‘IT’S THE THING NIGHTMARES ARE MADE OF... IT WAS HORRENDOUS’
Couple living next to ‘rat hotel’ call for pest control compensation
A COUPLE are suffering a ‘nightmare’ living next door to a ‘rat hotel’ - with one of the rodents even ending up in their toilet.
Trevor and Odette Roden have forked out £500 on pest control which includes an anti-rodent valve down their loo.
They are blaming the problem on a next-door property which has been empty on Hazelwood Road, in Sneyd Green, since before Christmas.
Trevor, aged 70, said: “We were becoming progressively aware of noises coming from the property. Noises as in animals running around scratching which we were concerned about. It’s the thing nightmares are made of. There was a rat splashing around the toilet. I immediately kept flushing the toilet until it went.
“We decided to make sure everything was secure and we found a tiny little hole cut through our skirting board and when we moved the settee a rat ran out from this little hole. It was horrendous.
“Pest control said there was evidence of rats in the loft and suggested they were coming from next door’s loft. He trapped the loft area and the same downstairs.
“He did say ‘I’m not going to be able to stop this while you have still got a rat hotel next door’.
“Lying in bed and hearing rats running around, my wife couldn’t sleep so consequently we were sleeping downstairs which is ridiculous. She is leaving radios on because she is frightened of hearing things. It’s a diabolical situation.
“Lifting the toilet seat and being greeted by a rat is not nice, I’m thankful it wasn’t my wife who went to the toilet first. We would’ve been in a hotel if they were open.”
The couple have been living in their property for around a year.
Trevor added: “I feel like we have purchased what is an ideal little home and through no fault of our own we have been subjected to an infestation next door.
“It doesn’t seem fair that we should be emotionally and financially suffering due to living next door to a housing association property. It’s costing us money for something beyond our control. I think it’s only fair for them to share the financial burden, if not pay for it.”
Staffs Housing has apologised to the Rodens. It is a shared ownership property between Staffs Housing and the owner.
Director of housing Tim Sheail said: “We understand the difficulties this issue has caused Mr Roden and are very sorry for the problems that he has experienced.
“The property is a shared ownership tenancy, which has been left empty by the owner. Staffs Housing is not responsible for the maintenance of shared ownership homes, but in light of the difficulties this situation has caused, we have intervened by removing rubbish and hiring a pest control company to eliminate the problem at the property. We are keeping Mr Roden informed of the progress in resolving this issue, investigating his complaint, and any potential additional actions we need to take”