Margate mum describes how she and her daughter are living in a council flat with mice and fleas
Category
🐳
AnimalsTranscript
00:00The mouse keys put on his head.
00:03Vermin in the home is something nobody wants.
00:08You can see where they're actually coming from.
00:10Moving into this council flat in Margate two months ago, Lucy Day told a local authority she had issues with vermin.
00:18Pest control sent out three times, but now the council says it's her responsibility to pay, even though they were told the issues persist.
00:28And as you can see, they haven't been able to fully move in. The mice have also been spotted in the daughter's room.
00:35As soon as I let leave her on her bed, just to walk out the room, she screamed.
00:41I can't literally just leave her in a room in here because she's petrified.
00:45My worry is this, that once it's been treated again, they're just going to keep coming back.
00:50And this is, next week's going to be two months.
00:53In another four months, am I still going to be battling the same thing in my property?
00:57A management move took them here, a fresh start.
01:00But upon arrival, the mother claims it was riddled with fleas.
01:04Her body now left with bites all over.
01:07Getting so bad, she suffered an allergic reaction and had to go to A&E.
01:12And just this morning, before our cameras arrived, Lucy woke up with baby fleas on her, so is asking for further treatment.
01:21And if you had to pay for treatment yourself, is that something you could actually do?
01:24No, I can't afford it, to be honest with you.
01:26Realistically, I can't. I've literally invested £800 on two bedrooms to be carpeted and they haven't even come out to lay the carpet.
01:34That's because of the pest problems?
01:35Yeah. I refuse point blank to put any furniture or carpet in a property that's got mice burrowing out of the walls.
01:44They're going to end up chewing up the carpet and fleas that are just going to lay larvae and rehatch again.
01:49Now, if you're renting a property, whether that be for a council or privately, experts say you all have rights.
01:58Housing charity Shelter says it's unlikely to be the tenant's responsibility for pest treatment unless they've done something to encourage the issue, such as leaving bins uncovered.
02:10In a statement, the council says they understand that dealing with pests in the home is an unpleasant experience for anyone.
02:16They go on to say people are advised to check that their second-hand furniture doesn't have bedbugs or fleas before bringing it into their home.
02:24And in the tenant handbook, it states that the authority isn't responsible for pest problems.
02:30For Lucy, not the answer that was hoped. With mice coming through the skirting board, the tenant believes it's down to the authority to address.
02:41Gabriel Morris in Margate.