My landlord had to bring the building up to code and in late October or early November a sprinkler system company drilled holes in the walls of my enormous apartment building that went through to other units and into the common hall. My unit had a hole going directly into the units on either side, and the unit next to mine had a hole going directly into the laundry for an apartment building of 102 units. The hole from the laundry through this studio apartment in the middle (which was empty for months,) to my unit remains open to this day in May many months later.
Shortly after these holes had been drilled I noticed a rash on my arm. It would not go away. Then I saw a "tick" in the laundry in January or February. I had not put down clothes. Then a "tick" skittered off my leg. Then my boyfriend got a welt. Then I saw three BEDBUGS staring at me after falling asleep with the lights on. I caught one, and showed my landlord. They immediately set about manufacturing a situation in which I was at fault, lying about such things as I was the only person with bedbugs (the unit next to my bedroom which still has an open hole going to it also had them, the empty unit on the other side? No one knows,) or giving me hardly any notice to move 30 contractor bags of clothing out when they know I'm disabled, don't drive, and don't have a way to get my things to the next town over easily. As the situation became worse and worse, being forced to live in this infested hellhole led me to having 2-3 hours of sleep a night, and this pest company acted seemingly sympathetic. In recorded telephone calls and texts, they were very derisive towards my landlord. They gave me the idea that I was being victimized for something which wasn't my fault. My landlord company has never been very ethical, and so I wasn't surprised when this became a legal battle between us.
Pine State Pest's solution? First it was to play both sides, then it was to take the side of the landlord. After MULTIPLE treatments, we still have lots of bed bugs. We have not brought any items back out of storage. When my landlord and I came to fighting it out, the landlord opted not to have Pine State treat. Instead, I can live in a bedbug infested unit or leave. I didn't know that. I had the bad idea to call them as they had seemed to at least be kind, even if I still was getting bites after poison and heat treatments, even though no items had been returned to the unit, just what had been here during treatment. I requested they come out and spray again, and the people who own this company? They called my landlord and THEN said they can't treat my apartment, even though they know I'm suing the landlord. I mean, it's not like they can capably take care of a pest problem, but instead of just declining and staying out of the argument, a company who is recorded using derisive language towards the owners of my building and making some rather large claims thinks it's ethical to call to say I need poison, and then decline my paying business. Why not just decline? It's not like they had taken care of the problem.
So, they are incapable - months later and bedbugs are still here; they are dishonest - clearly they play both sides against each other and they did things like refusing to confirm an appointment with me directly.
I get bites even still. Thanks Pine State for deciding you can't kill bedbugs, so you might as well hope I didn't record those calls, because my landlord's money sure is nice... too bad I did record them. :) If you want to be riddled with bedbugs for months, if you want a dishonest company who plays both sides in a landlord/tenant battle, this is your company. If you'd like an ethical company who stays out of any landlord/tenant fracas (as can happen in any pest situation,) who can get rid of pests, look elsewhere. read more
