What To Do If You Find Bed Bugs in Your Home

What are bed bugs?

Contrary to popular belief bed bugs do not only reside in beds but can hide themselves in the cracks of walls and floors, in couches and chairs as well as in our clothes. Although not always the case, bed bugs are mostly nocturnal and like to feed at night. Bed bugs require blood every 7-14 days and so they come out of their hiding spot and can travel as far as 20 feet to prey on human blood. Each female bed bug lays about one egg per day and each egg requires around 10 days to hatch. 

How do you know if you have bed bugs? 

Identifying beg bus by small bites on the skin is actually a poor indicator of a bed bug infestation because a lot of insect bites (such as mosquitoes or chiggers), and rashes (such as eczema or fungal infections) look like bed bug bites. Furthermore, some people do not react to bed bug bites at all. Looking for physical signs of bed bugs is a more accurate way to identify a possible infestation. For example, when cleaning, changing bedding, or staying away from home, look for:

• Crushed bed bugs leave rusty or reddish stains on bed sheets or mattresses.

• Bed bug excrement which may bleed on the fabric as a marker would and looks like dark spots,

• Tiny, pale-yellow eggs and eggshells that are shed by nymphs as they grow, and

• Live bed bugs.

For further information on identifying bed bugs and understanding their habits refer to our previous blog found here. 

What to do when you find evidence of bed bugs.

If you do believe you have been bitten by a bed bug and have also found evidence of them in your bed or clothes or furniture take photos so you can provide some form of documentation to your landlord. At this point, your landlord is required to take the necessary actions to rid your unit of the bugs before the infestation grows worse. Under California premises liability law, Los Angeles area renters can file a lawsuit against their landlords if bed bugs bite them or have a bed bug infestation while renting a property. For more information on how to sue your landlord in the event of a bed bug infestation read our previous blog found here.

We are here to help.

If you are experiencing issues regarding bed bugs or are unsure of your rights as a tenant, please do not hesitate to reach out to the Tenants Law Firm. Our attorneys are here to assist you. Contact us by filling out our online intake form here and we will get back to you to schedule a free consultation.