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Last Modified on Jan 06, 2023
Call a termite damage lawyer the moment your pest control company refuses to uncover the full extent of your termite damage or refuses to accept responsibility for it. Most termite bonds require thorough inspections, extermination of active termites, and repair of covered damage — and if you still have termites, there’s a strong chance your company hasn’t done its job.
Key Takeaways – The two biggest triggers for calling a lawyer: the company won’t open walls to find the full damage, or it won’t accept responsibility at all. – Missed inspections, denied claims, and worsening damage all justify immediate legal help. – Gulf Coast homeowners — Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida — face the highest risk, especially from Formosan subterranean termites. – NPMA estimates termites cause $6.8 billion in U.S. property damage annually, with about 600,000 homes damaged and an average repair bill of $3,000.
When Should You Call a Lawyer About a Termite Damage Problem?
Thomas “Termite Tom” Campbell — an attorney who has spent more than 25 years building one of the nation’s leading practices suing termite prevention companies — points to two situations that should send a homeowner straight to a lawyer:
- Your termite company refuses to tear open your walls to find the full extent of the termite damage to your property.
- Your termite company refuses to accept responsibility for the damage for any reason.
Pest control professionals know that the actual extent of termite damage in a home is far greater than what’s visible to the naked eye. Minimizing your claim by refusing to find ALL of the damage is just one of many tactics these companies use against homeowners and business owners.
Homeowners along the Gulf Coast are in the U.S. termite hot zone. Residents of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida especially face threats from Formosan subterranean termites — and too many homeowners in these states are up against companies that simply aren’t treating homes properly.
The simplest rule of thumb: if you’re wondering whether you need a lawyer for your termite damage claim, you probably do. Tom Campbell and the Termite Team at Campbell Law, P.C. have devoted their entire practice to helping people hurt by the negligence and fraud of their termite companies.
What Situations Justify Hiring a Termite Attorney Right Away?
Don’t delay when any of these three situations arises:
- Missed inspections. Your bond likely requires the company to show up for regular inspections — many bonds specify annual ones, though terms vary. If the company skips the inspections your bond stipulates, hire a termite lawyer right away.
- Denied claims. If the company denied your termite damage claim, it may be violating its bond. A lawyer can hold the company liable for the repairs it agreed to make.
- Worsening damage. Don’t sit and watch the damage spread because your contractor won’t do its job. Legal pressure is one of the most effective ways to force the company to deliver the extermination and repairs it owes you.
Termite companies fail homeowners in predictable ways: missed inspections, ineffective inspections that don’t catch active infestations, denied services after damage is documented, and refusals to renew bonds or re-treat infestations as their bonds require.
When Does Legal Involvement Become Critical?
Legal involvement becomes critical at two moments: initial discovery of the company’s failure, and the denial of a legitimate claim.
- Initial discovery. The first thing to do when you discover your company failed to uphold its bond — whether by skipping an inspection or refusing to fix covered damage — is contact a lawyer.
- Claim denial. Homeowners can file claims with pest control companies on their own; the trouble starts when those companies deny legitimate claims. At that point, hiring a lawyer is a must. Your lawyer can push the company to approve the claim or open a civil case to hold it accountable.
There’s no need to wait until you’re embroiled in a legal battle. Schedule a consultation with Termite Tom as soon as you realize your termite problem hasn’t been resolved through treatment.
What Are the Signs of a Termite Infestation?
Four signs indicate an active termite infestation that your company’s inspections should have caught:
- Swarmers. Winged termites inside your home almost always mean an active infestation — swarmers only appear when colonies are mature.
- Mud tubes. Subterranean termites build mud tubes up building foundations; check crawl spaces and the foundation’s exterior first. With Formosan infestations, mud tubes can appear higher on the structure. Note that drywood termites don’t build mud tubes, so their absence doesn’t rule out an infestation.
- Visible wood damage. Drywood termite infestations can show up as sunken, winding lines in wallpaper or paint, odd-shaped formations of dried mud on walls, and wood that sounds hollow when it shouldn’t — including in furniture.
- Termite frass. Frass consists of small, six-sided pellets termites leave as droppings, often in piles near damaged walls, windows, doors, or furniture.
How Can Your Lawyer Help?
Don’t take on a pest control company alone. Your lawyer handles every aspect of the case: identifying all of your damages, filing the initial claim, gathering supporting evidence, and pursuing the case in arbitration or court if the company won’t reach a reasonable settlement.
How Serious Is Termite Damage in the United States?
Termites and similar insect pests cause an estimated $30 billion in damage to man-made structures and crops across the United States each year, and the National Pest Management Association estimates termites alone account for $6.8 billion in annual property damage. About 600,000 homes are damaged each year, and the average homeowner pays $3,000 to repair termite damage after discovering an infestation. The exact destruction depends on the termite species and colony size — but every infestation left unchecked causes serious harm.
Hire a Termite Lawyer Today
If you’re dealing with a negligent pest control company, don’t try to fix the damage yourself — you could destroy the very evidence that proves the company’s failure. Contact a termite lawyer right away to learn what steps you can take to hold the contractor liable for the inspections and repairs it was supposed to perform.
You aren’t in this alone. Call us toll-free at 877-327-8511, email [email protected], or tell us your story HERE.
