Jurors in Maryland sent a strong message last week to landlords who refuse to, or improperly treat, bed bug infestations in rental properties. Bed bug infestations will cause long term problems not only for the tenants, but also for Maryland landlords/property owners.
According to the Baltimore Sun on May 31, 2013, Faika Shaaban unknowingly moved into a bed bug infested property in Annapolis, Maryland. Reports are that she claims that she began receiving bites almost immediately after moving into the apartment. According to reports, the landlord was put onto notice about the pests by the previous renter, yet he failed to hire a licensed pest control expert to eradicate the bloodsuckers. Instead the landlord is accused of using his own propane heating units in an attempt at heat remediation treatment. To make matters even worse, the landlord evicted the tenant and in no time placed all of her bed bug infested belongings curbside. All of those belongings and their pest inhabitants are now sitting in other Maryland homes…surely making more people scratch!
Because of the lack of bed bug laws for renters in the State of Maryland, rental associations believe that it is time that the buck is passed along to the tenant when bed bugs are present. Tenant advocacy groups believe that landlords should be held responsible.
The tenant then sued the landlord and was rewarded with a record judgment of $800,000. The award was divided as $150,000 awarded for compensatory damages, and $650,000 in punitive damages equaling $800,000.
Hiring a licensed pest control professional for complete bed bug eradication services at the beginning would certainly have helped in this situation.