San Francisco bed bug lawyer

Advice from Your Oakland Bed Bug Lawyer on Avoiding Bed Bugs While Travelling

July 27, 2016 | Gregory J. Brod

It’s summer and many people are anticipating an upcoming vacation. As you think about everything you want to do on your trip, remember one thing you definitely do not want to do – encounter a hotel bed bug infestation or run into the pests elsewhere during your travels. Bed bugs in hotels, transit vehicles, and travel destinations can ruin your vacation by causing itchy red bites. Worse still, they may also try to hitch a ride with you and infest your home causing trouble long after your trip. Our Oakland bed bug lawyer wants to help you avoid these nasty pests and is also here to help if they turn your dream trip into a nightmare.

A Bit of Bed Bug History

Bed bugs are not a new problem, but they have made a resurgence in the past decade. In a 2010 article titled They’re Back: A Bed Bug History, a History.com reporter notes that bed bugs appear to have been plaguing people for millennia. There is evidence of bed bug problems on 17^th Century ships bound for the Americas and archaeologists found fossilized bed bugs at a site in Egypt dating back some 3,550 years. Still, there has been a notable resurgence in the number of bed bug infestations over the past decade.

Bed Bug Science and California Bed Bug Law

April 29, 2016 | Gregory J. Brod

Many of us have, at one time or another, been told to develop a “thicker skin.” In colloquial usage, this generally means one should be less sensitive to criticism or other negative words. However, it turns out that in the world of bed bugs a thicker skin is a very real physical trait and one that makes the pests even tougher to eradicate. This is important news. Our San Francisco tenant’s lawyer believes landlords in particular should be paying attention because landlords can and should be held responsible when their failure to take appropriate action leaves residents suffering and prolongs a bed bug infestation in the Bay Area.

Bed Bugs Developing Resistance to Certain Insecticides

This week, CNN reported that researchers in Australia found that bedbugs have begun to develop thicker skins that allow them to survive certain bug sprays. Bed bugs are parasites that feed on human blood and they have made a major resurgence in recent decades. Researchers believe the pests are only growing stronger and more resistant to certain treatments. In the recent study, researchers found that bed bugs that had a thicker natural covering were more likely to survive certain insecticides. The scientists hope that this research helps in the continued effort to “spot a chink in their armour” and develop more effective treatments.

San Francisco Bedbug Lawyer on the Problem of Hotel Bedbug Infestations

January 15, 2016 | Gregory J. Brod

Sometimes the smallest foes are the toughest to battle. Bedbugs are a great example of this truth. Bedbugs can cause painful itching that can feel like torture to individuals sensitive to their bites. Bedbugs are mobile, hitching a ride from one place to another and quickly making themselves at home in residences, offices, even libraries. They are tough to eradicate, typically requiring professional intervention, and repeat infestations can occur. Attorney Greg Brod, a San Francisco bed bug lawyer, helps bed bug victims when infestations are caused or exacerbated by a person’s/entity’s negligence. Today’s post focuses on bedbugs in hotels, a problem that can cause extreme discomfort and can lead to additional infestations in the victim’s home or place of business.

California Man Says Hotel Bedbugs Turned Dream Vacation into a Nightmare

One California couple says they learned the hard way about bedbugs in hotel rooms. SFGate.com reported on the incident and shared a video that may make viewers’ skin crawl. In the clip, the Long Beach man flips over a mattress to reveal numerous small, scurrying bugs. The man told the press that he and his girlfriend had been splurging on a $400-per-night room in New York’s Central Park to celebrate New Year’s Eve and a milestone birthday when they encountered the pests. The video also shows the girlfriend’s body, covered in a rash and more than 75 bites allegedly incurred during the stay including marks on her arms, stomach, fingers, and toes.

Bed Bugs in Northern California Rental Properties

November 6, 2015 | Gregory J. Brod

Bed bugs continue to plague people across the nation and here in Northern California. While their bites can cause substantial suffering, ultimately it is hard to blame the bugs themselves; they are just doing what nature tells them to do. However, far too frequently, people exacerbate the problem and cause, worsen, or prolong infestations through their actions or, often, their inaction. Attorney Greg Brod, a Northern California bed bug lawyer based in San Francisco, fights for people who have suffered with the pests because of someone else’s negligent or wrongful actions. As a recent story reminds us, far too often it is the most vulnerable who suffer the most. A bed bug lawsuit can ensure their stories are heard and their situation remedied.

Low-Income, Elderly Residents Report Bed Bug Infestation in Stockton

Late last month, The Record reported the story of a bed bug infestation at one of the most recognizable buildings in Stockton. The Hotel Stockton provides housing to low-income residents, including many seniors coping with disabling health problems. Revamped in 2004 and currently owned by a private partnership headquartered in Sacramento, the Hotel long-served as a key gathering place for residents of the North-Central California city and even held municipal offices for a time.

Bed Bugs – A Continuing Plague Impacting Northern California

September 30, 2015 | Gregory J. Brod

Just the name can make your skin crawl, but clients tell us the reality is far worse than they ever could have imagined. Bed bugs fall in and out of the headlines, but they remain a very real problem impacting Californians. The pests do not discriminate, attacking people of all ages, races, classes, and creeds. In fact, as a recent news report illustrates, they aren’t even confined to beds! As a bed bug law firm in San Francisco, Oakland, and Santa Rosa, The Brod Law Firm helps people who are afflicted with these pests because of someone else’s neglect, such as a tenant coping with repeated infestations because a landlord fails to act responsibly, ignoring the problem entirely or taking ineffective, limited action rather than the swift intervention needed to eradicate the bugs for good.

Bed Bugs Cause Temporary Closure of Palo Alto Library

Last week, per NBC Bay Area, Palo Alto temporarily shuttered one of its public libraries because of a problem more often associated with housing than libraries – bed bugs. In addition to closing the Mitchell Park Library to treat the pests after they were spotted on two chairs, the city sent bed bug-sniffing dogs to other branches of the library system. As NBC noted, libraries are actually not unusual spot for bed bugs to hide. The pests hitch a ride on a borrowed book, moving from one home to the library and potentially the home of another patron. Increased travel, pesticide resistance, and the use of ineffective pest control practices have all been implicated in the recent spike in infestations. Contra Costa Health Services denied a rumor blaming the homeless for the library infestation, noting there is no link between cleanliness and the pests although clutter does allow an infestation to grow.

California Bed Bug Class Action Lawyer on Bed Bugs in Section 8 Housing

August 11, 2015 | Gregory J. Brod

According to LA Weekly and State Assemblyman Nazarian (D, San Fernando Valley), eradicating bed bugs can cost anywhere from $400 to several thousand dollars. This is a heavy burden for anyone, but it can seem astronomical to lower-income renters. Our San Francisco bed bug lawyer stands ready to help renters afflicted with bed bugs in section 8 housing when landlords fail to live up to their legal duties. We are also prepared to file bed bug class actions on behalf of tenant groups in either Section 8 or traditional rental units.

Special Rules on Bed Bugs in Section 8 Housing

In April 2012, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (“HUD”) issued Notice H2012-05. Notice 2012-5 is intended to clarify the best practices for preventing and controlling infestations in HUD insured and assisted multifamily properties. HUD suggests that owners and management agents (“O/As”) develop and implement an Integrated Pest Management Plan (“IPM”) that focuses on prevention as a primary tool in the bed bug battle. Although it is presented as a suggestion rather than a requirement, the Notice recommends that O/As train staff on bed bug identification, take ongoing steps to prevent infestation, engage and educate resident on bed bug issues, and provide orientation materials to both staff and residents regarding bed bugs. Tenants are urged to cooperate by maintaining living environments that help prevent infestations including avoiding unreasonable clutter that can provide hiding spaces for insects.

New Laws, Old Foes: Recent Legislation Involving Bed Bugs

May 12, 2015 | Gregory J. Brod

Bed bugs have long plagued humans. A recent Salon article points to evidence of bed bugs in an Egyptian archeological site dating between 1352 and 1336 B.C., suspected bed bug infestations in ninth century Iraq, and possible references to the pests in ancient Jewish and Islamic texts. Nonetheless, even old problems may call for new solutions that take into account the realities of modern life. Our San Francisco bed bug lawyer monitors changes to bed bug laws in California and across the nation, following news that can help us represent people who are dealing with a bed bug invasion because of someone else’s negligence.

Proposed California Landlord/Tenant Law Would Clarify Bed Bug Responsibilities

At the state and local level, particularly in the Bay Area, California is known for protecting residential renters. Currently, a number of different laws can be used to help tenants whose landlords contributed to a bed bug problem and/or failed to take appropriate responsibility for keeping the property vermin-free. As the LA Weekly reported on Friday, State Assemblyman Adrin Nazarian has crafted a bill aimed at clarifying the responsibilities of both landlords and tenants when bed bugs infest residential rentals. Assembly Bill 551 would: