If gas and electricity meters are installed in the house or apartment, payment is made according to the meter readings. Therefore, during the period of absence, payment is not required (except for centralized heating during the autumn-winter period).
However, it is necessary to submit actual meter readings every month, even if the consumer is not using the utilities.
If there are no meters, then according to Clause 6 of Part One of Article 7 of the Law of Ukraine “On Housing and Communal Services”, the consumer has the right not to pay for communal services (except for heating) in case of non-use during a period of temporary absence from the residential premises of more than 30 calendar days, provided that proper documentation is submitted according to the terms of the utility service agreements.
To do this, the consumer must submit a request to the gas and electricity supplier and provide proof of absence from the residence. Such proof may include:
a certificate of internally displaced person;
a certificate of medical treatment;
a certificate of military service.
The application must be submitted monthly or once every six months if the consumer does not plan to return to their residence.
According to Clause 5 of Part Two of Article 8 of the Law, the utility provider is obliged to consider consumer claims and complaints within the time frame established by law and, in cases defined by law, also the managers, and to make appropriate adjustments to the amount of payment for utility services in case of non-provision, incomplete provision, untimely provision, or poor quality, as well as in other cases specified in the utility service agreement.
