[1] According to item 41 of the Rules for Use of Electricity for Population approved by the Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine # 1357 of 07.26.1999, the consumer has the right to receive electricity qualitative characteristics of which are identified by the state standards of Ukraine.

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The amount of payment for communal services is recalculated if there the quality and quantity deviates from the norm. The legislation has established the maximum permissible deviation range, and only when it is exceeded is the service provider is obliged to make recalculation.

The legislation has established that in case of non-provision or provision not in full amount of the housing and communal services, or the lowering of their quality, the consumer has the right to a reduction of the amount of payment for the provided services, and in certain cases payment is not collected at all.

Below, you can find the tolerances of the communal services indicators, and amounts of payment reduction for them.

How to make recalculations for communal services in practice? For example, assume that the temperature in your apartment is lower than normative. Then the following succession of actions is required for recalculation:

1.    The consumer should notify the service provider (verbally or in writing) about inappropriate service provision or the non-provision of services (i.e. about the low temperature in the apartment).

2.    The service provider representative:
- is obliged to notify the consumer of the person who received this information, − full name, notice registration number and time of its receipt;

- if the reasons of inappropriate service provision or non-provision of services are known, he/she is obliged to notify the consumer on this immediately, and to make the relevant mark in the registry of applications. This is the ground for recognizing by the provider of the fact of inappropriate provision or non-provision of services;

- if the reasons of inappropriate service provision or non-provision of services are unknown, he/she is obliged to coordinate with the provider exact time and date of finding the fact of non-provision of services, their provision not in full amount or inspection of the quantitative and/or qualitative indicators of service provision. In order to conduct such an inspection in the consumer’s premises, the provider’s representative must arrive to the consumer not later than time defined in the contract.

Having arrived to the consumer, the supplier’s representative must measure the air temperature in the apartment with the help of special equipment and conduct a survey in order to detect the reasons of the deficient heat carrier quality.

It should be noted that the measurement of air temperature should be done with devices calibrated by the bodies of the State Committee of Ukraine for Standardization, Metrology and Certification. Provider representatives must arrive to compile the acts with their own thermometers. But for the cases when they may not show up, it is necessary to obtain the calibrated device, or to calibrate it independently in the local office of the State Committee of Ukraine for Standardization, Metrology and Certification. For your claim to be recognized as grounded, the apartment must be insulated, and the measurement of the air temperature should be done on the level of 1.5 m above the floor and preferably in all rooms. The claim must be compiled by the consumer and representative of the provider, and shall be signed by them. If the provider’s representative does not arrive within the period of time defined by the contract terms, or unreasonably refuses from signing of the claim, the claim is considered valid if it is signed by at least two consumers. This means, you can ask your neighbors and they will certify with their signatures the fact of non-provision or provision of poor quality services. The claim is submitted to the provider which must resolve within three business days the issue on recalculation of payments, or give you a written refusal in satisfaction of the claim.

The provider is obliged to consider within the period of time set by the legislation the claims and complaints of the consumer, and make the relevant recalculations of the amount of payment for the housing and communal services in case of their non-provision or provision outside of the norms.

If no answer to the claim is given in three days, it is believed that the provider has recognized the facts presented in the claim, and is obliged to make recalculation accordingly.  

In case of disagreement with the results of inspection of quantitative and/or qualitative indicators of service provision, the consumer and provider must define the time and date of reinspection. A representative of the authorized executive power body and/or body of local self-government, as well as a representative of the consumer association (if there is one established in the building) are invited for conducting the reinspection. As a result of the reinspection, an act is compiled on the inappropriate provision or non-provision of services. The disputes on satisfaction of consumer claims should be resolved in court.

Improvements in the housing and communal services sector depend both on the service providers and on the consumers. The service providers must make efforts to ensure the maximum quality level of housing and communal services, while we as the consumers must exercise public control over the quality of the services provided, and pay for them on time and in full amount.