Management Company Won't Pay for Damage: What to Do

Your apartment floods because a riser pipe burst, ice falls off the roof onto a parked car, faulty wiring starts a fire in the stairwell — and the management company just shrugs: “not our zone of responsibility,” “prove it was our fault,” “we don’t have the budget for that.” The most common cause by far is a flood the management company is responsible for — and in most of these situations, the management company is legally required to pay. They’re simply counting on you not knowing the procedure and giving up. Here’s what actually falls under a management company’s responsibility, which excuses don’t hold up legally, what to do step by step — and a sample demand letter.

What’s actually the management company’s responsibility

A management company is responsible for maintaining a building’s common property — this follows directly from Article 161 of the Housing Code and is spelled out in detail in the Rules for the Maintenance of Common Property, approved by Government Resolution No. 491 of August 13, 2006. Their zone of responsibility includes, among other things:

the roof, attic, canopies, and roof drainage systems;
utility lines in common areas — pipes, risers, and the first shut-off valve on the branch pipe leading into an apartment (the valve itself is still the management company’s zone; everything past it is the owner’s);
elevators, electrical panels, and wiring in common areas;
stairwells, landings, and the land around the building.

If the incident happened within this zone, the default obligation to compensate the damage sits with the management company — not with the resident who was harmed.

The key point: they have to prove they weren’t at fault, not you

Many people assume they have to prove the management company was at fault. That’s not how it works. Under Article 1064 of the Civil Code, whoever caused the harm is liable for it — and is only released from that liability if they prove the harm wasn’t their fault. The burden of proof is on the management company, not on you. Your job is to document that the damage happened and that it happened in an area or to property the management company is responsible for. Proving they did everything right and aren’t at fault is their job — and in practice, that rarely goes well for them.

Common excuses — and why they don’t work

“It was force majeure.” Weather events aren’t automatically treated as force majeure. Russia’s Supreme Court has said so directly: windy weather “cannot always be treated as an act of force majeure” (Supreme Court ruling of December 21, 2018, No. 18-КГ18-142). Courts look at the specific circumstances each time — whether the event really was unforeseeable and unavoidable, or whether the management company simply failed to do its regular job, like clearing snow and ice off the roof in time. Seasonal, recurring events are usually not treated as force majeure precisely because they could and should have been anticipated — preparing for them is part of what the management company is paid to do.

“Your maintenance fee is too low to cover this.” The amount residents pay for maintenance doesn’t release a management company from civil liability for damage it caused — that’s not a defense that holds up in court.

“That’s not our zone.” Don’t take that at face value — check it against the list in Government Resolution No. 491. Often that phrase is just an attempt to avoid dealing with the claim, not an actual division of responsibility.

“We didn’t know there was a problem.” The absence of complaints doesn’t excuse a management company from its duty to regularly inspect and maintain common property — that’s a routine obligation, not something that only kicks in once someone complains.

What to do, step by step

Document the damage right away — photos, video, and witnesses if you can get them.
Notify the management company — in person, by phone with a reference number, or in writing — and ask them to draw up an inspection report.
If the management company doesn’t show up for the inspection — draw up the report yourself, bringing in neighbors as witnesses. Their refusal to show up doesn’t excuse them from paying, and it doesn’t invalidate a report made without them — just be sure to note their absence in the report itself. A telegram or written notice with proof of delivery, sent in advance, adds real weight to a one-sided report like this — it proves you actually called them out for a specific date and time, rather than just claiming after the fact that they didn’t show.
Get an independent damage assessment if the amount is significant — an expert’s report becomes the main evidence of the damage amount in court.
Send a written demand letter giving a deadline to pay — this is a required step before going to court, and it’s specifically their failure to pay voluntarily after this letter that unlocks the additional penalty described below.
If they refuse or ignore you — go to court. Attach the inspection report, the expert assessment, the demand letter, and proof you sent it.

Sample demand letter (for a flood, for example)

To: [Management company name]
Address: [Management company address]

From: [Your full name]
Address: [Your apartment address]
Phone: [Your number]

DEMAND LETTER
for compensation of damage caused by a flood

On [date], my apartment at [address] was flooded as a result
of [state the cause: burst riser pipe, roof leak, etc.] in an
area under the management company's responsibility.

On [date], an inspection report No. [number] was drawn up
with / without the participation of a representative of
[management company name], who did not attend despite being
notified on [date and method of notification].

According to independent assessment report No. [number] dated
[date], the cost of restoration is [amount] RUB.

Based on Art. 161 of the Housing Code, the Rules for the
Maintenance of Common Property (Government Resolution No. 491
of August 13, 2006), and Art. 1064 of the Civil Code,

I REQUEST THAT YOU:

Within 10 days of receiving this letter, compensate the damage
in the amount of [amount] RUB by transfer to the following
bank details: [details].

If you refuse or fail to respond within this period, I will
be forced to go to court to claim the damages plus a penalty
of 50% of the awarded amount under Art. 13(6) of the Law "On
Protection of Consumer Rights."

Enclosures:
1. Inspection report.
2. Independent assessment report.
3. Photos of the damage.

Date: [date]

Signature: ____________ / [Name] /

What you can recover

The relationship with a management company as a paid-service provider is also governed by Russia’s Law “On Protection of Consumer Rights” — regardless of whether you personally signed a separate written management agreement. That opens up more than just compensation for the direct damage:

One important caveat: this specifically applies to a commercial management company. If your building is run by a homeowners’ association (ТСЖ) or a housing cooperative (ЖСК), consumer protection law doesn’t apply to the relationship between a member and the association as such (para. 7 of Supreme Court Plenum Resolution No. 17 of June 28, 2012) — there’s no 50% penalty in that case, though you can still recover the damage itself under general Civil Code rules. The exception: if the ТСЖ or ЖСК provides you a separate paid service unrelated to your membership, consumer protection law applies there too.

a penalty of 50% of the amount awarded by the court — if the management company refused to pay voluntarily (Art. 13(6) of the Law “On Protection of Consumer Rights”);
compensation for non-pecuniary damage — on top of the damage amount itself.

So if a court awards 200,000 rubles in damages, and the management company refused to pay both before and after your demand letter, another 100,000 rubles in penalties could be added on top.

Frequently asked questions

The management company says consumer protection law doesn’t apply because I never personally signed a management agreement — is that true? No. Courts apply consumer protection legislation to the relationship with a management company regardless of whether a specific owner signed a separate written agreement — it’s enough that the company actually manages the building and provides services.

What if the damage was caused by a neighbor, not common property — say, they flooded my apartment? Then the neighbor is typically liable, not the management company — unless the flood was actually caused by a fault in shared pipes or risers, which are the management company’s responsibility.

Our building is run by a homeowners’ association (ТСЖ), not a management company — do the same rules apply? You can still recover the damage the same way — the general Civil Code rules on compensation work identically. But the extra 50% consumer-protection penalty for refusing to pay voluntarily only applies to a commercial management company. Consumer protection law doesn’t apply to a ТСЖ or ЖСК in its relationship with member-residents, so that penalty isn’t available there.

Do I need to hire an independent expert if the damage is minor? Not necessarily — for a small amount, an inspection report, photos, and receipts specifically for repairs (materials, labor) can be enough. A receipt for buying new furniture instead of repairing the old one won’t prove anything on its own — you’d first need to show that repair wasn’t possible or reasonable. An expert assessment matters more once the amount is significant or the management company disputes it.

How long do I have to go to court? The general statute of limitations for this kind of claim is three years (Art. 196 of the Civil Code) — but don’t wait too long. Over time it gets harder to establish causation and gather evidence.

Management companies often count on residents not knowing the procedure and simply giving up. If you were refused compensation for damage — write to me. I’ll assess your chances and help you draft the demand letter, and the claim if it comes to that, so that refusing to pay ends up costing the company more than paying would have.