termite fraud in Mobile, Alabama

Common Types of Termite Fraud in Alabama

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You may have hired an Alabama pest control company to get rid of termites in your home or business, but after the treatment was finished, you are still having problems with these critters. This might not be your fault, and in fact, there is a good chance that the company you hired might be guilty of termite fraud.

Pest control companies are professionals who are expected to be competent in their field, and they are obligated to provide quality service and conduct themselves in an ethical manner. Unfortunately, many of these companies fail to abide by even the minimum standards that are required by law. The end result is that many homeowners and commercial building owners are left having to deal with thousands or potentially tens of thousands of dollars worth of repairs that should not have been necessary.

If you find yourself with extensive termite damage after dealing with a pest control company that promised to get rid of this problem, you may have the right to file a termite fraud claim against the company responsible for this. Hedge Copeland, P.C. is currently accepting termite litigation cases, and we are available to provide a free consultation to discuss your case. Call us right away at (251) 432-8844 or message us online to get started.

How Pest Control Companies May Be Guilty of Termite Fraud

There are several common ways that a pest control professional may defraud a homeowner or business owner:

Termite Inspection Fraud

An inspector from a pest control company might say that they performed a thorough inspection of the property and that it is “termite free”, but in reality, they did not look over every area. This type of fraud is common when someone purchases a property and hires a professional to inspect it for termite damage. This can obviously become a big problem later on if you took possession of a property and you did not realize that there were termites. When the termites cause widespread damage in the future, the company that failed to uncover the problem in the beginning should be held accountable.

Using Cheap and Ineffective Treatments

Some pest control companies try to save a few dollars by using chemicals that are lower quality and do not effectively eliminate all of the termites. For example, the company might use a product that only kills the termites that it comes in contact with, while the rest of them retreat into hidden, non-treated areas and reproduce. This might provide the initial impression that the home is termite free, but in reality, they are highly likely to resurface later and potentially cause widespread damage.

Planting False Evidence of Termite Infestation

This may be difficult to believe, but there are some so-called professionals who will actually plant false evidence of the presence of termites, so you will pay them a large sum of money for extermination. Just like a crooked police officer who plants evidence on someone they are targeting, the inspector might plant some shed termite wings or waste pellets and show them to you as proof that you have termites.

Failure to Treat the Entire Termite Problem

Some pest control contracts have very slippery language in which they provide “control” rather than “extermination” services. They might imply that they are getting rid of the termites for you, but all they are really doing is reducing the size of the colony. Like we talked about with using ineffective treatments, if you do not kill off the entire colony, the termites will reproduce, and they will become a big problem later on. Be sure you fully understand what is in these pest control contracts, so you are not deceived into receiving an overpriced and low-quality service.

Failure to Honor their Contract

Speaking of contracts, pest control professionals have numerous excuses for not honoring their obligations to their customers, often citing misleading and deceptive contract language. Some examples of excuses you might receive include:

  • We do not see any live termites, so this is old damage and we are not required to pay.
  • Your contract has expired, so we cannot help you.
  • We are not responsible because there is moisture and rot damage around the affected area.
  • We are under no obligation to find hidden damage.
  • This damage is from Formosan termites, and we are only responsible for subterranean termite damage.
  • This damage is not from termites at all, it is from carpenter ants and we do not cover those.
  • We can’t help you with your problem unless you sign a new contract with us.

When some of these issues with the pest control company come to the surface, you might find that it becomes very difficult to get a hold of them, or at least to get a hold of the right person. They give you the runaround when you call in, and they never return your calls. These are all signs that they are ignoring you in hopes that you will get frustrated by the situation and go away.

If you are dealing with termite damage and any of the above situations has happened to you, do not give up. Get in touch with an experienced termite litigation lawyer as soon as possible to review your case.

For a free consultation with one of our attorneys, call Hedge Copeland, P.C. today at (251) 432-8844. You may also send us a message through our online contact form.