My grandparents live in a building and above them there is a neighbor that keeps letting her cigarette buds fall into the ground the problem is that they dont fall to the ground in fall to much grandparents balcony, feeling it with ash and cigarette buds. we already tried to ask the lady to stop, we also talked to gewoba, the owners of the building, and nothing changed. Today one if her cigarette buds fallled on a carpet that started a little flame, and i don't know what could have happened if my grandparents weren't home to notice. They are very annoyed with reason. But I dont know if that qualifies going to the police for it. But they also tried every other option

by KatokaMika

38 comments

  2. First of all, 112 is Firefighters and Ambulance, Police is 110. And no. Call the landlord again.

  3. Yup sue her for negligence, and/or attempted arson, if you want to be a real prick to her.

  4. FYI:
    112 – Emergency Services / Fire department
    110 – Police

  5. 112 is rather for ambulance and fire department.
    110 is for the police.
    I would definitely have a talk with their neighbors and if they seem uncooperative tell them you will contact police. Also keep track of them throwing away their cigarette butts.

  6. 1. 112 is Fire & Rescue. 110 is police.
    2. These are Emergency Numbers, you only call them, if there is an ongoing emergency which requires immediate help.
    3. You could go to the local police department and file an Anzeige (report) probably because of Sachbeschädigung (property damage).

  7. I would not call 112 I would call the nearest police department by the regular number. Just Google where it is and mostly the department has a non emergency number. I would state to them, that the neighbours after speaking to them throw cigarettes leftovers on the balcony and that nearly a dangerous fire started due to this.

    At least you could fill in a report for littering (Throwing trash on the Balcony).

  9. Visit or call the local police department as the housing company doesn’t react. That’s not an emergency for 110 or 112 but I think the police is interested in this case as that asshole neighbor could easily cause a fire with that behavior.

  11. You should neither call 112 or 110 these numbers are for URGENT matters only. You should call the police non-emergency number.
    This could have gone terribly wrong and you should report them for arson. If they regularly depose their unextinguished cigarette butts that way, it is only a matter of time til you have a big fire.

  12. 112 is for emergencies. Calling it would be abuse of emergency services. 

  13. Go to the nearest police department and file a report in person. Also talk to the landlord. Don’t dial the emergency numbers though unless it’s an emergency

  14. I would confront the neighbors again and tell them that they almost started a fire and that next time you will file a report with the police for arson. If it keeps happening, go to the police to file the report. But don’t use the emergency line for that but go to the local police station.

  16. I fucking hate people throwing cigarette buds everywhere, we should really have HIGH fines for that like other countries. That wouldn’t solve the problem but I guess it would least reduce it a little bit.

  17. Throwing your cigarette butts on the ground instead of disposing them properly is an offense with a fine from 10€ to 250€ depending on where you are in germany. I think the “Ordnungsamt” is responsible for that though, not the police.

    The property damage is of course a case for the police so contact them on their non-emergency number or online presence.

  18. Send this picture and an explanaition to Gewoba again I’d say and explictly mention the fire danger. Owners can be pretty lazy about stuff their renters do, but given the obvious danger here I assume they will show a bit more interest now.

  19. Both 110 (police) and 112 (firefighters) are EMERGENCY numbers, when you’re in immediate threat. Please do not call them for this. HOWEVER you should absolutely GO to your areas police station OR call them on their REGULAR number. Recently, throwing away cigarette butts has been become chargable, ranging from 50 to 120 Euros, but can be ruled as a crime too, depending on the circumstances.

    Once you filed a complaint, send that to your landlord once more.

    Considering the damage and repeating behaviour of your neighbors, you might even can file a police report due to attempted/repeated arson (?)

  20. For a long-term solution, talk to the landlord and argue that a neighbour is harming the living conditions in the flat by endangering your grandparents and their property. Collect evidence such as the butts and video of them dropping. Ideally, the medical records of your grandparents confirm they don’t smoke.

    Give the landlord a written deadline to remedy the situation and announce that your grandparents will reduce their rent payment after that date (Mietminderung und Mietzahlung unter Vorbehalt). Search for precedent cases online and talk to the local Mieterbund for proper legal advice. 5-20% might be realistic.

    This will pressure the landlord into acting. In the long term, joining the Mieterbund can be beneficial because it usually includes rental related legal insurance.

  21. Google the non emergency number of the local police department. Explain to them the situation. Make sure to explicidly mention them dropping _burning_ cigarettes on your parents furniture. Otherwise its just littering. They likely will not do anything, but its good to have something on record.

  22. Never use 112 or 110, except in a real emergency. If you need the police for something else, call the local police department. You’ll get the number online

  23. https://www.online-strafanzeige.de/

    Report them for property damage (Sachbeschädigung) or arson (Brandstiftung), can be done online easily. Potentially even both, and throw littering in for good measure.

    Don’t call an emergency number for a non-emergency case though, that’s just blocking capacities. You’d do that in case the mat actually caught fire and there was a risk of spreading and/or you were unable to put it out yourself.

    You could however call the police non emergency number and ask to file the report on site. Some officers would be compelled to pay the neighbor a visit directly, that might be sufficient to get them to stop.

  24. 112 ist for fire service and ambulances. 110 ist for the police. Since its not burning you shouldn’t call 112. Calling the police for such minor stuff would probably lead to nothing…

  25. What is everyone saying here? The first step is to contact the Hausverwaltung

  26. I don’t know if it works the same way in Germany, but up here this is something you could contact the local firedepartment about (not using the emergency line though), since this behavior is causing a major fire hazard with a potential loss of life and property. They might send someone out to talk to the person doing this, about the risks and their responsibility in case they cause a fire.

  27. Sounds like a persistent issue. time to bring out the big guns here.
    Send an official letter and Fotos as an “Einschreiben”.
    Explain that you have already contacted both the neighbour and the landlord/owner about the matter in vain and that you feel compelled to take legal action if the landlord/owner is still not expected to help. The local police have already been informed.

  28. I’d go to local police station (But you could also file online). Do not let the police send you away. Legally they have to take your report. They are not the public prosecutor’s office.
    There were enough warnings to your ignorant neighbour.

  30. Ask them to write a log about when and how they informed the neighbors. This can be relevant when it comes to police/court issues.

  32. Sorry to be “one of those” but this doesn’t look like a balcony — why is there a welcome mat and wooden flooring?

  33. My other comment aside this obviously looks like it could be very serious and you should go to the property manager again and show them the evidence. The person above you needs to use an ash-tray. It’s simply not good enough if their butts are landing on your balcony.

  34. Talk to your landlord and Hausverwaltung. I am sure they will be thrilled to see their property as at imminent risk of burning down thanks to the careless acts of another tenant.

    Dont call 112 for this, these are only for emergencies. You could go to a local police station and talk to them to see if there is anything they could do, but I think the most leverage comes from your Hausverwaltung/landlord.

  35. Calling the emergency line for a fire that you can easily extinguish yourself would be an absolute overreaction and borderline misuse of the system. You can call the local police over their normal number but i doubt they will do much other than maybe speak with the neighbor. Most promising option is to go contact a lawyer and ask for options. Maybe you can send a notice / cease and desist letter and demand compensation for property damage (e.g. burnt foot mat + cleaning costs for the balcony) if its expensive enough.
    Your grandparents should document every occurrence to create a paper trail of the issue so they have something to point to when they talk to the landlord or try to sue in court.

  36. Don’t call 112 unless there is a arson going,u don’t want to pay that fee if something stupid happend

  37. Even if they would fall to the ground it would be a problem.
    Cigarette butts belong in the trash and nowhere else.

    As mentioned by all the others: Call local police or Ordnungsamt but don’t use emergency lines unless it is an emergency.

  38. Inform gewoba there is a difference between littering and potentially setting their building on fire.

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