Bed Bug Complaint

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You can make a report about bed bugs. How the report is handled depends on where the problem is.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Alert

Due to Coronavirus (COVID-19) health and safety concerns, Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) staff will wear masks if inspection is required/attempted. Tenants are also asked to wear masks during any inspection.

If you report bed bugs in a residential building, hotel, or a Single Room Occupancy (SRO), the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) will conduct an inspection. HPD may conduct inspections with a bed bug-sniffing dog. If bed bugs are found, the residential building owner may get a ticket. 

You must provide your contact information.

To report bed bugs in a private house or apartment, you must be a tenant in the building. If you are reporting bed bugs in a hotel room or SRO, the Room # can be entered in the Apartment # field on the form.

What Happens Next

The Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) investigates maintenance complaints and tickets owners who break the law.

HPD will attempt to contact your building's managing agent to advise them that a complaint has been filed and that a violation may be issued if the condition is not corrected immediately. HPD will also attempt to call you back to see if the condition was corrected. If you indicate that the condition was corrected, HPD will close the complaint.

Learn more about HPD complaints and inspections.

Learn more about housing quality and safety issues on the HPD website.

Inspections

If it was not corrected or HPD cannot reach you, a uniformed Code Enforcement inspector will be sent to inspect the reported condition. If English is not your primary language, let the Inspector know and they can call a translator to help.

The owner/agent is not notified of the inspection date. Inspectors will also check for the following violations: smoke detectors, carbon monoxide detectors, lead-based paint (if there is a child under six), window guards (if there is a child under 11), double cylinder locks, and bars on the fire escape windows.

Additional Assistance

There is additional support available for tenants in rent-controlled or rent-stabilized apartments. To learn more, go to the Rent Regulated Apartments page.

For more information about residential property maintenance requirements and tenant rights and responsibilities, use the Housing Rules for Owners and Tenants page.

Copies of maintenance complaints are available for both Tenants and Landlords. For additional questions about a complaint or to get copies of complaints, go to the HPD Building Information and Code Enforcement Borough Service Centers page.

Housing Court

If you made a complaint and your landlord didn't fix the problem, you can take legal action in Housing Court. Document all contact with your landlord and HPD about the conditions in your apartment so you can use it in court.

To learn more about Housing Court, go to the Housing Court for Tenants and Landlords page.

Co-Op or Condo Apartments

If you live in a co-op or condo, you should first report apartment maintenance issues to the owner, management company, or board before filing a complaint with HPD.

Bed-Bug Inspection Dogs

HPD trained dogs may be dispatched to assist with the bed bug inspection. When you make a complaint about bed bugs, you will have the opportunity to decline the use of a dog for your inspection.

If you indicate that you will allow a dog to assist with the inspection, that does not guarantee that a dog will be available for your inspections, only that your complaint is eligible for inspection with the dog.

NYC Bed Bug Disclosure Act

Under the NYC Bed Bug Disclosure Act, landlords must notify prospective tenants in writing about any bed bug infestations that have occurred in their building in the past year.

You can get in person assistance from NY State Homes and Community Renewal (NYSHCR) in multiple languages at an HCR Borough Rent Office.

For more information and Borough Rent Office locations, go to the Rent Regulated Apartments page.

Local Law 69

Under local Law 69 of 2017, all multiple dwelling property owners must attempt to obtain the bedbug infestation history from the tenant or unit owner, including whether eradication measures were employed for a bedbug infestation.

Learn more about bed bug and building management.

You can report bed bugs in New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) public housing by filing a NYCHA Public Housing Maintenance Complaint.

If you have already reported bed bugs to your local management office and the issue has not been resolved, contact your NYCHA Borough Management Office for further assistance.

You can report bed bugs at a City University of New York (CUNY) college by contacting the individual college’s Office of Environmental Health and Safety.

Get a list of Environmental Health and Safety contacts at each campus.

Bed bugs are not known to spread disease and do not present a public health risk. Therefore, the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) does not accept or respond to complaints about bed bugs in child care facilities.

To report bed bugs, you should contact the manager or owner of the day care facility.

Information and guidance is available for parents and guardians of children in child care facilities where bed bugs have been found.

Where to Find More Information on Bed Bugs

To learn more about bed bugs, including how to prevent and get rid of bed bugs safely, go to the Bed Bug Prevention and Control page.

DOHMH Regulations

The NYC Health Code states that child care facilities should be kept free of rodents, insects and other pests, and free of any condition conducive to rodent, insect, and other pest life.

If a day care center or pre-school has bed bugs, the operator must hire an exterminator, unless:

  • The day care is in a private home. The homeowner must hire the exterminator.
  • The day care is in a private apartment building. The landlord must hire a licensed exterminator.
  • The day care is in public housing. The operator should file a report by calling 311.

Parental Notification of Pesticide Use in Child Care Facilities

Parents must be notified about pesticide applications at least 48 hours before the application.

Should Children Be Kept Home or Go to the Doctor?

Bed bugs are not known to spread disease. You are not required to keep your children home from a day care that has a bed bug infestation. 

You do not have to take your child to a doctor simply because their day care center had bed bugs. However, if your child gets bitten and the bite gets infected, you should take them to a doctor.

What to Do with Clothing

If your child attends a day care with a bed bug infestation, check the child's clothes upon arrival at home. It is recommended that you immediately wash and dry the clothing on hot settings.

You can report bed bugs in subway stations, subway cars, buses and bus terminals to whichever agency manages the property:

 

You can report bed bugs in any public or private hospital or clinic located in New York State by filing a Hospital or Clinic Complaint.

You can report bed bugs in a homeless shelter, a drop-in center, or a runaway shelter by filing a Homeless Shelter Complaint.

You can report bed bugs at a Domestic Violence Shelter by contacting the Shelter Director.

Shelter Directors are trained to address these issues.

The City does not accept reports about bed bugs in businesses or nonprofit organizations. You should report bed bugs to the manager or owner of the facility.

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