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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Apr 2009
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    1

    Default Bedbugs - Tenant Liability in San Diego Area

    My question involves landlord-tenant law in the State of: California.

    I recently discovered and reported a bedbug infestation in my apartment to my landlord. Sadly, but possibly predictably, he blames ME for the infestation and feels that I should pay for the cost of treatment.

    The exterminator he hired says that only my apartment is affected after inspecting 6 apartments (including mine)... I am reluctant to accept his conclusion, of course, as the exterminator that I hired to inspect the apartment told me that bedbugs can come from many sources - not necessarily my fault, in other words.

    I have been a good resident in the apartment for about 10 months, and I feel that my prompt reporting of this problem to the owner has been met with a most
    _ungrateful_ reaction!

    I am moving out at the end of my lease - I can't stand the thought of staying in that place for even one more night!

    Thank you for any help.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
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    1,948

    Arrow Re: Bedbugs - Tenant Liability in San Diego Area

    You should not have to pay the exterminator. It is the landlord's responsibility to keep your apartment habitable...

    "A dwelling also may be considered uninhabitable (unlivable) if it substantially lacks any of the following:126

    Effective waterproofing and weather protection of roof and exterior walls, including unbroken windows and doors.
    Plumbing facilities in good working order, including hot and cold running water, connected to a sewage disposal system
    Gas facilities in good working order.
    Heating facilities in good working order.
    An electric system, including lighting, wiring, and equipment, in good working order.
    Clean and sanitary buildings, grounds, and appurtenances (for example, a garden or a detached garage), free from debris, filth, rubbish, garbage, rodents, and vermin."

    I don't know anything about bedbugs... sounds gross. But unless your landlord can PROOVE you intentionally caused the infestation then you should not pay...

    Here is the website with the California rules for renters and landlords
    http://www.dca.ca.gov/publications/l...ok/index.shtml

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
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    Behind a Desk
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    98,846

    Default Re: Bedbugs - Tenant Liability in San Diego Area

    If bedbugs appeared after ten months, and only in your apartment, unless your landlord has been spending the night odds are you (or somebody you had over) did introduce them to your apartment.

    The landlord's duty is to provide a unit that is initially free of insects or vermin, and to keep common areas free of insects or vermin. The landlord is not responsible to accommodate a tenant's poor housekeeping by eradicating vermin that are attracted by the tenant's own actions.

    That sounds a bit harsh, given that bedbugs aren't so much synonymous with bad housekeeping as they are with bringing materials into the apartment that are infested - used clothing or bedding, similar items that have been in storage, perhaps something that was infested at somebody else's home or a hotel.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Posts
    1,948

    Default Re: Bedbugs - Tenant Liability in San Diego Area

    Quote Quoting Mr. Knowitall
    View Post
    Igiven that bedbugs aren't so much synonymous with bad housekeeping as they are with bringing materials into the apartment that are infested - used clothing or bedding, similar items that have been in storage, perhaps something that was infested at somebody else's home or a hotel.
    OH! I did not know that. So it's not like a bee hive or something that happens naturally?

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Oct 2009
    Posts
    1

    Default Re: Bedbugs - Tenant Liability in San Diego Area

    While mice and ants typically come in from the outside,
    bed bugs are more commonly carried in, via luggage, old
    mattresses, furniture, and so on. However, they have been
    known to travel from unit to unit through piping, so it's
    possible that other tenants in your building are having
    the same problem, and your landlord then SHOULD be very
    interested in controlling the situation. You may want to
    talk to your neighbors to see if they can confirm this.
    A group appeal to the landlord is more likely to be
    successful, and carry more weight legally.

    If your landlord has reason to conclude that yours is an
    isolated incident, and that you somehow carried the critters
    in yourself, he is less likely to feel responsible.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Jun 2009
    Location
    California
    Posts
    666

    Default Re: Bedbugs - Tenant Liability in San Diego Area

    The above posts all provide good information. Additional thoughts: Did you travel during the 10 months, either on business or for personal reasons? It has been reported in the past 2 two years that bedbugs are becoming a problem in the US, and that hotels/motels become a transfer ground as they drop off from one guest's luggage, infest the room and then some catch a ride home on subsequent guest's luggage. Often, this would mean getting "bed bug bites" while in the hotel. You can do a web search on that subject and see what the bites look like. If you have traveled and noticed bites after a hotel stay in the past 10 months, that identifies a likely source of the problem. Proving it months later can be extremely difficult to impossible, but if these things have happened and you contact the hotel, some may work with you, particularly if they've had other complaints.

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