Big Bear

Hi, I searched for this topic and may have missed it. Sorry if I'm repeating. During this time in the real estate market where most Realtors are a little bit desperate I wonder if anybody else has had an experience or two with a pest company. Whenever this comes up in our office the general consensus don't use this company. Sometimes you don't have a choice and you get stuck with who the other guys want to use. The most recent time we used these guys they charged us for inspection. That's okay and expected. What wasn't expected was a section one treatment for infestation on a new construction. Hmmmm. Instead of just okaying the treatment a different pest control company was called out. The second company billed us for their inspection. That's okay and expected. The report we got back was clean. No infestation. No section 1 work to be completed. If we'd gone with the first company the buyers would have been subjected to chemicals that they didn't, at the moment, need to be exposed to. We still had to pay the first guys out of the escrow. Is it just me? I feel they should be reported to somebody. I do not know who. DRE? Better Business Bureau or is this accepted business practice because everybody's trying to make a buck here and rippin' people off is okay and I'm making a big deal out of nothing? Help? Since I'm kind of new I wonder if I just over react and make a big deal out of everything! Thanks so much!

Don't know exactly if this will help, but the company that "regulates" pest control companies is The Structural Pest Control Board at (916) 561-8708 or (800) 737-8188 or www.pestboard.ca.gov
Hope this helps.

I don't know the answer, but I commend you for wanting to follow up on this. I strongly suspect that we were soaked (both cost and with pesticides) unnecessarily with the required termite Section A or whatever it is. But what do you do when you are in escrow and the buyer has read the inspection report? One of the items involved pushing dirt away from a deck post and another was opening a vent, both tasks completed by my husband in 12 minutes after reading the report and before the repair work began. We were still charged the full over-$400 estimated quote. I think it is a legal ripoff to make money on every home sale.

Hi I have been working in your area for years and i am allways fair and would never make things up to get money out of people, I write clean reports all the time for the $65.00 inspection fee! www.BurkittsBugs.com