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Parent Category: Private Legalities

Created on Friday, 01 August 2008 19:28

Last Updated on Sunday, 24 February 2013 16:41

Smoking Ban: What is True for Rental Housing?

The blue haze often resolves disputes and often ends the dispute in court. Because of the dangers of passive smoking is to protect non-smokers, a comprehensive ban on smoking in public places has become law. Where can you still smoke, what applies at work and what at home?

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Apartments Housing and Common Rooms

The blue haze often triggers disputes between tenants and landlords. This is true: The landlord is not entitled to impose a smoking ban in the tenant's apartment. However, when a tenant smokes in the apartment, he might be held liable for the renovation costs to eliminate the nicotine damage. This is according to the Federal Court of Justice only true for damage caused through normal wear and tear damage beyond. When the tenant owes the beauty repairs ("Schönheitsreparaturen"), he is only to come up for the normal wear and tear of the apartment. Read also the previous LG2G article "Returning a "Smoked-in Apartment" to One's Former Landlord".

The landlord, however, is entitled to impose a smoking ban on the staircase and other common areas (cellar, laundry room, etc.). Since the staircase belongs to the public area in the house, he may impose a smoking ban in order to protect the other tenants and for fire protection. The contrary is true to the living area of the retail tenant, balcony, or terrace. Even apartment owners in a multi-family house have to respect a ban on smoking in public areas, if the majority of the owners has so decided (AG Hanover, re 70 II 414/99). If the tenant does not follow the ban on smoking in public areas, the landlord can admonish him. In the case of a recurrence, a termination of the lease is even possible.

Related articles:

Special on Smoking Ban (Story starts here)

Special Smoking Ban: What is True for the Workplace?

Smoking Ban: Constitutional Court Undoes Ban

Published on the old CMS: 2008/Aug/1
Read on the old CMS till November 2008: 1,671 reads