Coexistence in a residential building or property usually entails some conflicts with the rest of the owners. Beyond the obligations of each of the neighbors regarding their own home, they must also comply with a series of issues related to the community according to the Horizontal Property Law. As may be the case of meetings to make decisions about the works or renovations that are going to be carried out in the building. A question that can lead to non-payment of spills.
As already explained by lawyer Raúl Gómez, contributor to the Onda Cero program ‘It’s not hours’, in order for a community of neighbors to legally claim payment of the neighbors’ fee or the spills, it is necessary to comply with the 5-year period established by law and present a formal claim to the owner in question. However, there are cases in which, even having followed this procedure, The judge may consider that the defendant should not pay the payment that the rest of the owners of the building demand.
It is at this moment where an issue of great legal relevance comes into play, despite the fact that many communities tend not to give it the importance it should: formality in all communication and calls made by the community. And they choose to notify the rest of the neighbors with a simple and concise WhatsApp message. Something that can entail legal consequences, since, as the lawyer recalls, “In law, forms matter a lot”.
The spill of 4,750 euros was declared null and void by the Balearic Court
This information comes as a result of a ruling by the Provincial Court of Palma de Mallorca that declared as null and void an agreement in which the community of neighbors claimed 4,750 euros from some owners due to some works that were carried out in the building. The reason: the Meeting in which said agreement had been reached had been summoned by a WhatsApp message without specifying the agenda or adjusting to the provisions of the Horizontal Property Law.
It all started in 2022, when the community of neighbors agreed to carry out some works to solve a leak problem and other issues related to the maintenance of the building. In total, the cost of the reform amounted to approximately 36,500 euros. Likewise, at that time two new neighbors arrived who had bought a home on the property and, when the process began, “they requested on several occasions, including through burofax, documentation related to budgets and technical reports,” explained the lawyer. Information that never reached your hands.
When they did not make the payment, the community sent them a formal statement in which they demanded the money from the spill or they would initiate a legal process. That’s when the problems began. “The community maintained that a meeting had been held and that The owners had been notified through the WhatsApp group that the neighbors usually used,” he assured. However, the way in which said meeting was called did not comply with the requirements established in article 16 of the Horizontal Property Law.
The calls must include the agenda
“Among other things, The call must indicate the issues to be discussed.in addition to the place, day and time of holding the meeting on first or second call,” explained the lawyer. All with the aim that the owners can assess the importance of the agenda that will be discussed and make the conscious and informed decision whether or not to attend the meeting. Therefore, although a WhatsApp message can be considered a valid method of communication, it must include all the points that will be discussed.
After analyzing the messages that were exchanged in the group chat, the Balearic Court determined that “they spoke of a generic intention to meet, but the agenda was not specified which later appeared in the minutes of the meeting,” Gómez clarified. That is why the judge concluded that, although the owners could have been aware that their neighbors were going to meet, they were unaware of the issues that were going to be discussed at said meeting.
A ruling that, as the lawyer assures, does not establish the nullity of the use of channels such as WhatsApp to communicate the calls, but rather penalizes the lack of formality in said communications. “Whatever the means used, The call must fulfill its function and contain essential information required by law,” concludes Raúl Gómez. An error that prevented the new owners from paying the 4,750 euros that their community was demanding.