By Luke Rambo

This time of year, we get reports from our clients about aggressive door-to-door pest control salespeople. 

There seem to be more and more companies popping up each year, hiring temporary unlicensed people to go door-to-door selling pest control services. These temporary workers are typically not trained in proper identification of insects, and they are often brought in from out of state for the summer months.

As we all know, fear can be a powerful motivator, and many times the only training these salespeople receive is on sales tactics designed to capitalize on people’s natural fear of pests. They have little to no training on our local insects and pests.

The stated goal of some of these companies is to grow the business for two years then sell to a large national chain. “No Soliciting” signs mean nothing to these people!

At our company, we choose to deal in facts and reality, not fear and doubt. The aggressive sales tactics exhibited by some of these door-to-door companies give our industry a bad reputation, and it is increasingly frustrating for us (and our local competitors who “play by the rules”) to see some of our long-term clients sign up with these poorly-run organizations.

So what can you, the client, do about it?

Do Your Research

We strongly urge you to look for online reviews and do your own research before signing up with any service company.

Report Aggressive Pest Control Salespeople

If you have one of these doorknockers come to your door, we advise you to ask for their Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) Pest Control Operator (PCO) license number. If they do not provide you with that, and they proceed to mention anything about Carpenter Ants, Termites, or other wood destroying organisms, please report that person and their company to WSDA—they are breaking the law.

The WSDA Pesticide Licensing Department can be reached at 1-877-301-4555. We are active members of Washington State Pest Management Association (WSPMA), comprised of 200 pest control companies and affiliated businesses, and our association has worked directly with the WSDA from a consumer protection point of view in an attempt to combat these unprofessional and unethical organizations.

The WSDA has stated the only way they can enforce the laws against these types of activities is if consumers report them directly. For this reason, many of these companies will not leave sales literature or even a business card. We also urge you to inform your neighbors of these issues if you see or hear about the doorknockers coming to your neighborhood. We have heard some wild stories about some companies sending the same salesperson to the same house as many as 10 times, all hours of the day and night. A firm “No thank you!” may not be enough sometimes.

Pest Control “Salesman” – Front & Rear Views