Case brief

    The residential area where Mr. Luo lives is an employee residential area of a certain unit in Guilin City. The property management company in the community sells or rents the parking spaces in the community to meet the owner's parking needs. In February 2024, after Mr. Luo purchased a new energy vehicle, he leased an underground parking space from the property company for a period of 14 months.

    Subsequently, in the process of going through the procedures related to the installation of new energy vehicle charging piles, Mr. Luo required the property company to issue relevant proof materials agreeing to the installation, but was rejected by the property company. The property company believed that Mr. Luo was only the lessee of the parking space, not the owner of the parking space, and did not agree to his installation of charging piles in the leased parking space.

    Mr. Luo negotiated with the property company many times, but to no avail. He sued the property company to the People's Court of Qixing District, Guilin City, requesting the court to order the property company to issue relevant certificates agreeing to install new energy vehicle charging piles in the taxi stand and cooperate with the installation.

court hearing

    After the trial, the Qixing District Court held that according to the relevant provisions of the Civil Code, civil subjects engaging in civil activities should be conducive to saving resources and protecting the ecological environment. In the process of performing the contract, the parties should avoid wasting resources, polluting the environment and destroying the ecology. In the context of the state encouraging the travel of new energy vehicles and promoting energy conservation and emission reduction, Mr. Luo's purchase and use of new energy vehicles should be affirmed in response to the relevant national strategic requirements.

    As a supporting infrastructure for new energy vehicles, Mr. Luo, as the lessee of the parking space, has the right to install charging piles that are matched with new energy vehicles in the parking space he uses. As a unit providing property services, the property company should follow the green principle in the performance of the contract and actively facilitate the establishment and improvement of charging equipment.

    Mr. Luo's application for installing charging piles in long-term leased parking spaces is a reasonable demand and is in line with the concept of green environmental protection. The property company excludes it from exercising its right to apply for the installation of new energy charging piles, and there is no legal basis. Moreover, the property company has not submitted evidence that the owner of the parking space in the community or the community business committee does not agree with the owner of the rented taxi space to install new energy charging piles.

    The property company's issuance of relevant certificates is one of the necessary links for the installation of charging piles. Whether the parking space leased by Mr. Luo has the installation conditions, whether it can obtain the consent of the owner of the parking space and the follow-up fire safety issues lie in the on-site investigation and follow-up judgment of the relevant functional areas of business, rather than the property company needs to consider. Therefore, the property company's claim that it refuses to fulfill the obligation to assist in the installation of charging piles is insufficient and the court will not support it.

    The Qixing District Court made a first-instance judgment: the property company stamped the materials required for the relevant functional areas of business and cooperated with the relevant requirements for installing charging piles.

    The property company refused to accept the judgment of the first instance and appealed to the Guilin Intermediate People's Court. The Guilin Intermediate Court rejected the property company's appeal and upheld the original judgment.

Judge's statement

    With the advancement of the national new energy industry development strategy, new energy vehicles are becoming increasingly popular. The promotion of new energy vehicles is inseparable from convenient charging supporting equipment, which requires the support, guidance and assistance of the whole society. If the owner requests the installation of charging piles in accordance with laws and regulations, the property company should cooperate and provide convenience. At the same time, in the future work, strengthen the investigation and supervision of hidden safety hazards in the use of charging piles to ensure the safety of the owner's life and property.

    This article is transferred from the "Shandong High Law" WeChat official account, thank you here!