Bed bug problem. What should I do?

By Lyssa

A year and a half ago, by family and I moved into an apartment under a one year lease agreement. Two months into the lease we were made aware of a bed bug infestation. When we reported this to the landlord she told us that the bugs were probably our fault, and therefore our responsibility to take care of. She gave us a written notice stating that the bugs were our fault and that we would be required to pay $200 for their contracted pest control company to treat the apartment following an inspection on a specified date. The pest control company never showed and there has been no mention of it since.

We renewed the lease in April, and the problem has gotten exponentially worse. Nothing we have tried has worked. I need to know if we have a legal leg to stand on in getting management to pay for the problem. What are our rights?

Also, my stepmom is worried that we might get evicted for trying. She’s read news stories from nearby where when tenants took legal steps to coerce the landlords to handle the problem.

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