Whether you are a restaurant owner, a shopping centre manager, or you own a dozen commercial properties, it's vital to understand how devastating an infestation can be. Rats multiply quickly, easily having over 80 pups a year, and if each of those pups goes on to breed, you're quickly staring down the barrel of thousands of rats infesting your properties. 

I’m Keith Jacobs, owner of Brisbane City Pest Control, and between us, our team of pest controllers have seen just about everything. I know how quickly infestations spiral, which is why it's so important for commercial property owners to take steps to protect their properties. 

Infestation Prevention 

A standard commercial pest management plan is designed to prevent pest infestations, but often, these are standard and done by rote. With so many years without issues, it's easy to grow complacent. That complacency can result in overlooking potential entry points in public spaces, ceilings, and floor gaps. 

So, what can you do to avoid the problem? Prevention is the biggest tool in your arsenal. 

A pest controller can also carry out a detailed inspection of your properties to identify weak areas and potential access points. It's worth spending money now to repair these issues and prevent a rat infestation. This is something you should consider increasing the frequency of. 

You can also appoint a member of your team to carry out detailed inspections for potential entry points and encourage team members to report issues quickly. 

The Risk of Rats 

The presence of rats on your property is bad enough, but the damage they can do is vast. Rats wreak havoc on wiring, happy to gnaw at anything they can find to keep their teeth trimmed. They will gnaw through anything to access food. 

Rats spread disease, which can be harmful to the health and well-being of employees and visitors. For food businesses, rats increase the risk of food-borne illnesses exponentially. 

Rebuilding your reputation after an infestation can be difficult; it can be an expensive recovery. All it takes is one rat to gain entry to your property, leading to an entire infestation that overruns your business. 

Finally, keep in mind, while the risk of rats is year-round, there is a distinct uptick in autumn and more still in winter. When the weather turns chilly, they turn their attention to people-heavy areas where they can find a warm property to bunker down in and scraps to eat. Don’t become one of their victims!