Abu Dhabi: A total of 40 fines have been issued to residents in the capital for living in conditions that violate the emirate’s residential laws, the Municipality of Abu Dhabi City announced in a statement on Saturday.
The residents were found living in congested quarters in the city suburb of Baniyas in a manner that posed a threat to their and others’ safety, the statement added.
The emirate’s residential rules are specified in Law No. 1 for 2011 and their implementation is overseen by the municipality. The regulations aim to eliminate congested living arrangements because of the health and safety risks they present.
One of the law’s main stipulations is that each rental unit, such as an apartment, a villa-based apartment or a stand-alone villa, can only house a single family. While bachelors and single individuals are allowed to share apartments and villas, they must ensure that there are no more than three people per bedroom, and that the common areas like the kitchen and corridors must not be used for accommodation and sleeping.
The law also prohibits unlicensed partitions, additions and demolitions to residential units, and bans farm owners from renting out buildings without the necessary permits.
Violators receive fines ranging from Dh10,000 to Dh100,000. In addition, repeat offenders can invite fines between Dh100,000 and Dh200,000. In all instances, the case is referred to the courts, which can rule to evict the tenants.
A lengthy period of high rents in the capital, however, means that shared accommodation is still a common practice. In 2015 alone, municipal inspectors recorded more than 3,320 violations of residential laws across downtown Abu Dhabi as well as in suburbs like Musaffah, Al Wathba and Al Shawamekh.
The municipality conducts regular inspections to ensure that residents adhere to the applicable regulations. During these visits, inspectors also create awareness about the laws, and highlight the hazards of living in congested quarters.
In 2013, a fire in a crowded old building on Shaikh Rashid Bin Saeed Street (Airport Road) left three workers dead. Two years later, 10 workers living in the upper storey of a non-residential building in Musaffah area were killed in a fire.
