More personal responsibility for homeowners - the monopoly of the chimney sweep crumbles

With the annual control of the gas boiler or a tour of the fireplace by the chimney sweep, it can be over soon.Next year there will be the last forced visit to all households, the district chimney sweep loses its monopoly for these routine tasks for centuries.It is still completely open whether this really leads to a mass change.Because already as part of a five-year transitional regulation, certain chimney sweeps from the EU's foreign land in individual cases can do review and sweeping work- but hardly anyone uses the complicated procedure."There was once a company from Austria that applied for a chamber approval in Stade and has done orders in the Hanover area," says guest chief Gerhard Kahle: "How he wants to do with the costs is veiled for us.“However, the guild observes the new competition very precisely and pursues every rule violation meticulously.

For years of political seizure, the Kehrmonopol.Basically, it is a progressive facility: it should ensure that the person who checks the technical suitability of fireplaces is not also responsible for installation and maintenance - so conflicts of interest and botch should be prevented.In return, the monopoly is alimented with the "black men" (now there are increasingly women in the profession) also quite good.The sweeping district has so far been assigned for life, the compensation is continuously increasing, the income is considered good among craftsmen.

Now, not least under pressure from the EU, competition comes into play.At the end of 2012, every property with fireplace (gas or oil heating, thermal bath, fireplace or oven) must have a fireplace notice.The district chimney sweeps issue the decision for a fee, it is listed in it what needs to be checked when and how.In their 2012 assembly, owner communities must then decide whether they want to continue to use the service from 2013 at the ancestral district sweeper (in the future: Bevölllitsteienmerten chimney sweep) or want to ask for another chimney sweep or even a certified plumbing company into the house.For these regular work, all property owners have the free choice of the provider, but must send the auditor's results annually without being asked for the chimney sweep authorized for the district.And every three to four years this chimney sweep comes back into the house to take the large fireplace show from the combustion chamber to the chimney crown and, if necessary, to issue a new fireplace notice.They also remain responsible for the decrease in new or changed thermal baths or ovens.

Critics are considered questionable whether it will change seriously large parts of the population in view of these hurdles - experts estimate that large housing companies alone should benefit, the orders for entire blocks of houses will soon be freely assigned and can thus press the prices.The individual homeowner, on the other hand, may be at the end because the future double structure is driving the prices.

For example, Lutz Friday from the Federal Association of Housing and Real Estate Companies (GDW) commented on the law enacted in 2008: “We had called for a real right to vote for the owner.The monopoly of this profession would have been completely overturned - so that landlords and tenants would have saved many million euros.“And Rolf Konemann from the Association of House and Landowners find“ against the background of technological progress ”that a technical examination should be sufficient every five years:“ The short interval more corresponds to the interests of the chimney sweep.“So you can expect the dispute over cleaning and checking the fireplaces to continue cheerfully.