smokes in the entrance, and others inhale harmful tobacco smoke, does not respond to requests and does not negotiate, then it is best to file a report with the relevant authorities.
Where can you complain if people smoke in the entrance?
There are several authorities you can contact if the residents of the house are smoking in the entrance.One option is to call the police.You can also complain to the local police.A more serious step would be to contact the prosecutor's office.
The most global option is to file a lawsuit in court.In this case, if there is evidence of damage, you can expect that the offender will not only receive a fine, but also compensate for the damage caused.
How to write an application?
The application can be written in any form, but some editorial rules must be followed and the following information must be included:
- to whom the request is addressed;
- full name and contact details of the applicant;
- the essence of the violation (preferably referring to the relevant legal article);
- inconvenience experienced by the residents of the house due to the smoking of the neighbors;
- it is actually a request to conduct an investigation and bring the offender to justice.
In addition, you must attach the available evidence of the violation and also list what measures have already been taken to solve the problem (for example, conversations with the smoker, public assembly, etc.).The more detailed the notification, the faster the action is taken.
How to prove the guilt of a smoker?
Before filing a complaint with the relevant authorities, it is necessary to collect evidence that the neighbor is smoking on the stairs.Confirmation can be:
- testimonies of both the applicant and other residents of the house;
- photographs or video materials taken by one of the neighbors;
- recordings of the CCTV cameras installed in the entrance.
The decisive evidence will be the conclusion of the local police officer who recorded the violation, but organizing such an event is quite difficult.
How is the application evaluated?
Complaints to the police regarding smoking at the entrance must be reported within three days.Employees then have 30 days to verify the facts and evidence in the application.If the inspection confirms the violation, the district police officer will initiate an administrative violation procedure pursuant to Article 23 (3) of the Code of Administrative Offenses.
If the police did not take action within 30 days after the application was submitted, and the applicant was not notified of the result of the inspection and the decision made on the subject of the application, he may file a complaint with the prosecutor's office.
Responsibility for smoking in the entrance
According to the law, liability for smoking in the wrong place:
- administrative (regulated by the Administrative Code);
- disciplinary (regarding employees who violate the smoking ban at work);
- civil law (if smoking causes health damage).
The penalty for smoking in the entrance of a residential building is defined in Article 6.24 of the Code of Administrative Offenses.The penalty for smoking in the entrance of a residential building is 6.5 to 19.5 USD.
What to do if not the owner of the apartment smokes, but the tenant?
There are often situations where it is not the owner of the property who smokes on the stairs, but the tenant.Tenants take care of their rented properties, since in most cases they have to pay for the damage caused to the property out of their own pocket.But a good relationship with the neighbors or the condition of the entrance affects them much less.Therefore, it is not always possible to come to an agreement with them.
However, punishing the offender in this case is no more difficult than punishing any other resident of the house.Violation of the smoking law does not depend on the place of registration and the actual place of residence.So, in the event that the conversations turned out to be useless, you should follow the usual procedure - collect evidence and file a complaint with the police.
It is often possible to achieve results without involving the relevant authorities if homeowners are also involved in the case.Many people rent apartments, ignoring tax laws, and therefore are not interested in any procedures or inspections.So the owner can influence the tenant, for example, by writing a special clause about smoking in the contract.
Organization of a smoking area
The projects of residential buildings very rarely provide a separate smoking area.Residents can install them themselves.To do this, you need to isolate part of the common room and install a ventilation system or a hood.Such measures must be approved by the residents at a general meeting.
Peaceful ways to solve the problem
Before choosing how to deal with smokers, you can try to come to an agreement with them.Sometimes this helps achieve results by saving time and avoiding conflict.There are several options:
- Negotiation.The easiest way is to talk to the smoker and explain the inconvenience his habit causes to the other residents of the house.You can educate him by telling him about the dangers of passive smoking.
- General meeting.Among the neighbors, there will probably be many people who are also not satisfied with the dirt and the smell of tobacco in the entrance.Together, you can choose the most effective measures to influence the smoker.And if you agree to attend the meeting, then perhaps you will listen to the opinion of the majority.
- Information stands or announcements at the entrance.They can not only provide information about the smoking ban, but also indicate that systematic violations will be followed by immediate contact with the law enforcement agencies.
- Installation of video cameras.This step requires financial costs, but it is likely to discourage the smoker from smoking in front of the lens.In addition, the camera footage is indisputable evidence of the violation.
- Smoking room equipment.This method also requires costs and, in addition, the consent of the residents of the house, but it allows the interests of smoking and non-smoking neighbors to be taken into account.
Conclusion
The purpose of banning smoking in public places and especially in residential buildings is to protect citizens' health from the harmful effects of tobacco smoke.In order to ensure that the established standards are observed in each house and at the entrance, it is necessary to check the residents of the house.Only the joint efforts of citizens and the police will make it possible to deal with illegal smokers.