Who Is Responsible For Bed Bugs When Renting – Landlords Or Tenants?

Posted by Dmitri Kara on April 29, 2023 in Household Enemies, Tenants' Corner

At Go Cleaners (London) we are tenancy cleaning professionals and we HAVE seen quite a few pest infestations rentals, and especially bed bugs, are a complicated problem. For one, it’s extremely difficult to find out when the property became infested.

But bedbugs introduce numerious issues for both landlords and tenants:

Who caused the problem?
Who is responsible to sort it out?
How should you go about it anyway?

With this in mind, it’s important to tackle the bugs as soon as you find out the first signs of their presence.

Failure to do so results in increasing negatives for all parties involved.

Now, let us look at the responsibilities each side bears.

In this guide:

When Is The Landlord Responsible For Bed Bug Control?

If you’re a landlord, your key duty is to ensure that tenants have a healthy environment to move in to. Each homeowner has to prep conditions not only upon moving, but also throughout the entire course of the lease.

That being said, in case of a bed bug problem you need to investigate whether the infestation is caused by the previous inhabitants of the property and if yes, to deal with the matter before the new tenants move in.

Bear in mind the following:

If a landlord refuses to handle pest problems that are his responsibility, the tenant may inform the Local Council, which in turn, can serve an enforcement letter on the landlord. In case the owner fails to take matters into his own hands, and the council manages the infestation, the landlord becomes legally obliged to pay all costs related to the bed bug control procedure, including the administrative expenses. So, to sum up, on top of the cost of bed bug treatment, the property owner will have to pay any administrative costs as well.
Landlords are responsible for the public health and wellbeing, meaning that their actions, or lack thereof, should not put at risk other residents of the building or cause any financial damages.

*It’s important to note that some councils aren’t required to provide pest control services, even if a tenant receives Council Tax benefits or Housing benefits. And there are some councils that provide pest control services only if they find it necessary in order to protect the public health and wellbeing”, comment pest control professionals.

From the above, we can conclude that landlords are responsible to cleanse and get rid of the bed bugs if they had been introduced to the property prior to the new tenants moving in. This means that in some cases it will be extremely important to find out when the problem occurred.

When Is The Tenant Responsible For Bed Bug Control?

As a tenant, when signing a lease, you agree to supervise the property with the same care you would if it were your own. However, not all tenants pertain this mindset and there are many cases of errors of judgement and negligent behaviour.

Tenants bear the responsibility to deal with bed bugs in the following situations:

If upon noticing the bed bugs, the renter fails to inform his landlord on time. This can delay the treatment, meaning that the problem will only worsen and the infestation may spread to other rooms of the rental or even to the neighbours.
If the infestation occurred because of negligent behaviour. For frequent travellers, for example, the risk of bringing back bedbugs increases dramatically, so they need to take extra precautions in order to avoid that from happening. A health officer can confirm that negligence is, in fact, the cause of bed bugs and if he does, the tenant will have to take full responsibility and deal with the problem.

Then there are even those cases when you didn’t intentionally bring in the bed bugs, nor have you failed to notify the landlord. However, you will be obliged to get pest control if you’ve signed the lease agreement, and it’s clear that the infestation appeared after you’ve moved in.

What should a tenant do if the property is infested with bed bugs?

Check the rental agreement – the contract outlines each side’s responsibilities, so this is the place you must look first if you notice any problem with the property, including bed bugs. Some tenancy agreements (but not all) contain a clause that clearly states the responsibilities around such situations, so both sides must comply with what’s written.
Notify the landlord – this should be done no matter who holds the responsibility to deal with the problem. The landlord should be in course of everything that is happening around his property or else the renter risks to put a strain on the relationship.

What should a tenant do if landlord(s) fail to act?

Insist of your landlord to come to reason;
Contact environmental health at your local council;
Negotiate rent reduction.

Complain to your local council

If your landlord refuses to do repairs you can complain to environmental health at the council. Representatives should come round and inspect your property. T

You can also contact your council to find out if they provide pest control services to remove pests like wasps, rats, mice and bedbugs. Some local authorities have a pest control service which you might be able to use, not for free, though.

What Are Your Options For Bed Bug Control?

“Generally speaking, you have two options to deal with a bed bug problem”, note Bed Bug Specialists. “You can always try on your own, but considering how crazy adaptive these pests are, hesitate not to seek professional help”, experts add.

What are the pros and cons?

DIY bed bug control:

You have complete control over the methods and substances used. You can choose to go the eco-friendly road and pick non-toxic products to deal with the insects;
If you do your research well and are methodical, you can destroy the bed bugs for a fraction of the cost of a professional treatment;

But,

DIY bed bug treatments are slow to work and may not be effective against resistance. Moreover, some of the popular tips aren’t that effective – using Diatomaceous Earth is one of them;
If you fail, you may worsen the situation because bed bugs will disperse around the property looking for a place to hide, thus infesting other rooms. This will make them harder to exterminate. So in the end, do-it-yourself methods may cost you more in terms of time, effort and money;

Professional Bed Bug Exterminators?

Professionals know what they’re doing, so they can destroy the infestation quickly and effectively, no matter how severe the problem is;
You needn’t do anything except some basic preparation work before the exterminator arrives;