What to Do If Neighbors Flooded You (or You Flooded Them)

Floods can happen in many ways: burst hot or cold water pipe, sewer blockage, leak from a riser, or a faucet left open. But all of these can lead to serious consequences. Let's find out together with an expert what to do if the worst has already happened.

Yuri Kryukov — a legal expert, runs his blog on Instagram @vkursedela about the rights of co-owners and apartment owners

If neighbors flooded you. I was flooded by neighbors. What should you do?

Call the 24/7 dispatch service: a duty plumber will come to your place and either fix the leak or call a repair team.

Where to find the dispatch service phone number?

Search for the abbreviation ODS (unified dispatch services) and your address on Google. Or call the property management company.

Even better, look up and save the number right now so you always have it at hand: ODS not only covers your house but also the area around it.

Can I fix the leak myself?

Yes, if it happened in your apartment. If you're flooding others, talk to the neighbors and make a joint decision.

Important: if it's a hot water pipe that burst, don't approach closely — it can be dangerous.

Now you’ll have to do repairs. How to get compensation?

Contact the property management company: the sooner, the better. Upon your request, a commission will draw up an act stating the cause of flooding and describe damaged property.

Try to negotiate with neighbors. If they agree to compensate for damages, ask for a receipt with payment terms.

How to assess the damage from flooding?

Many commercial organizations conduct damage assessments. The average cost of such a service in Moscow is 8,000 to 25,000 rubles.

Important: before the expert assessment, invite the person responsible for the flooding to be present during the inspection. An expert report can serve as evidence in court.

Does insurance help in such cases?

Yes! This is the ideal way to cover damages. When signing, read the contract carefully and ensure all necessary insurance cases with compensation are described.

Pay attention to the fact that compensation should also be paid to other affected parties if flooding occurred due to your fault.

A neighbor refuses to admit fault. Can I sue them?

Of course. To file a lawsuit, you will need:

• a complaint;
• an act of flooding: you must request it from the property management company right after the incident;
• an expert assessment of damage costs;
• documents about expenses: for the expert, legal assistance and other receipts;
• a written notice about calling the person responsible for flooding to participate in the expert report;
• evidence of payment of court fees (if you're filing a lawsuit against an individual).

Important: if you file a lawsuit against the property management company or housing cooperative for an amount up to 1 million rubles, you don't need to pay the court fee.

I won the case, but the neighbor still refuses to pay compensation. What should I do?

Based on the court decision, get an enforcement order and hand it over to bailiffs: they will find a legal way to collect money from the debtor.

If the property management company is at fault and several apartments were flooded, how to get compensation?

If the fault of the property management company is proven and documented, you must assess the damage. With an expert report, you need to prepare a written claim.

If the response to your claim and proposed solutions don’t satisfy you, feel free to go to court.

If our house is managed not by a property management company but by a housing cooperative?

Both the property management company and the housing cooperative bear equal responsibility for common property in the building.

If you flooded neighbors. Neighbors demand a huge sum for repairs: what to do?

Try to be present when the act of damaged property is drawn up. If you disagree with the amount, insist on an independent expert assessment and resolve the issue in court.