Virginia Forms Termite Pretreatment Task Force

RICHMOND, Va. — Mention the words “termite pretreatment market” and many a pest control operator will cringe. It’s a business segment with enforcement challenges that have led many PCOs to the conclusion that the payoff isn’t worth the risk.

Specifically, the problem many PCOs encounter is an inability to compete with fraudulent PCOs who offer lower bids and “make up” the money on the backend by purposely applying termiticides at less-than-full label rates. In these cases, the ultimate loser is the property buyer, who unknowingly acquires an improperly protected home.

A number of state regulatory agencies have made significant strides in resolving these issues by instituting stronger laws, heavy-handed enforcement policies and stiff penalties. Virginia recently joined the ranks of states aggressively addressing the pre-treatment conundrum. In October 2004, the Virginia Pesticide Control Board authorized the Office of Pesticide Services (OPS) within the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) to establish a Task Force for the purpose of “resolving issues associated with the continuing discovery of fraudulent practices associated with the commercial application of pre construction applications of termiticides.”

The Task Force has brought together various components/stakeholders to develop “a holistic assessment and a multi disciplinary approach to resolution.” The Task Force is comprised of representatives from the pest control industry – Permatreat Pest Control’s Joe Wilson and A-Active Termite & Pest Control’s Kevin Kordek – along with homebuilder and real estate representatives and OPS personnel.

 The group’s goals are to: characterize the extent of the problem; seek effective programs to use as templates as practiced in other states, and to develop a comprehensive plan to address the specific needs of Virginia.

Dr. Wayne Surles, program manager for VDACS Office of Pesticide Services, said an important component to Virginia’s approach has been researching and learning from states such as Arizona, Florida and North Carolina. “The Virginia Termite Task Force has the opportunity to learn from other states and to develop a holistic approach to address all ‘drivers’ of the issue,” he said.

After a thorough assessment of all the stakeholders and the challenges involved in this line of work, the Task Force outlined key elements of the program, which included more emphasis on education and stepped up enforcement. “Through education we want to prevent mistakes from happening and through more rigorous enforcement we want to get those who knowingly violate,” Surles said.

Since forming in October 2004 the Task Force has met three times to review the project. Notable developments from these meetings include:

• Kordek, along with Surles, suggesting that OPS hold the applicator accountable for misapplication and not the business.
• Involvement of the Office of Consumer Affairs (OCA) since cases which involve Business-to-Consumer activities can be prosecuted as fraud.
• The addition of Eric Olson, Department of Professional and Occupation Regulations, who has given valuable insights into the building industry.
• Office of Consumer Affairs is involved as the alleged misuse of termiticides represents fraud.
• Proposed educational efforts which include: the development of educational literature which could then be disseminated to 20,000 commercial applicators/certified technicians and 98,000 licensed contractors. Possibly offering certification credits to promote review of educational literature.
• Proposed media campaign to raise awareness through public service announcements (PSAs), newspaper articles, etc.

In addition, the Task Force has discussed ways to strengthen enforcement, including: increasing pre-treatment civil penalties under current guidelines and the possibility of introducing “sting” operations.