Responsibility for violation of fire safety requirements in the organization

Today, liability for violation of requirements, fire safety rules applies to perpetrators. It has several varieties. What types of liability are currently known? What are they and what pitfalls do they contain?

You can find answers to these and other interesting questions in the process of getting acquainted with the materials of this article.

General Provisions

To begin with, it should be noted that the following persons bear responsibility for violation of fire safety requirements under applicable law:

• Owners of property complexes.
• Leadership of federal bodies of executive power.
• Guidelines of state bodies of local self-government.
• Persons who are authorized to own, dispose of or use property complexes. It is necessary to add that this also includes the leadership of structures.
• Persons who are appointed responsible for the organization of fire safety in the manner specified by law.
• Certain officials within their competence.

Important nuances

Persons who may be held responsible for violating fire safety requirements, as well as for other types of offenses in terms of safety in case of fire, are brought to administrative, disciplinary or criminal liability. It is important to note that the corresponding process is carried out strictly according to the current Russian legislation.

By the way, the proceeds from the use of penalties in the field of security in case of fire are distributed as follows:

• Fifty percent of the total amount goes to the federal budget.
• Fifty percent of the total amount goes to local budgets in accordance with the location of the authority that made the decision regarding the fine.

Responsibility in the organization

So, the responsibility of citizens for violation of fire safety requirements at the enterprise is nothing but the legal side of the organization of safety in case of fire at work and in structures. As it turned out, it involves bringing guilty citizens and other persons to administrative, disciplinary or criminal liability for improper execution or non-compliance with safety requirements and rules. In other words, the management of the organization, as well as any of its employees, can be punished for neglect and disregard for safety precautions in the fire.

Disciplinary action

Violation of fire safety requirements is often punishable by disciplinary action. The latter, one way or another, is assigned to the employee (officer) by the employer. It is important to note that, in strict order, this employee must have responsibilities related to compliance with these requirements and the rules of the previously concluded labor contract in accordance with article 192 of the Russian Labor Code.

For violation of fire safety requirements, disciplinary, administrative or criminal liability is provided. However, what varieties does the disciplinary action considered in this chapter fall into? So, it is worth highlighting the following points:

• Reprimand for the employee who was guilty in the field of fire safety organization in the structure.
• A note to the perpetrator in the field of fire safety.
• Dismissal of an employee when there are appropriate grounds for this.

Administrative type of punishment

To begin with, it should be noted that the responsibility of employees for violation of fire safety requirements in the form of an administrative penalty is applied strictly according to the code of the Russian Federation, the content of which is connected with administrative offenses (dated 30.12.2010). An administrative penalty is imposed for an unlawful action (in some cases, inaction becomes relevant in accordance with this topic) of a legal or natural person.

Varieties of administrative punishments

It must be remembered that in any case, an official of one or another structure will lie with the type of responsibility under consideration due to non-fulfillment or improper performance of his own duties of a service orientation. Administrative liability for violation of fire safety requirements can be of various types:

• Warning to the guilty employee in the field of fire safety.
• An administrative fine that an employee agrees to pay during a specific time period.
• Deprivation of the guilty special right that is vested in an individual.
• Administrative arrest of an employee who did not perform at all or who, however, improperly performed his own official duties related to the organization of fire safety in the structure.
• Disqualification of the offending employee.
• Administrative suspension of economic activity of a legal entity or individual.

These are the administrative types of liability for violation of fire safety requirements, but who should monitor compliance with all the prescribed rules?

Fire Responsibility

It is important to note that liability for violation of fire safety requirements is also borne by officials carrying out official activities in government bodies that are engaged in the implementation of fire supervision.

They can be brought to administrative punishment in the following situations:

• Violation of the safety rules, which led to the fire, however, serious damage to human health was not caused.
• Issuance of a certificate of conformity to a person for a product that does not comply with fire safety standards.
• The provision of services or the sale of products, which in any case is subject to the mandatory certification procedure in the field of fire safety, without the necessary certificate of conformity.

What else?

In addition to the above items, it is important to know the following nuances, according to which officials of state structures can be held responsible for violation of fire safety requirements and rules:

• Unauthorized blocking of passage to a building or structure installed for fire fighting equipment and machinery.
• Development and subsequent approval of a scheme (plan) for the location of places for trading activities on the retail market without proper coordination with certain authorities. The latter are authorized to monitor the implementation of activities related to the organization of fire safety. State authorities for supervision and control in the field of organizing sanitary and epidemiological welfare and protecting consumer rights should also give permission.

• Disobedience to a legal requirement or order from an official of the body that is engaged in the implementation of control (supervision) by the state. This also includes an obstacle to the implementation of official duties by a given official.

Additional situations

For officials of state bodies involved in providing fire control (supervision) over violation of fire safety requirements, administrative liability is provided for in such cases:

• Failure to comply within a specified time with a legal requirement (submission, decision, decision) of an official (body) who is engaged in the implementation of state control (supervision) in the field of fire safety organization regarding the elimination of violations of the law.
• Violation of the rules of technical regulations, as well as the requirements of state norms and standards, which are mandatory for the supply (sale), operation (application), storage, disposal or transportation of products. This also includes avoiding the presentation of a product, documentation or information necessary for the supervision or control of the state.

Last moment

It is important to note that the responsibility of managers for violation of fire safety requirements in the form of administrative punishment is provided for the sale of a certified product that does not meet the requirements of the regulatory documentation in accordance with which it is certified. This also applies to the situation when the certified product is sold (sold) without a declaration of conformity (also called a certificate of conformity), without a conformity mark, or even without indicating information in certification in accompanying technical documents.

Criminal penalty

Today, somewhat less than disciplinary and administrative, criminal liability for violation of fire safety requirements is applied.

Thus, criminal punishment for officials provided for violation of such rules, in accordance with the provisions of Article 219 of the Russian Criminal Code, is expected in the following situations:

• Violation of the existing fire safety rules committed by an individual or legal entity that incurred an obligation to comply with them when this entailed infliction of grievous harm to human health through negligence.
• Violation of the current fire safety requirements committed by a legal entity or individual, which was under an obligation to comply with them when this entailed the death of a person through negligence.
• An act which is provided for in the first part of Article 219 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, which entails the death of two or more individuals by negligence, shall be punishable by imprisonment of up to seven years inclusive.

Damage to property complexes

It is important to note that today the damage or destruction of other people's property complexes when the relevant acts entail the infliction of substantial damage is punishable by penalties. So, a fine is imposed in the amount of up to 40,000 rubles or in the amount of the salary (other legal income) of the offender for a period not exceeding three months. By the way, compulsory labor for a period of 100 to 180 hours or correctional labor for a period of 1 year are a good alternative today. In addition to this, sometimes arrest is applied for up to 3 months, as well as imprisonment for up to 2 years in accordance with the federal legislative act of December 8, 2003.

The above acts, which were committed out of hooligan motives (through an explosion, arson, or other methods dangerous to society), entailed the death of a person or other serious consequences by negligence, in accordance with applicable law, shall be punishable by deprivation of liberty for a term of up to 5 years.

Conclusion

When summing up the results, it is important to note that, unfortunately, today the violation of the rules and requirements of fire safety in an organization or at an enterprise is far from uncommon. As a rule, practice shows only the presence of minimal violations, nevertheless, it should be remembered that even the slightest, slightest inconsistencies or shortcomings in the fulfillment of fire safety requirements can cause a large-scale and all-consuming fire. The latter, as far as everyone knows, entails the loss or harm to property complexes, and also, worst of all, often brings human sacrifices. That is why it is necessary to know not only the types of liability for violation of fire safety requirements, but also the consequences, as well as methods for their prevention.