How to save property and not break the law

Flooding, gas leakage, fire and other emergencies in apartment buildings sometimes occur when the owner of the apartment is not at home and cannot be contacted. To save his property, a neighbor tries to get into the apartment where the incident occurred – and in the eyes of the law, the victim turns into an offender. How to act in an emergency situation without breaking the law, advises the head of the real estate and construction practice of the company “DE-JURE”, lawyer, candidate of legal sciences Ivan Topor.

1. If the situation is critical (for example, there is a fire or you smell gas), immediately call the emergency services, and evacuate yourself. Do not try to enter the apartment before the arrival of the State Emergency Service, firefighters or gas service.
2. If it is a case of flooding due to a burst pipe, problems with the sewerage system, etc., which does not pose an immediate threat to life, the first step is to call a representative of the condominium association or manager and try to contact the apartment owner.
   Together with the representative of the condominium association (manager) and witness neighbors, record the damage from the flooding and draw up a report describing the consequences of the incident, the causes and perpetrators of the incident.
3. If there is no contact with the owner, and it is impossible to stop the accident without entering his apartment, unauthorized access is carried out. It involves a representative of the condominium association (manager), a representative of the internal affairs bodies, emergency repair crew employees and the owner of the neighboring apartment. They draw up a report on unauthorized access, which specifies the grounds, participants, what was done, the condition of the door/lock, a description of the damage, photos/video.

But what to do if the condominium association does not respond to the accident, and the police refuse to leave without their request? Record inaction (register the call, record the refusal on audio or video, enlist witnesses) and insist on a threat to property or life. After all, only the police, unlike a concerned citizen, have the right to unauthorized access to someone else’s apartment for the purpose of rescue. Even extreme conditions and events that Ukrainians are dealing with today do not exempt them from legal responsibility.