How to get rid of neighbor's cockroaches and where to file complaints

Where do cockroaches come from in an apartment?

Cockroaches may end up in your home for various reasons:

• accidentally arrive along with a parcel or an order from an online store;
• move from a cafe or store on the ground floor;
• come from neighbors who poison insects;
• move out of an apartment in which they have become cramped

If insects are coming from a neighboring apartment, they may appear from:

• kitchen hood duct;
• ventilation shaft;
• window;
• gaps between the window sill and the window;
• cracks in the wall, ceiling;
• gap between panels;
• sockets;
• sewer

The pest is able to penetrate through any opening. In a cluttered apartment, he feeds on garbage, food scraps and crumbs. Anything his paws touch can potentially become a source of infection. Plying between the dinner table and the garbage can, a cockroach endangers the health of all family members, no matter how thoroughly they wash their hands.

But even in a tidy apartment, cockroaches can settle if they have free access to food: dried fruits in a vase, crumbs on the floor, a trash can without a lid - an offer that insects cannot refuse.

Prevention

To avoid having to painfully fight cockroaches in the future, it is advisable to adhere to the following preventive measures:

1. Clean the house regularly. Food must be stored in airtight containers. Always remove crumbs from the table and wash bowls from which animals eat. It is useful to regularly inspect kitchen drawers to identify spilled cereals. After each meal, dishes should be washed immediately and not stored with leftover food in the sink.
2. Take out the trash regularly. You need to have a good habit of walking to the trash cans or garbage disposal every day, and have a container with an airtight lid in the kitchen.
3. Fix plumbing problems in a timely manner. In addition to food, cockroaches also need water, without which they cannot live for a long time. If the joints of pipes, sinks are leaking, or the toilet tank is faulty, then this is very attractive to parasites. In addition, they like the humidity in the bathroom after bathing procedures. All plumbing faults must be corrected in a timely manner, and all bathroom items must be wiped dry.
4. Repair all kinds of cracks. It is important to inspect the walls, ceiling or corners of the room for cracks. If they are identified, you should definitely resort to using putty. And mosquito nets must be installed on all ventilation openings to prevent insects from entering.

But when living in an apartment building, it is important to coordinate your actions with your neighbors to combat cockroaches.

If a problem arises, it is important that all residents are prepared for large-scale pest control , including basements.

If only one apartment attempts to fight, then after a while new unwanted guests will begin to enter it from untreated premises.

Where can I complain if my neighbors have cockroaches?

You have seen with your own eyes how cockroaches are crawling towards you from a neighboring apartment, but your neighbors categorically refuse to poison the insects at home. What should I do?

Contact:

• the prosecutor's office, having prepared a collective statement from several residents;
• city ​​administration and ask them to protect your interests;
• SES and wait for an on-site inspection at your address. Based on the results of the inspection, a conclusion on the examination will be drawn up.

An SES employee will inspect the neighbor’s apartment, document the presence of insects and issue a conclusion on the diagnostics carried out.

Before inviting a specialist, make sure that he has the right to issue an inspection report. This document will be required in court. It is possible to oblige neighbors to carry out pest control only through legal proceedings.

You can complain about your neighbors to the HOA, housing office or management company. It is important that your home is in order, there are no pipes leaking, and it is clean. Otherwise, the SES may bring claims against you in the form of a lawsuit.

When neighbors poison insects, they are obliged to warn you. Otherwise, the surviving individuals will enter your apartment and take up residence in it. When carrying out disinfestation, it is necessary to notify neighbors so that they take appropriate measures:

• cracks and cracks were filled with putty;
• repaired faulty plumbing;
• food and water were removed;
• set traps;
• they applied “protective” markings using “Mashenka” chalk;
• washed the floor with ammonia

Where to contact?

To influence disadvantaged neighbors using legal methods, it is possible to involve the following authorities:

1. Management company.
2. Rospotrebnadzor.
3. Court.

In addition, you can contact a specialized insect extermination company. The method will require significant financial costs. In 2022 in Novosibirsk, the cost of processing a 2-room apartment is 1,300 rubles. In Moscow, a similar service will cost 2,000 rubles.

Important! The company conducting the processing must have a medical license for this type of activity. This fact must be verified before concluding a contract.

Management Company

A complaint about cockroaches to the management company is rather formal. Management company employees do not have the right to interfere in the private lives of residents.

If neighbors do not violate the law, then it is impossible to take administrative or civil liability measures against them.

If the number of cockroaches has become a common problem for the residents of the house. Then you can attract a management company. However, they will not poison insects or evict the culprits. Assistance will be provided at the discretion of the manager.

Example . In the city of Berdsk, Novosibirsk region, in 2013, an apartment of an elderly woman was discovered who had collecting syndrome. Residents of the apartment building for a long time could not bring the woman to justice. The denouement came due to the old woman’s health problems. She was placed under treatment. Her son arranged for the trash to be removed. The management company provided transport for trash removal. As a result, 2 KAMAZ trucks of garbage were removed from the apartment.

Rospotrebnadzor

The body responsible for compliance with legislation in the field of sanitary well-being is Rospotrebnadzor. Therefore, this is where you need to turn for protection.

You can send a complaint to the website of the regional office or in person. Employees will visit the specified housing and identify violations.

Important! The law does not give Rospotrebnadzor specialists the ability to visit citizens’ apartments without their consent. Therefore, if the owner refuses to inspect the residential premises, the specialist cannot enter it.

If access to the apartment is provided, then the organization’s employees can independently conduct an inspection and draw up a protocol on bringing to administrative responsibility. However, this measure is unlikely to bring significant results. As stated, the fines are minor.

“The case is being heard” about cockroaches

When it was not possible to reach an agreement with the neighbors and the matter went to court, forced disinfestation had to be demanded. The statements of the SES and other authorities to which the requests were sent are attached to the statement of claim against the neighbors.

Claims for forced cleaning of an apartment are considered without much difficulty. But this requires at least a month. The court decision is transferred to the SES and the Bailiff Service. It becomes the basis for forced disinfestation of the neighbor’s apartment. The execution of the court decision will also take some time.

Which services to contact and complain to?

However, it is not always so easy to get rid of the problem. Most often, the owners of a hotbed of cockroaches and other unpleasant creatures are people prone to alcohol abuse or mentally ill people. For them, unsanitary conditions are a common occurrence, and they are not going to make any efforts to restore order. Conversations and various warnings are ineffective in this case. Where to go in this case?

Then you need to contact official authorities with complaints.

Complaints must be written, preferably collective. Indeed, according to the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation, Article 7.21, violation of the rules for the use of residential premises entails an administrative fine in the amount of 2 to 2.5 thousand rubles.

Repeated prosecution under the same article entails an increase in the fine. Therefore, neighbors can be punished financially for unsanitary conditions.

• District inspector. It has already been mentioned above. After a written request, he is obliged to conduct a preventive conversation and issue a warning. applications can be found here.
• Rospotrebnadzor. You can write a complaint to Rospotrebnadzor in free form. And in this case they are obliged to provide a written response about the measures taken. The main thing is to indicate that independent preventive measures to combat pests have not brought results. Sample application...
• SES. The Sanitary and Epidemiological Service is the main body that is obliged to neutralize living quarters from parasites and prevent infection. The application, signed by at least three apartment owners, must be printed in duplicate. Take it in person and hand it over for signature; calling by phone is useless. You keep one copy of the application for yourself. SES employees will hunt insects. They will also issue a conclusion that can be used when going to court. The application can also be submitted electronically. Go to the official website of the SES of your region.
• Court. The court is the final authority if others have not helped or your goal is to achieve the forcible eviction of ill-fated neighbors. But this requires a lot of documents, evidence and examinations, and the help of a lawyer is advisable. In our case, going to court rarely occurs.

Who should poison cockroaches?

The management company is responsible for the sanitary condition of the house and surrounding area. If cockroaches enter an apartment from the basement, entrance or garbage chute, according to Article 161 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation, the management company is obliged to urgently carry out disinfestation.

Planned extermination of insects is carried out once a year. Unscheduled - at the request of residents. The management company must pay for calling an exterminator on its own. Pest control costs are already included in the rent.

If the management company refuses to fight insects, residents have the right to complain to the prosecutor's office. To do this, it is necessary to collect signatures from at least 80% of the residents of the house or entrance.

In the case where children live in an apartment with unfavorable sanitary conditions, neighbors can write a collective appeal to the guardianship authorities. Guardianship will sort out the situation as quickly as possible.

What the law says

On the one hand, residents of apartment buildings are protected by the law:

• Art. 17 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation obliges residents to use the premises for their intended purpose, taking into account the requirements for compliance with sanitary and epidemiological standards;
• Art. 67 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation obliges the tenant under a social tenancy agreement to also comply with the requirements for the sanitary condition of the apartment;
• Art. 10 Federal Law No. 52 of 1999 prohibits homeowners from violating sanitary requirements;
• Art. 23 Federal Law of 1999 No. 52 establishes the need to maintain housing in satisfactory sanitary condition;
• Clause 9.1 of SanPiN 2.1.2 2645-10 prohibits the storage in the apartment of substances that pollute the air in the living space and neighbors’ apartments.

Expert opinion

Stanislav Evseev

Lawyer. Experience 12 years. Specialization: civil, family, inheritance law.

On the other hand, the level of liability of private individuals for violation of sanitary standards is insignificant. For example, when brought to justice under Art. 6.3 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation for violation of ensuring the sanitary and epidemiological well-being of citizens, in [current_date format='Y'] the fine ranges from 100 to 500 rubles. At the same time, bringing a neighbor to justice under this article is very difficult.

However, imperfect legislation is not a reason for refusing to take measures. If cockroaches are coming from your neighbors, you need to take serious measures.

What do cockroaches do while the trial is going on?

During its life, one insect lays from 20 to 90 clutches, each of which contains from 15 to 60 eggs. Cockroaches lay eggs in a special protective capsule called an ooteca. The durable pouch protects the larvae for several weeks from poisons, moisture and temperature changes.

The female lays eggs in a dark, inaccessible place. And when they hatch, everything starts again. For this reason alone, the fight against insects should not be left to chance and should not be given time to settle down. The longer cockroaches live in a house, the more of them there are.

Courts are good for cockroaches. Therefore, if you were unable to reach an agreement with your neighbors, do not hesitate and contact an exterminator. Our specialists will destroy cockroaches at any time and on any day.

If you need a guaranteed result, call us or fill out the feedback form. A company employee will advise you on the exact cost of the service and book an exterminator visit on a date and time convenient for you.

What to do if neighbors do not want to get rid of cockroaches

All the measures mentioned above are effective provided that the neighbors are adequate, clean people who care no less than you about the cleanliness and sanitary condition of their home. The situation is completely different if an agreement cannot be reached and the presence of cockroaches and other insects in the house is a common sight for them. What can you do in such a case?

First, try to find out whether the apartment of these particular neighbors is a hotbed for the spread of pests. Perhaps cockroaches appeared in public places (for example, in the basement, entrance) and from there they run throughout all the premises.

If it turns out that your careless neighbors have raised insects and are not trying to get rid of them, just try to talk to them. Perhaps the whole situation will be resolved with a simple conversation. Ask what they have done to eliminate the pests and offer to help.

It is advisable to do this not alone, but with the participation of residents of several apartments. Most likely, cockroaches are a problem not only for you, but for the entire entrance.

The local inspector can also be involved in the conversation. But it is better to complain to him in writing.

It is quite possible that this will be the end of the matter, you and your neighbors will defeat the insect invasion, and the conflict will be settled.

Cockroaches crawl through the ventilation. Habitats

The question of where cockroaches usually hide in an apartment can be answered in a few words: where it is warm, there is access to food and water. Insects live only in places where the air temperature does not drop below 15 ° C. This is why it is almost impossible to find cockroaches in cold and cold rooms.

Interesting. Cockroaches do not live in nests in the standard sense of the word. An accumulation of living insects, old chitinous coverings, and empty eggs evokes the feeling of a nest, but is not one.

The presence of food remains, crumbs, and greasy stains on surfaces primarily contribute to the appearance of insects in an apartment or house. A trash bin not taken out on time and a dirty stove will also be provoking factors.

But the main condition for cockroaches to live in an apartment is access to water. An insect can do without food, but it will not survive without water. This is why cockroaches primarily eat wet food rather than dry food.

Based on the above, cockroaches can live in the kitchen, toilet and bathroom. If there are a large number of insects, they can gradually spread throughout the apartment, including bedrooms and closets.

It makes sense to identify the most favorite habitats of cockroaches:

• Cabinet under the sink. This is the first place to look if you suspect that there are cockroaches in the house. A trash can and constant access to water make this place the most suitable for cockroaches to settle.
• Shelves and cabinets with food and utensils. The presence of cockroaches can be easily determined by the characteristic black dots of excrement on the walls.
• Rear wall of the refrigerator with heat exchanger. The very fact that the refrigerator is rarely moved from place to place indicates an excellent opportunity to live there peacefully.
• The space between the wall and the gas stove, kitchen cabinets. If you rarely look there, then cockroaches (when they appear) will come here too.
• You can also remember such a wonderful place as a battery. And if the owners have a habit of hiding newspapers there, then you definitely cannot do without cockroaches in this place.

All hiding places for cockroaches in an apartment have two mandatory characteristics: dark and warm. Food is a little easier - insects can feed on wallpaper paste, wallpaper, and newspapers. For this reason, when searching for cockroaches, you should also look into closets and mezzanines, that is, into those places where all kinds of rubbish are stored.

How to protect yourself from insects poisoned by your neighbors?

Cockroaches can move en masse into neighboring premises if disinfestation has been carried out in their habitat or if active extermination measures have simply begun (baiting, poisonous baits, traps). In this case, it is necessary to carry out a number of active actions in order not to have uninvited guests.

How to scare away the coming Prussians?

You can order professional pest control - it will be most effective if your neighbors have done the same.
It is necessary if the neighbors have a lot of cockroaches and there is a massive exodus of them into neighboring rooms.

In this case, you cannot get rid of the “guests” using other methods.

If there are not very many cockroaches, you can simply prevent them from entering your apartment purely mechanically or scare them away. Plug all ventilation passages with a fine mesh, coat the cracks with sealant, close the toilet lid and drain holes in the bathtub and sink with plugs.

Ultrasonic repellers can be installed. These are modern devices that protect the apartment from the appearance of both cockroaches and ants.

A device connected to an outlet begins to emit ultrasonic waves within a radius of 10 to 50 meters.

If the repeller is powerful enough, and the walls between neighbors are thin, the cockroaches will run away from them too.

Why don't they leave?

But because they liked it here.

They always run to where they are:

1. warm;
2. food;
3. water.

Obviously, in a new place, where there are food remains on the floor, there is enough food for cockroaches (crumbs of bread on the table, a bucket of garbage not thrown out, unwashed dishes in the sink, a dirty stove, a poorly washed pan, burnt fat on the bottom of a frying pan), water (leaking faucet, cups with leftover tea on the table, water for flowers in an open container), and there is no smell of dichlorvos.

And the natural enemy - the owner of the house - unlike them, sleeps at night. And they know how to hide.

Attention! Finding cockroach nests in an apartment is very difficult.

Why are they difficult to get rid of?

It is difficult to eradicate the population of cockroaches, since over thousands of years of existence, cunning insects have developed several adaptation mechanisms to poisons and climatic conditions; they don’t even care about radiation. Dinosaurs and mammoths went extinct, but cockroaches adapted.

1. They know how to pretend to be dead, or rather, to lose consciousness from poison. By sweeping the corpses of cockroaches into a dustpan and throwing them into the garbage chute, a person helps them survive. Having recovered from the effects of the poison in the trash heap, the parasite will soon continue its earthly path. Therefore, poisoned cockroaches can only be disposed of down the drain.
2. They learned to live up to a month without food and even without a head. It’s only difficult for them without water, so they are more often stationed in the kitchen and bathroom. Therefore, it is so important that the plumbing in the house does not leak and the sinks are dry.
3. They are able to regulate population numbers and reduce birth rates under unfavorable conditions - especially when they are poisoned.
   Residents, while persecuting them, notice that the number of insects has decreased and calm down: they say that the remaining ones will soon die out on their own. No, they won't die out! The breeding cycle of cockroaches is two months. During baiting, females do not reproduce as actively, but they still reproduce. If the owners fold their arms at this stage of the struggle, the queen cockroaches will increase their efforts tenfold. Therefore, you can exhale carefully only if three months have passed and not a single running Prussian has been noticed in the house.

Watch a video about why it is so difficult to get rid of cockroaches:

Modern chemicals

Today there are many industrial means to combat unloved “pets”.

Let's look at the most effective of them:

1. Crayons

The product resembles ordinary crayons that children use to draw on asphalt. They have a specific smell that attracts cockroaches.

Draw as many lines as possible on any surfaces and wait for the result. To become infected, the insect must touch the drug. Special substances cause complete paralysis of the insect, and then death.

The crayons do not act immediately, but after some time, during which the infected cockroach manages to transfer the toxic substance to its fellows. After 2 weeks, the pests will completely disappear. However, the remedy will only help at the initial stage.

1. Gel

The principle of operation of the product is similar to crayons. The only difference is that due to the stronger smell, insects can be removed in just a few days.

1. Spray

Convenient and effective product. However, due to the unstable substance, it only works for a short period of time. The drug must be sprayed constantly.

1. Boric acid

Place the powder in areas where cockroaches are most concentrated, and the results will not be long in coming. If there are pets in the house, the product should not be used.

Couldn't you get rid of the red pests yourself? Where to contact? Of course, to the professionals. Special services will arrive at the time you set and will do their job with a guarantee.

After using professional products, you should not stay in the room for several hours until the chemicals hazardous to health are completely removed. This disinfection is carried out jointly with neighbors, and not only nearby apartments are treated, but also the entire floor, and sometimes even the entire entrance.

If neighbors for some reason refuse to carry out general treatment, then this method does not make sense - the cockroaches will return.

What about in practice?

Almost often the following everyday situation arises: the owners discover cockroaches in their apartment and begin persecuting them. They may or may not inform their neighbors of their intentions. In this case, cockroaches will begin to look for more favorable places and migrate to their neighbors. Everyone suffers from this development of events, including the initiators of bullying.

Whiskered insects have developed active resistance to many pesticides. They may return to your apartment after some time. This probability is especially high if the destruction was not thought out and brought to its logical conclusion.

There are residents who are not bothered by cockroaches in their neighborhood. They live in unsanitary conditions, do not clean, do not want to poison cockroaches, and sometimes do not recognize the fact of infection. In such cases, who should complain to and what can be done?

Joint fight against insects

If you are lucky with your neighbors and they are ready to eliminate the infection through joint efforts, it is better to immediately contact professional exterminators. This is both more efficient and economical. Specialists have at their disposal the best remedies against annoying domestic insects, against which they have not yet developed immunity.

Ultrasonic traps also show good efficiency.

If you install them simultaneously and to the maximum, hordes of arthropods will rush away. You should not expect an immediate effect, since the females have already laid eggs in any case, and new pests will inevitably hatch from them, after which you will either have to repeat the sanitation or wait until the first one takes effect, depending on the means used.

Complaint structure

In the upper right corner of the sheet indicate:

1. Name of the management company.
2. The address where it is located.
3. Postcode.
4. Full name of the official to whom the application is sent.
5. The author of the complaint enters his full name.
6. Address of the house and apartment.
7. Postcode.
8. Home or mobile phone number.

The word “Complaint” or “Statement” is written in the middle of the sheet.

The essence of the problem is described below. It is recommended to keep your emotions to yourself. You need to write concisely. A competent complaint with a clear description of the problem increases the likelihood of a favorable outcome of the case.

If there were verbal requests to deal with cockroaches, but no one responded, then indicate this fact.

The main thing is to notify what happened and what the management company violated. Having described the situation with cockroaches, it is recommended to refer to Article 162 of the RF Housing Code, the requirement of which is not fulfilled.

Indicate the points in the residents’ agreement with the company that she undertook to fulfill, but did not keep her word.

At the end of the application the word “I ask” or “We ask” is written. The second option is applicable in case of a collective complaint. Here it is written what actions residents expect from the company. For example, extermination of cockroaches in the entrance.

At the end there is a date and a signature with a transcript.

Insect entry points

Cockroaches can also enter through pipes. Often in an apartment building, a cockroach infestation in one apartment can quickly spread to others because the water supply system connects the apartments. They can quickly move from one apartment to another.

Cockroaches have also been known to get in from sewer drains in the basement or other areas.

Cockroaches can also get inside your home through small openings.

If there is a place where utilities such as pipes or electrical wires pass through the wall and leave open areas outside, then for the cockroach it is like an open door inviting him to visit. Any of these channels is enough to penetrate inside the house, into the walls, and then begin to multiply from neighbor to neighbor.