LA Apartment Owner Loses $1.6 Million in Bed Bug Lawsuit
The Martinez Family and their Lawyer, Brian Virag.
In a story published by NBC Los Angeles, it was reported that a 1.6 million dollar payout was awarded to a family living in Inglewood who had suffered from a major bed bug infestation in their apartment. When they alerted the property owners to the problem, they were simply told to throw out all of their furniture and sleep on the floor.
It is a common myth that throwing out furniture and clothes will solve a bed bug problem. Although it gets rid of the bed bugs who are settled on the possessions, it does nothing to alleviate the bed bug eggs in the carpet, floor boards, and walls. They almost always come back and families end up throwing out expensive items for no reason and at great financial cost. Suffice to say, it was pretty terrible advice and the bed bug infestation continued and eventually became out of control.
Jorge Martinez with the scars caused by bed bug bites.
To make matters worse, he family had a small infant who recieved the worst of the bites. Whenever Jorge would scratch the bites, it caused them to bleed more and they eventually began to scar.
"Just seeing how he would scratch all the time and nothing would heal because it would start bleeding again. It was very emotional, very stressful,"
- Liliana Martinez, mother of Jorge Martinez
It would seem this was the primary reason for such a high payout, but this is hardly the first time property owners have been liable for bed bug infestations. It’s a growing trend in California that property owners are considered to be responsible for pest infestations rather than their renters. That being said, their only permanent solution is to provide professional treatment for the tenants and any other surrounding homes that have been affected. If not, it could cost them greater in the long run.
At UnBugMe Pest Control, we provide effective and affordable treatment at a discount for commercial property owners and apartment building managers. If you’d like to learn more about what we offer, please give us a call at (818) 510-0629 or email Unbugme@hotmail.com to learn more!
Click Here For the full story by Angie Crouch at NBC Los Angeles.
This discount is only available online and offered to anyone who thinks they may have a Bed Bug problem. Our skilled technicians will inspect your property and consult you on a treatment plan based on your situation.
This service includes a complete interior inspection of the property by one of our licensed technicians to find out the causes and conditions of the infestation.
A licensed technician will inspect the bedrooms, living rooms, converted garages, and bathrooms with a flashlight and compression gas canister with a flushing agent. Bed bug monitors will be strategically placed around the interior of the property to properly identify the type of infestation. A detailed report with the possible causes & conditions and a possible recommended treatment will be provided on site at the end of the inspection by the licensed technician.
NOTE: Cost of inspection will be included in the final cost of any bed bug treatment on the property (should a treatment be recommended after the time of inspection)