An expert reveals Plymouth faces rising pest issues, including infestations of rats, bed bugs, and cockroaches.
Tony Boutwood runs Affordable Pest Control. He has nine years of experience with pests. He notes changes since working for the council.
He says pests changed with new communities. Mice and rats are constant, while fleas appear in summer. Bed bugs and cockroaches cause issues now.
He treated few fleas at the council. Now, his business gets four flea jobs daily in summer, indicating insects are increasing across the city.
More people travel, bringing bed bugs back. Cockroaches come with different nationalities; these pests aren’t local to this country.
Cockroaches are often in homes of African or Asian families. They breed fast and spread easily, infecting nearby houses and flats.
A supermarket chain had a cockroach problem, staying open while addressing it. Consequently, people brought cockroaches home from there.
He advises checking packaging on foreign foods. Rats became a problem during Covid lockdowns, when they sought food outside the city.
Shops closed then, so rats went to suburbs. They found food there and stayed, making rats a bigger problem now. Cockroaches also remain.
Neighbors often share rat or mice problems. Cockroach eggs resist common pesticides, so pest control uses pastes, sprays, and traps.
Cockroaches are hard to remove. They’re now part of everyday pest control work, similar to rats and mice, signifying a change.
He used to handle mostly mice, rats, and fleas, and bed bugs were rare. Now, the pest landscape is different. Previously, he was an enforcement officer.
He worked on pest control and illegal dumping. He felt pest control prices were too high, leading him to want to offer a cheaper, personal service.
He felt they were profiting unfairly. Prices increased, so people delayed treatment due to cost and faced infestations.
Council services were among the cheapest. People saved for pest control, but then appliances broke or cars needed repair.
He left the council, thinking he could offer better service at a better price. He then started his own business.