Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in Massachusetts

My apartment is infested with bed bugs and i had to throw everything i owned away.Is there any way to make the landlord replace the furniture i had to get rid of? My children are now sleeping on a blow-up mattress on the floor and have to keep their clothes in bags and they also have scarring on their arms due to being bitten.. What can I do legally to get some help?


Asked on 8/14/09, 3:44 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys

You did not say how long you lived there before the bed bug problem occurred. If you moved in recently and this happened, then you can send a demand letter for reimbursement. If he refuses you can sue him in housing court, but you will need to prove that the infestation was there when you moved in, which the exterminator should be able to indicate to you.

If you have lived there a long time, the issue is what did you do or not do to create the problem and what did the landlord do. Did he have the place sprayed for bugs periodically. Etc.

What has been done to get rid of the problem as bed bugs just don't live in furniture but inhabit floors and carpeting as well.

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Answered on 8/19/09, 4:35 pm


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