Is Your Business Equipped With a Bed Bug Response Plan?

by Meghan Witham
Lobster Marketing

Is your business prepared with a bed bug response plan? If you have not already developed a plan of action in the event of a bed bug infestation, you could be risking your business’ reputation. These pests have made their way into hotels, apartment complexes, and many other businesses across the country. Since the problem comes mostly from travel, almost everyone can be at risk for spreading bed bug infestations. All it takes is one measly hitchhiker to latch onto someones clothing or luggage and your business could be the next site of a bed bug infestation.

So what can you do as a business to prevent any lawsuits or mass chaos in the event of an infestation? The best thing to do is develop a bed bug response plan so that you and all of your employees are fully prepared if the pests do decide to strike. In order to develop an effective bed bug response plan, follow these steps from pest control experts:

Train employees to identify the signs of a bed bug infestation. Especially for places such as hotels or inns, you will want the maintenance staff as well as the cleaning staff, the ones who will be in the guest rooms, to be trained to spot an infestation. This could prevent any guests from ever being subjected to the trauma of bed bug bites. Also, if caught early enough, it will be easier to eradicate the problem.
Create a detailed response plan so that your staff knows exactly what to do in the event of spotting or being alerted about a bed bug infestation. Your response plan should be familiar to all staff members to keep everyone on the same page.
As a part of the detailed response plan, develop a quarantine process. In the event of an infestation, the first thing you will need to do is quarantine the space to help prevent the bed bugs from spreading to other locations. Since they are so small, it is easy for them to find tiny cracks such as electrical outlets to spread around your business.
Have all staff members sign a confidentiality pledge. Not to hide your problem from guests, but in order to prevent any possible legal issues associated with a bed bug infestation, you want your staff to understand the importance of keeping the issue confidential until the professionals are able to assess what needs to be done.
Create a professional relationship with a nearby pest control company. You do not want to wait until chaos breaks out or you are in the midst of a bed bug problem to find a good pest control company. By developing a relationship with one now, you could also prevent any pest infestations in the future before they become a major issue.
Consider an insurance plan that could help to protect you and your business in the case of any legal issues from a bed bug infestation.
Hire a legal professional who understands pest control matters. You will want to be prepared with resources necessary if someone does in fact take legal action against your business from an experience with a bed bug infestation. Unfortunately, bed bug infestations can be very traumatizing to people so your business does need to be prepared in the event that someone is seriously affected.

As long as your business is prepared with a proper bed bug response plan, you will be better off in the case of any bed bugs that try to take over. You can avoid infestations from even occurring, avoid the stress and chaos if an infestation does happen, and avoid law suits from affecting your business’ reputation. A bed bug response plan is a necessary tool to protect your business.

If you are a business owner or manager in Bethlehem, Chalfont, Lansdale, or other communities of Pennsylvania and you are looking for the bed bug experts to help your business steer clear of any bed bug infestations, please contact the PA pest control pros of Moyer Indoor | Outdoor. Armed with effective bed bug services, including a for both homes and businesses, you can count on the pest control services at Moyer Indoor | Outdoor.

Article submitted Tuesday, February 21, 2012 & read 14 times.

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