New rental agreements to extend the smoking ban to the outdoor areas of the apartment

These outdoor areas include balconies, apartment yards and terraces included in the apartment. In addition to cigarettes, the smoking ban applies to cigars, pipes and other plant-based products, as well as electronic cigarettes.

Existing rental agreements will not be changed with the extension of the ban. The policy will only apply to new rental agreements beginning on or after 1 January 2021 – including fixed-term agreements and the agreements for replacement apartments. 

Indoor smoking has been banned in Heka’s rental agreements since June 2018, while Heka’s new and renovated properties have banned both indoor and outdoor smoking since 2016. The extension of the smoking ban is due to the disturbances experienced by neighbours, the damage caused by smoking to the apartment and the cost to Heka. 

The extension of the ban only applies to new agreements, so other residents of the property may have rental agreements where the scope of the smoking ban is different or smoking is not prohibited. Thus, new or renovated properties completed before 2016 are not completely non-smoking.

Heka may request that the municipality impose a smoking ban

In addition to the smoking ban imposed by Heka’s rental agreements, smoking is also restricted by the Tobacco Act. Heka will continue to act in accordance with the Tobacco Act. It makes it possible to request that the municipality impose a smoking ban on the balconies and in the courtyards of buildings or indoors if disruptive smoke is spreading into other apartments. 

A tenant can report disruptive smoking to Heka, and the matter will be investigated based on the notice. 

If necessary, Heka can request that the City’s Environmental Services impose a smoking ban on the property.

Heka currently has 11 balcony smoking bans and two indoor smoking bans under the Tobacco Act.