Forum Spotlight: Suspected moth infestation

A landlord posted on our forum a question about a suspected moth infestation.

They said that three years ago their tenants reported an issue with moths in the rental property.

The landlord dealt with the issue at the time by treatment and providing brand new carpets in the bedroom. However the issue with moths has come to lights again in one corner of the room where things are rarely moved around. The tenant had again asked the landlord to replace the carpet.

Our landlord wanted to know whether it was their responsibility to deal with the issue again this time, as the issue with moths was not present prior to the tenants moving in and in their view was due to the tenants’ lifestyle. They took to our forum to ask for opinions.

The responses on our Forum

The first person to comment on the thread said they had experience in dealing with moths, so understand they can be quite difficult to get rid of. In their view, they said the issue sounded like it was the tenant’s responsibility to sort out unless the landlord thinks there could be a chance they as the landlord or perhaps a worker bought them into the property. They also advised the member in future to not get carpets with wool content.

The next landlord to offer their viewpoint suggested that it isn’t clear cut when determining who is responsible for the issue.

They said that they regularly inspect their rentals and this can be very helpful to spot any signs of infestation from any creature and nip the issue in the bud. This landlord also suggested the issue could be caused by insufficient vacuuming/cleaning at the property, and went on the recommend brands of vacuum to help remedy the issue.

Then, an advisor from our Landlord Support Team joined in on the thread.

They confirmed where the landlord stood in relation to responsibility for treating the issue. The adviser said if the moth infestation occurred at the beginning of the tenancy, it is likely to fall under the remit of the landlord (to deal with), however from the information provided this doesn’t sound like the case here. These pests tend to fly in through the window or communal area. The adviser said that practically to avoid further damage to their property landlords will carry out the treatment and you may wish to do so with the warning that you will not carry out further treatments as these moths have been introduced by the tenant and the tenant should ensure that the property is maintained to avoid the infestation, and should infestation occur they treat it.

Read the original forum post here.