Landlord won't pay for pest control??

[485bantuknots]

On Christmas Eve I woke up during the night because I heard an unusual sound coming from the kitchen. I went to investigate and saw a squirrel in my kitchen😳 (still no clue as to how it got in the flat). Anyway I let my Landlord's agent know who are always super helpful. Because I sent the email during the Christmas period I hadn't received a response up until now.

One of the estate agent's have emailed saying that the Landlord has refused to pay for pest control to resolve the issue. They've said that they can send pest control out if I'm willing to pay for the service but unfortunately he won't be covering the costs.

I private rent and moved into the flat in the summer. I'm also pregnant and have a 8 month old DD and I explained that I had to pack my bags and stay with my mum for a few days. I'm not sure why/if the Landlord is just being stingy but I also have no clue why he's refusing to pay for pest control, it's his bloomin house!!

Can someone tell me if this is allowed and if so, how?!

Pest control in rental properties is a bit of a grey area mid tenancy. The landlord definitely has to hand the property over pest free - so if pests are present at the start of your tenancy that is definitely the landlord's responsibility to sort out and pay for.

If pests arrive during a tenancy the law is a bit more of a grey area. The usual interpretation is if that if they are getting in through a structural defect, e.g. if there is an issue with a cracked drain or a gap around a vent pipe for example then it is the landlord's responsibility both to repair the structural defect and resolve the resulting pest issue.

If pests are being attracted to the property because for example rubbish is not being dealt with effectively by the tenant (bin bags not sealed or put inside a suitable wheelie bin) or in one case I dealt with a tenant was putting out all his food waste 'for the birds' and leaving his back door open for long periods - then paying for pest control under those circumstances would be the tenant's responsibility.

Likewise, if a property is bed-bug free for the first year of a tenancy but bed-bugs suddenly appear in the bedroom after the tenants have stayed in a hostel abroad the week before it is a certainty that the tenants have brought the bedbugs into the property and the pest control costs are the tenant's to pay.

As a broad rule of thumb you need to work out how the pests got into the property and whose responsibility that was, in order to work out who should pay.

You really want him out before the poor thing dies, if it dies inside your house the smell will be terrible and you will have a body to deal with (worse).

Poor squirrel was most likely more terrified of you. I imagine the LA had a good laugh about this one.

Just let the poor creature out. No need to harm it.

You emailed the agent to see what could be done? What do you mean by that? Did you want them to send someone to remove the squirrel? What about if a bird flies in the window? Cat? Bee? My tenancy states that I am responsible for pest control if it is caused by something I've done but if it's because of unsecure points in to the house (missing roof tiles etc) then the landlord will sort.

I think they can refuse to pay. We discovered a huge ants nest about a week or so after we moved in. I had a toddler & a new born.

Agents didn’t even shoot it over to the landlord. They said it was our responsibility.

A possible gas leak is far more urgent and dangerous than a squirrel who has come inside from the garden for a rest, its not that unusual, they will go anywhere warm if there is food. Have you moved out until the smell of gas has been investigated, maybe squirrel has got stuck behind the cooker.

Tricky buggers to catch, squirrels, as my dogs will testify. They’re very quick. You need a long handled net like a koi net which you can flip over to trap it and put it back outside.

Advice from Shelter is for HA tenants, I think, private rentals are different. As mentioned already, if the property is pest free when you move in, I think it’s then the renter’s responsibility. As it’s a flat without a loft, hopefully, then it sounds like it’s got in accidentally and just needs removing.

@bigdecisionstomake

Pest control in rental properties is a bit of a grey area mid tenancy. The landlord definitely has to hand the property over pest free - so if pests are present at the start of your tenancy that is definitely the landlord's responsibility to sort out and pay for.

If pests arrive during a tenancy the law is a bit more of a grey area. The usual interpretation is if that if they are getting in through a structural defect, e.g. if there is an issue with a cracked drain or a gap around a vent pipe for example then it is the landlord's responsibility both to repair the structural defect and resolve the resulting pest issue.

If pests are being attracted to the property because for example rubbish is not being dealt with effectively by the tenant (bin bags not sealed or put inside a suitable wheelie bin) or in one case I dealt with a tenant was putting out all his food waste 'for the birds' and leaving his back door open for long periods - then paying for pest control under those circumstances would be the tenant's responsibility.

Likewise, if a property is bed-bug free for the first year of a tenancy but bed-bugs suddenly appear in the bedroom after the tenants have stayed in a hostel abroad the week before it is a certainty that the tenants have brought the bedbugs into the property and the pest control costs are the tenant's to pay.

As a broad rule of thumb you need to work out how the pests got into the property and whose responsibility that was, in order to work out who should pay.

This whole paragraph makes sense especially this bit, 'If pests are being attracted to the property because for example rubbish is not being dealt with effectively by the tenant (bin bags not sealed or put inside a suitable wheelie bin) or in one case I dealt with a tenant was putting out all his food waste 'for the birds' and leaving his back door open for long periods - then paying for pest control under those circumstances would be the tenant's responsibility.' Thank you for that!

Not sure why people are suggesting it came through a window lol, why would I email the estate agents if it came through on my own accord the windows are shuts and we have nets on the window anyway so it's literally impossible for anything to get through.

There's like an open vent on top of the cupboards in the kitchen, we don't know where it leads to outside but it's completely open on our side so maybe it came through there. Near the side of the oven at the bottom under a cupboard, there's also an open space there where we can't see where it leads to outside. It definitely didn't come through a window

Just to back up the OP, I have lived in a house where a squirrel got into the loft through a hole in the roof. Made a nest and raised a young (and very noisy!) family in there. They used to run down inside the walls and above the ceilings.

One day chewed straight down through the ceiling into the bathroom - stuck her head out of the hole when I was brushing my teeth.

Don't expect anyone to believe me but I swear it's true.

Squirrels really can be pretty destructive and can choose to live in housing structures.

In the end, we used a camera to make sure it was out of the house one day, then my landlord got someone to take the roof tiles off, remove the nest (including a fresh batch of babies ) and reseal the hole to prevent further access.

Firstly
If you had squirrels living in the property you’d know about it. They are SO loud. You’d not be unsure about it.
Secondly
Pest control is usually the tenants problem in a tenancy agreement

We had mice in an old house and the ll said we had to sort it out. We caught one then got a cat and never saw anymore but when we moved out and he eventually inspected it he blamed it on us and try taking the cost out of our deposit. Amongst other things that weren't our fault.

Maybe they'll be able to place the squirrel outside if it's still there and they see it

lol you not serious - are you?

They can only refuse if you have caused the pest issue yourself by not maintaining the property or similar. It’s really tricky to prove unless it’s reported as soon as you move in and so obviously not you. (I don’t think it’s you btw but I’ve had more of my fair share of arsehole landlords )

Really you need to go back to the house and assess the situation, are there any obvious signs of how it got in, are there any droppings, check under cupboards / everywhere with a torch and look for holes. Short term, get some metal Brillo pads and stuff them into any holes you find. Make sure you photograph any evidence you find, this way you can take it further with the landlord / environmental health.

If you can’t find any evidence, have you got someone (your mum for example) who can come a bf help you clean up and disinfect everything? So that is safe for you to be there. It might be a bit of an ongoing issue but hopefully there’s a few pointers for you

Your landlord isn’t going to pay for pest control when what is actually needed is for you to open a window or door so that the one solitary squirrel can leave, rather than you running away to your Mum’s and leaving it there

We’ve found evidence of mice in our rental property over the Xmas period. We’ve called a pest controller ourselves as wanted it dealt with quickly. If we’d found a squirrel I would have closed the door and left the window open and if that wasn’t enough to make it leave I’d have chased it out.

@485bantuknots

Please feel free to come to my house to try and get the squirrel out🤷‍♀️

Sorry but I'm not one of those people that are going to try and catch a squirrel/a mouse or any sort of rodent of the kind. I'm the sort of person that will hyperventilate if I see a spider (I do have a phobia so that's my excuse) so there's no chance I'm going to try and leave a trial for a squirrel for it to get out

Are you 12? You are about to have 2 kids and your reaction is to run away to your mum's? Just open a window and shut the kitchen door. I honestly don't know how some people make it to adulthood!

Landlords don’t need to pay for pest control unless the infestation is a result of disrepair in the house i.e a hole in the roof that is allowing the squirrel to access.

@485bantuknots

Is anybody going to actually answer the question on whether the Landlord can refuse to pay for pest control in future if I was to ever have an infestation?

Yes, the LL can refuse. We would expect our tenants to pay for pest control if they had allowed the house to become infested.

One squirrel is no reason to contact pest control.

I live in social housing and we are expected to sort out our own pest control.

As others have pointed out, I'm not sure one squirrel inside is actually a pest control issue though. 🤔

Landlord doesn’t need to pay for pest control, it’s the tenants responsibility. I ran a repairs desk for a letting firm and this was asked a lot. Local councils can provide pest control and don’t charge for this. You’d be better speaking to the council about it but your landlord is right, they have no legal obligation to pay for pest control.

So I’m guessing this isn’t the right time to mention when next doors cat brought a headless squirrel into my kitchen then?!?

Most tenancies say that pest control is the tenant’s problem. One squirrel is not a pest problem FFS!

You don't need pest control for a squirrel. Just leave the window or door open, it'll head out then clean everything in that room just to be on the safe side, it's just a squirrel.

Your landlord doesn't even need to be involved at all, either leave the door open until it leaves or ask someone to scoop it up and take it outside, they're usually surprisingly friendly and can be coaxed outside with a bit of a cracker or a nut.

In our office we had squirrels living in the ceiling. There was a tree next to the building and they got from that through a hole in the roof. They had babies up there. We could hear them scratching about during meetings.