RATS in property - Landlord or Tenant to sort??

newbi

Hi,

I am after some advice...

If the property has rats, is it the landlords responsibility or should the tenant have to deal with it themselves?
Tenants have been in property for 7 months, there was no rat problem before.

Thanks to all those who respond

Geenie

As a LL I would say it is my responsibility to get the appropriate people in to deal with this. I have Rentokil go round every year checking and laying bait if necessary, as have rural properties with rats in the surrounding countryside, though never have had a problem with them being in properties.

That said, if it is a case of tenants leaving stuff outside that attracts rats, you need to have a word with them. Get the pest control people in this time, but make it clear that if they are doing things which are attracting vermin, you paying may have to be reviewed if it happens again.

Outside areas should be kept clear of any rubbish, rotting food , over grown etc.

Good luck OP.

new_home_owner_3

• I suppose it depends on the circumstances, but if the tenant might think they have contributed to the problem by leaving food outside, or pet food, i personally wouldnt bring it to their attention, and i would try and get rid of the problem themselves.

I had a friend and he had rabbits and they attracted rats.

bristol_pilot

Check with your local council, some will get rid of rats for free. (Has to be RATS though).

Fire_Fox

Depends why there are rats and where they are. If the tenants have filled the back garden with rubbish which includes food waste then they may be liable for the pest control bill. If the drain has a hole in and the rats are coming out and are helping themselves to food stored properly in the kitchen then the landlord is liable.

hairdye

we had rats in our student house and the landlord phones the council, they came out and put poison down. the landlord then filled all the holes in the floors (old wooden floors) so in theory they couldnt get back in, and obviously we had to be much more careful with our food. The only downside was when the rats ate the poison, they died in the house somewhere, stinking the house out, then we got massive bluebottles everywhere! After we moved out the landlord text us saying "just thought you would like to know the new tenants were moving the fridge and found the remains of the rat under there"......Gross!:rotfl:

tbs624

hairdye wrote: »

After we moved out the landlord text us saying "just thought you would like to know the new tenants were moving the fridge and found the remains of the rat under there"......Gross!:rotfl:

- So, you moved out without having cleaned under/behind the white goods -yep, that is really gross........

hairdye

tbs624 wrote: »

- So, you moved out without having cleaned under/behind the white goods -yep, that is really gross........

we were students, of course we didnt clean under the fridge!:D and we left in a lot better state than we found it in!

tbs624

Just get the local Council out - most don't charge for rats to be dealt with, as Bristol_pilot has said. Check you're meeting your own obligations (as LL) and advise your Ts on theirs re food storage, rubbish disposal etc.

However, just because there were no rats 7 months ago doesn't necessarily mean that the problem is down to the Ts - maybe there has been construction work in the area that has disturbed them and sent them in the direction of your property.

If you do have to pay for a pest control officer to deal with the rats, remember you are safeguarding your property because the damage rats can cause is considerable and you can set the costs down against your profit.