Smoking on the veranda and bathroom due to cold... Upstairs neighbors go crazy over 'interfloor odor'

Cold wave triggers inter-floor 'cigarette smell' conflicts
Complaints increase but management remains difficult

#. Han Mo (42), who lives in an apartment in Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul, recently experiences headaches from cigarette smoke that rises at night. Han said, "As the weather gets colder, it seems like someone is smoking inside the house because the cigarette smell always comes up around 8 to 9 p.m." He added, "The smell comes through the ventilation duct in the master bathroom, and lately, the smell has become so strong that the children no longer use that bathroom." He lamented, "The security office has issued warnings several times, but they said there is no stronger way to stop it."

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As the winter cold wave intensifies, cases of indoor smoking are increasing, leading to a surge in complaints about 'inter-floor odors' among residents of apartments and villas. Many who used to smoke outside now smoke indoors due to the cold, and the building structure allows cigarette smoke to travel through ventilation systems. Conflicts over noise and odors between floors are escalating, sometimes resulting in crimes, prompting calls for countermeasures.

The issue of inter-floor smoking has long been considered a problem alongside inter-floor noise. According to data submitted by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport to Min Hong-cheol, a member of the National Assembly Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee from the Democratic Party of Korea, last year, there were 43,378 cases where residents of multi-unit housing reported damage due to inter-floor noise or secondhand smoke, prompting management authorities to conduct fact-finding investigations.

The number of people reporting damage is also on the rise. According to the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission (ACRC), complaints about inter-floor secondhand smoke received through the National Petition System in 2020 totaled 2,844, an increase of about 20% from 2,386 cases the previous year. According to the ACRC and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, among 1,196 complaints about inter-floor noise and secondhand smoke received through the National Petition System from January 2014 to May 2016, 688 cases (57.5%) were related to secondhand smoke, which was more than the 508 cases (42.5%) related to inter-floor noise.

Conflicts over inter-floor odors sometimes escalate into crimes. In June, a man in his 50s living in a villa in Bupyeong-gu, Incheon, stabbed and killed a neighbor multiple times with a weapon due to ongoing disputes over smoking and noise.

Legal Sanctions Are Difficult... Only "Smoking Prohibition" Recommendations Possible

However, legal sanctions are relatively weak, making management difficult. According to Article 20-2 (Prevention of Secondhand Smoke, etc.) of the Multi-Unit Housing Management Act, residents who suffer damage from secondhand smoke can notify the management authority (such as the management office), and the mediator can request the resident to stop smoking in certain areas, but this is limited to a 'recommendation.'

It is virtually impossible to detect smoking on-site, so there is a strong opinion that a social consensus approach is urgently needed. A representative from a management office of an apartment in Seoul said, "When a complaint is received, we call or visit the unit in question, but sometimes there is no answer, or it turns out to be a household without smokers, such as families with children." He added, "Legal issues are a problem, but since we live together, a considerate attitude should come first."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.