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Landlords and property owners have specific legal obligations to provide safe and habitable accommodations for tenants. Certain infestations, including bed bugs, may constitute an unacceptable condition. Tenants have an obligation to cooperate with owners and landlords. This includes preparing the apartment so that the pest control operator can easily inspect the rooms and treat if necessary. Contact your state or municipal health agency or housing authority for more guidance on these issues.
The ideas of sharing a bed with bed bugs can make anyone feel queasy. After all, when one is totally unaware of being bitten (bed bugs' saliva has an anesthetic effect), and then awakens with welts on their body, its pretty shocking. What's even worse is when that person believes they are sleeping in fairly clean surroundings- such as hotel chain whose rooms aren't cheap, or on an expensice cruise liner, The majority of inducuduals who may encounter bed bugs in lodgings are satisfied to recieve a refund and another room- with out bed bugs. But ever since a lawsuit involving bed bugs was publicized over two years ago, insurance companies have seen a glut of bed bug related claims, and lawyers are receiving calls almost daily from people reporting physical, emotional, and mental harm from bed bugs.
The number of bedbug infestations has risen significantly since the early 21st century. The National Pest Management Association reported a 71% increase in bedbug calls between 2000 and 2005. The Steritech Group, a pest-management company based in Charlotte, North Carolina, claimed that 25% of the 700 hotels they surveyed between 2002 and 2006 needed bedbug treatment. In 2003, a brother and sister staying at a Motel 6 in Chicago were awarded $372,000 in punitive damages after being bitten by bedbugs during their stay. These are only a few of the reported cases since the turn of the 21st century.
Insurance often fails to cover total litigation costs; for example, punitive damages are not insurable. Plus, if managers have been negligent in dealing with bed bug infestations, numerous insurers won¡¯t pay any claims.
Bed bug lawsuits have recently been filed against cruise lines, rental furniture companies, laundromats, and dry cleaners. Furthermore, now landlords are suing pest control companies, just as more bedbug victims are suing public municipalities. It is expected that soon there will be addendums to lease agreements which hold tenants responsible for bedbug infestations.
When it comes to hotels, bed bug claims are among the top frauds perpetrated against hotels, according to Thomas Jones, an associate professor at the University of Nevada. In response, one New York hotel displays a ¡°bedbug alert free¡± certification in their lobby-but it is in the minority when it comes to bringing up the issue of bed bugs. Most lodgings don¡¯t want guests thinking about bedbugs. (If and when they do utilize bug-sniffing dogs, guests are told the canines are checking for mold.)
The National Pest Management Association (NPMA) says bed bugs themselves are reproducing in surprising amounts, by more than 500 percent over the past few years. Yet, these numbers have minimal impact on most hotels, with state-of-the-art sanitation and strict standards of laundering, drying, vacuuming and bedbug-proof mattress covers. The Best Western is typical in its use of a regularly administered pest control program and a trained and knowledgeable housekeeping staff. Such practices should keep bed bugs and lawsuits to a minimum.
The number of bedbug infestations has risen significantly since the early 21st century. The National Pest Management Association reported a 71% increase in bedbug calls between 2000 and 2005. The Steritech Group, a pest-management company based in Charlotte, North Carolina, claimed that 25% of the 700 hotels they surveyed between 2002 and 2006 needed bedbug treatment. In 2003, a brother and sister staying at a Motel 6 in Chicago were awarded $372,000 in punitive damages after being bitten by bedbugs during their stay. These are only a few of the reported cases since the turn of the 21st century.
