Are landlords responsible for bed bugs?

Bed bugs are a nightmare for any landlord and tenant. They’re not just something that your parents warned you of when you were a child. They are a real problem, be it in homes, hospitals or public transport.

When asking, are landlords responsible for bed bugs, the answer is not always straightforward. This is because it’s difficult to know what has caused a bed bug infestation in the first place. Was it there before the tenant moved in? Have they caused it since moving in? Is there a wider issue with the property that has caused the infestation?

The answer is complex and depends on the situation. Let’s explain.

What are bed bugs?

Bed bugs are little insects that often live within furniture and bedding, including bed frames and mattresses. They can also be found in cracks or crevices such as behind picture frames and under loose wallpaper.

Bed bugs are pretty harmless and don’t spread diseases, however they can cause small itchy bites. They can be really hard to remove as they can live up to six months without food and may only be noticed once there is a full infestation. They can be tricky to spot due to their size and the fact that they are primarily nocturnal. In bad cases, however, you may be able to spot lots of small brown spots – bed bug poo.

Unfortunately, bed bugs are a common issue in rental properties. So whose responsibility is it to deal with them?

Are bed bugs a landlord’s responsibility?

Let’s say for instance that a new tenant moves into your property and discovers bed bugs. In this case, it is a landlord’s responsibility to deal with and remove the bed bugs.

It could be that the bed bug infestation is caused by another issue within the property such as missing roof tiles, broken vents or leaking pipes. If this is the case then it is a landlord’s responsibility to get to the root cause of the issue to get rid of the bed bugs and prevent it happening again in the future. This can be much easier to prove with other types of pests such as rats as a clear entry point can be identified. When it comes to bed bugs, it can be trickier to pin responsibility.

In HMOs and blocks of flats where multiple tenants are living in close proximity, the bed bugs could have been brought into the property by another tenant and caused the bugs to spread to other tenant’s units due to poor building maintenance or inadequate pest measures. Again, this would then fall to the landlord to deal with.

If a landlord fails to respond promptly to a tenant reporting a bed bug infestation and that infestation spreads, it could then become the landlord’s responsibility rather than the tenant’s responsibility – no matter how the bed bugs got there in the first place.

Perhaps the property has a history of repeated bed bug infestations. If this is the case, the bed bugs would be the landlord’s responsibility to get rid of.

When are bed bugs a tenant’s responsibility?

If a tenant has been living in your property for a while before discovering bed bugs, it is likely that they themselves have brought the bed bugs in. Perhaps they brought in used furniture or mattresses with existing bed bug infestations. Often, tenants that travel often can bring bed bugs back in their luggage from hotel beds. It could just be that the tenant fails to maintain cleanliness and hygiene in the rental property and this, over time, results in a bed bug infestation. If these instances can be proved, then it is the tenant’s responsibility to get rid of them – not the landlord’s.

If a tenant discovers bed bugs and does not report them, allowing them to spread and become more difficult to control, this would also result in the tenant needing to organise and pay for their extermination.

Lastly, if a tenant reports bed bugs but then refuses to cooperate with your efforts to treat the infestation by denying access to the property or not following protocols for getting rid of them, then this can result in them being responsible for footing the bill.

In either case, a tenant should always contact the landlord upon discovering bed bugs. Then they can work together to handle the problem. The longer the issue is left, the bigger it becomes as the bugs spread.

You should be as helpful and accommodating as possible in either scenario as, ultimately, a landlord has a responsibility to ensure that their tenant is living in a safe and habitable environment.

How do you get rid of bed bugs?

The best way to get rid of bed bugs is to enlist the help of a professional pest control company. If it has come down to you, the landlord, to get rid of bed bugs then this will be the quickest and easiest course of action.

There are other things that you can be tried, however these methods are best carried out by whoever is living in the property day-to-day:

• Steam cleaning – heat is the best way to kill bed bugs and steam cleaning allows you to tackle hard to reach areas
• Mattress encasement – use a fabric cover over the mattress to trap the bed bugs and prevent them from spreading
• Insecticides – create a residual barrier to reduce the chance of reinfestation
• Lavender oil – this repels bed bugs and can be added to baking soda and applied to fabric surfaces
• Frequent washing – wash bedding, curtains, cushions, soft furnishings and clothing on a hot wash (at least 60 degrees celsius)
• Put affected clothes and bedding in the freezer for a few hours before washing
• Frequent vacuuming – vacuum affected areas and the areas around them every day and tip out the vacuum quickly as bed bugs can live in the vacuum and escape.

How to prevent bed bugs

You know what they say – prevention is the best cure! Of course, so many things are out of your control as a landlord. Your tenant is responsible for the day-to-day maintenance and cleanliness of your rental property. However there are things that you can do as a landlord to prevent bed bugs.

Firstly, carry out regular property inspections. Bed bugs can be really hard to spot but can often leave brown marks and stains on furnishings. Check any nooks and crevices and ask your tenant if you can inspect sofas and mattresses.

If you offer furnished accommodation, utilise mattress covers to create a barrier between your furnishings and your tenants belongings. Mattress covers will also retain any existing bed bug infestations and prevent them from spreading.

Speak to your tenant about bed bugs and how to avoid them. Nobody wants to have a bed bug infestation to deal with. Most tenants will appreciate any advice on property maintenance and hygiene that might go beyond the day-to-day cleaning that many of us are used to. This can include regularly vacuuming not only their living space but also mattresses and sofas, along with carefully inspecting any second hand furniture or clothing that they bring into the property.

So, are landlords responsible for bed bugs? In many cases, yes. It can be difficult to prove otherwise. Plus, the longer you deliberate over who might be responsible, the more of an issue they can become. Sometimes it’s better to err on the side of caution and simply get a professional pest control company in as soon as possible to get rid of them.

Want one less thing to worry about as a landlord? Take out landlord insurance. You might not always be able to protect your rental property from bed bug infestations – or anything else for that matter. But at least you can have the peace of mind that you have the insurance cover that every landlord needs.

Contact us on 01788 818 670, request a callback or complete our online enquiry form to get a quote.