Termite Arbitration Lawyer

Termite Arbitration Attorney

Your home is a significant investment, and you likely take many steps to protect it and keep it safe for yourself and your family. If you had your home treated for termites, and you still had a termite problem, that means the pest control company did not do their job correctly, leaving you open to thousands of dollars in potential property damage. If this has happened to you, you can hold the pest control company accountable with the help of a termite arbitration lawyer.

Why Choose Termite Tom?

If you are facing financial losses because of termite damage, you need an attorney who understands the nuances of these cases and can help you pursue a full financial recovery. We serve clients all over Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Florida, Mississippi, and Texas. We are prepared to advocate for you, too, using the resources we’ve already prepared over the last 15 years. To date, Termite Tom and Campbell Law, P.C., have yet to lose a case against Terminix, specifically.

When it comes to termite arbitration cases, there isn’t another law firm in the nation more equipped to handle them than Campbell Law, P.C.

We Secure Fair Settlements

You are much more likely to recover your financial losses with Termite Tom on your side than you are under other circumstances. When you are standing up to a large company like Terminix, choose the attorney that they have already identified as a formidable opponent—Termite Tom.

Termite Arbitration is What We Do

We see that pest control companies frequently mislead customers, do subpar work, and fail to deliver on their promises. In response, these claims are the focus of our practice. We have successfully advocated for more than 19,000 clients, securing the settlements they needed to recover from the damage they incurred.

We Know the Pest Control Company Playbook

Pest control companies try to avoid taking responsibility for damages that result from their negligence and failure to deliver on their promises. Unfortunately for them, we know every trick in the book. We also have a wealth of resources we can use to strengthen your case, including over 15,000 evidence exhibits, internal manuals from pest control companies, and a list of witnesses we can call to help support your claim.

What Are Termites?

Termites are insects, and their food of choice is wood. There are several varieties of termites, and they each prefer different conditions. For example, there are dry wood and damp wood termites, which, as their names suggest, prefer to live in and eat dry or damp, rotting wood. There are also subterranean termites, which live underground and can burrow into wood from below.

Termites may have wings, or they may look more like ants. They are generally less than half an inch long, not including wings, and they can range in color from cream-colored to tan to dark brown. Some termites have visible claw-like jaws, while others do not.

How Do Termites Cause Structural Damage?

Termites are responsible for extensive structural damage to homes, commercial properties, and any other buildings made of wood. In fact, every year, billions of dollars in structural damage are the result of termites, despite over $2 billion spent each year by property owners in the U.S. attempting to treat them. Globally, termite impact is estimated to be about $40 billion.

Unfortunately, though, many property owners don’t know about the corporate-level termite scam that fuels the industry until it’s too late.

Termites cause damage to structures by literally eating them. As termites feed on the wood that makes up the walls, subfloor, or ceiling of a structure, they leave hollow spaces behind. This significantly weakens the structure and can eventually cause the structure to collapse. The damage termites cause can also result in water leaks, which may not be visible from inside the building.

How to Know if You Have Termites

Sometimes, termite infestations are not immediately obvious. Because the insects live underground or inside wood, they often do not make appearances inside the structure at all, or until significant damage has already been done. However, if you know what to look for, you may be able to spot some telltale signs of a termite problem. The following are some examples of things you might see if you have an infestation.

• Mud tubes. Some termites build tunnels of mud against walls or other structures. These serve as passageways that the termites crawl through to get from place to place. You may see these tubes on the concrete foundation of a building, leading from the ground to the bottom of the building’s wooden structure.
• Swarms. Termites engage in swarming behavior, wherein large numbers of them converge on a single area to feed. If you see this anywhere inside or outside your home, there are likely many more you are not seeing.
• Wings. Winged termites tend to leave their wings behind in piles. If you find insect wings in or around your home, especially many wings in one spot, you might have a termite problem. Termite wings are distinctive because they are all of equal length, which distinguishes them from the wings of flying ants.
• Droppings. Termite fecal matter is another reliable indicator of an infestation. Their droppings are tiny and tan in color, and you’ll find them in piles near wooden structures.
• Bubbling paint or wallpaper. An active termite infestation might cause paint or wallpaper to bubble as the insects eat the cardboard layer on the outside of drywall.
• Hollow sounds when you knock on wood. If you suspect you may have a termite infestation, walk around your property and knock on structures that should be solid wood (doors, banisters, window trim). If knocking sounds hollow, investigate further.
• Holes. When termites eat through wooden structures, they leave holes. Termites in your home might leave these tiny boreholes in floors, trim, or any other visible wood.
• Doors or windows that are misaligned. Damage to door frames or window frames can cause doors and windows to get stuck, making it difficult or impossible to open or close them properly. Termites can cause this directly by slightly changing the shape of the wooden frame, or they can leave the frame open to water damage, which in turn can cause swelling and lead to sticky doors or windows.

If you see any of these signs, it is important to address them quickly. Even if you do not see any evidence of termite damage, treating your home as a preventive measure is a prudent move. If you do see evidence of termite damage, and you have a termite bond, you likely need to hire a termite arbitration lawyer. The sooner you act, the more likely you are to preserve the evidence. What you shouldn’t do is try to treat termites yourself because this could damage key evidence.

What Do Pest Control Companies Do About Termites?

Termites can be controlled using several different methods. Some of the most common methods of treatment used by pest control companies to prevent, treat, and control residential termites are listed below:

• Barrier sprays. These are chemical sprays that can be applied to the ground around a building structure. These treatments act as a barrier between the soil and the concrete foundation or the wood infrastructure of a home or business.
• Baits. Chemical baits, which contain poisons that are often in the form of powders, and stick to the termites that spread the poison around. The poison is spread from insect to insect, eventually poisoning the whole colony.
• Direct sprays. Some sprays can be applied directly to affected areas, such as inside walls.
• Fumigation. In a fumigation treatment, a tent is placed around the whole house or building, and a gas is used to poison the termites all at once.

Many pest control companies choose a control and treatment method based on the location and severity of the infestation. They may even combine several methods in an attempt to provide additional layers of protection.

If you have a termite bond and still think you may have termites, you may be required by law to give your pest control company the opportunity to fix their mistake. You can let the company retreat your property, but in the meantime, speak to a qualified termite arbitration attorney, like Termite Tom. Otherwise, preserve the evidence.

What to Do if You Still Have Termites After Pest Control

If you have had your home treated for termites, and you still think you have a problem or know you do, trust your instinct. It likely means your pest control company did not do its job properly or at all. Sometimes, pest control companies simply fail to properly apply the treatment. In other cases, they may have failed to fully evaluate your problem. If only one area is treated, but the infestation is much bigger than that, a termite problem can quickly get out of hand.

This is an unpleasant surprise for any property owner. You may have even missed important signs of infestation or damage because you believed the problem was taken care of. In the meantime, termites continued to eat away at the wood in your home, causing further damage and ultimately making the problem more difficult to solve. If you find yourself in this situation, you should take the following steps to protect yourself.

Document Everything

Documentation is incredibly important in termite arbitration cases. If you are able to do so, gather any existing records you have of conversations between yourself and the pest control company. In an ideal case, the property owner can produce essential records and evidence from their entire professional relationship with their termite bond provider. Some examples of strong evidence are listed below:

• Quotes. Initial consultation documentation.
• Emails. If communication was held over email, go back and retrieve those emails if you can.
• Bond document. The termite bond paperwork.
• Proof of payment. Either bank records or receipts.
• Visit reports. If you have visit reports from inspections your pest control provider conducted in your home or reports from other pest control companies, either before, after, or from a consultation, gather them.
• Proposed treatment plan. Any offer for treatment or services.
• Photographs. Pictures or videos of what you could tell your termite bond provider serviced, any evidence of termite damage, and any evidence of termites.

Do Not Attempt to Treat the Termites Yourself

Don’t fall for the do-it-yourself options for treating termites in your home. Having patience can mean the difference of thousands of dollars. If you have an active termite bond from a professional pest control company, they have already failed to solve the problem when they didn’t uphold their end of the bargain in preventing termites from entering your home. Call an expert termite damage lawyer like Termite Tom before you call them. We can provide legal advice specific to your situation.

Pest control companies should abide by their own rules and deliver what they promise. If you paid to have a problem solved, and they failed to deliver because of poor-quality or incomplete work, you have the right to seek justice. Don’t jeopardize your chance at a settlement that could reimburse your wasted money and pay for costly structural repairs to your home.

When Should You File a Claim Against Your Pest Control Company?

Many pest control companies include some kind of guarantee with the termite bond they sell. They may promise to return and re-treat your home if you still have termites after the first treatment. However, this re-treatment doesn’t solve your problem if the pest control company continues to inadequately apply their treatment or persistently fails to fully inspect your home. They are just trying to cover up their mistakes instead of fixing them the proper way.

Termites are much more than a simple nuisance. They cause serious structural damage that may require a lot of time and money to repair. In addition, the structural damage and water damage that can come with termite damage may present real health and safety threats for you and your family.

If you have a paid termite bond for your home and still have an infestation or unrepaired damage, you probably have grounds to file a termite arbitration claim.

Hire a Termite Arbitration Lawyer

If you need to pursue compensation for losses from improperly executed termite treatment, your first step should be to hire a termite arbitration lawyer. They can help you prove that the pest control company did not do its job. At Campbell Law, P.C., Termite Tom has the experience and knowledge to advocate for you during the arbitration process.

During arbitration, both sides present their arguments in front of a neutral third party who is knowledgeable about the issue at hand. This person is called the arbitrator. Both sides can present their perspectives, present supporting evidence, and call their own witnesses to give testimony. At the end of the process, the arbitrator hands down a legally binding decision on the case and outlines any damages awarded.

A competent lawyer can make all the difference for you during arbitration proceedings. Termite Tom has been exclusively representing termite arbitration cases for 15 years and has been involved with termite arbitration for 35 years. He knows that pest control companies overpromise and under-deliver. He can draw on his extensive knowledge of company tactics and real-world scenarios to help support your case.

What Damages Can You Collect in Termite Arbitration?

If you have lost money or your home or property has incurred damage because a pest control company failed to deliver on their promises, you have the legal right to pursue compensation to offset your losses. Each case is different, but there are several general categories of compensation you might be able to claim in a settlement. Potential damages are listed below:

• Repair costs. If a pest control company’s actions or failure to properly treat your home resulted in property damage, the costs associated with repairing the damage could be included in the total of your settlement.
• Alternative treatment. If you have termites, you need to address the problem sooner rather than later. If your pest control company failed to take care of the problem, you may have decided to hire a different company. You may be able to recover the cost of any alternative treatment.
• Breach of the termite bond. Many pest control companies guarantee their work. A termite bond typically includes a warranty. This is why you agree to enlist their services for a certain time period. If they fail to provide those services, compensation associated with the damages you incurred could be considered in your overall settlement.
• Loss of property value. Termites can cause such severe damage that a home must be extensively renovated in order to make it livable. This dramatically reduces a property’s value, and you could argue that this decline in value would not have happened if the pest control company had done its job.
• Other expenses. Depending on the extent of the damage in your home, you may have had to do things like stay in hotels or eat elsewhere during or after unsuccessful treatment. You may be able to recover these expenses as well.
• Legal fees. Taking legal action is expensive, but this should not deter you from pursuing justice. You may be able to include your legal expenses in your settlement.
• Punitive damages. In some cases, an arbitrator may award punitive damages. Punitive damages are designed to punish the liable party and deter negligent, fraudulent, or otherwise disingenuous behavior in the future.
• Add a section on mental anguish damages

Speak to a reputable termite arbitration attorney about what damages you might be able to collect in a termite arbitration case.

Connect with Termite Tom, the Top Termite Arbitration Lawyer in the South

An ongoing termite infestation can be extremely costly. Termites can cause extensive damage to your home, sometimes to the point of structural collapse. They can also open your home up to water damage, which can lead to mildew, mold, and associated health problems.

If your pest control company didn’t keep their end of the bargain in your termite bond, and the problem persists or you’ve got structural damage, you may have grounds to file a claim. If successful, you may receive compensation for the ongoing damage to your property and for other financial losses you incurred. Contact Termite Tom at Campbell Law, P.C., to discuss your circumstances.

Contact Termite Tom today.