American Rat Control

This used to be such a good company. We recently moved from West Hollywood, where we used ARC several times, to the hills between Glendale and Montrose, where we noticed a rat problem a couple of months after moving in. The owner came out and described our problem and we negotiated a solution for rat-proofing, before the critters got inside our house. He said they'd be in touch to seal the place off and set bait stations. I waited, and waited, and waited... I called, and called, and called. We were told there had been a death in the family and of course we understood, but we were promised that someone would be coming out soon. By now five weeks had passed... and then, I heard scratching inside our house, in the walls. And my wife noticed something had been eating from our dog bowl. Clear signs of a rat. I called for the fifth time, begging them to send someone out. The nice clerk, Brionna, apologized and promised someone would come out on Friday or Saturday, and she would call me to let me know. They would come for no additional charge beyond the original $425 for rat-proofing. I waited some more. No call, no visit. And no answer Friday night and Saturday when I called. No one called on Monday either. Finally I called on Tuesday and asked for Brionna. "She's no longer working here," I was told. "Finally I lost it - what is wrong with you guys? This is the SIXTH time I called, and meantime, you've dragged your feet so long, we now have rats in the house!" Now came the response: "Hold, please." The receptionist (poor woman, having to deal with an angry client) calls the owner. After 10 minutes ("your call is important to us!") she comes back. The owner said "we can come out there tomorrow" - and charge me an extra $325 - for a problem they could have prevented if they had come four, three, two, even one week ago. No thanks. I'm going elsewhere. And I suggest you do too.

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they were great. we had tried many different companies and still had rodents. they came in (eric is great ) and found the main source of entrance. ( an unblocked pipe from the sewer) they patched dozens of tiny holes they would squeak through. they continued to check until all were gone and now they service our exterior. the owner even came to service us.

This company now goes by American Rat Control. An estimator came out the day after my first call. Carl was very professional and thorough. He searched the entire house for access points, from top to bottom. After the inspection he gave me an estimate and pointed out the 18 points of access he found. Given that we were having serious rat issues and we were at our wits end, we decided that the $1300 was worth the money. They sent out a service man within a couple of days and he spent about 6-7 hours filling and patching all of the points of access. He set traps in attic and crawl space. He set bait traps in the back yard and the company will check and rebait once a month.

I was very pleased with my experience with them.

A previous exterminator failed to keep the rat population in my house (attic, walls and underneath) under control. Rat Busters exclusion service plus monthly bait station maintenance has done the trick so far. We're on a yearly contract: $50/month for twelve months. I'm in month eight or so. Initial work was approximately $800 (to patch previous exterminator's work and seal openings missed by previous exterminator). The technician who visits monthly is friendly and knowledgable and sprays for insects/spiders at no additional charge. (Though we don't have insect issues, it's just the rats!) Very pleased with everything at this point.

The work they did was good, but their billing is what is making me frustrated. They try to continue the service and come out every month, which isn't necessary nor have I agreed to it. They continue to bill me every month. They never return my calls. I try to get a hold of the owner by voice mails and messages through his secretary, and no response. Its been on going since the first of the year. Its very upsetting.

I like what they use and how they go about the operation. We live in the hills and the rat problem can be pretty severe. We have a monthly service with them now and we pay them monthly. They just show up and knock on the door. If I'm not sure here they would leave a note saying that they were here. They are very dependable. They are really understanding and easy to work with. They are excellent.

That was fine. What was not so great was their responsiveness after that. They said they would be back that next Monday at 8:30 am. No one showed up and then around 3:30 somone cam and we were not home. This continued for another couple of weeks. We called the office and left a message for Louis, the owner, to call us back and he never did. If you want to seal your house for rats, they are fine. But do not expect them to follow up when they say they are going to. Definitely do not get the monthly contract. Nice guy, but non responsive and the office personell are unprofessional. Good luck.

I feel sick just thinking about it. Mr. Rico took my money and then proceeded to drop out of sight, completely and totally. He would not answer phone calls or letters. He left the job in the hands of an ever-changing series of "technicians" ( a joke) who confided in us how little they were paid, and how they needed to spend as little time as possible on any one job. They came to the house several times without any rat traps! (Hard to believe, but true) and said, I swear, rat traps are expensive! (Scout's honor). We purchased our own traps on more than 1 occasion. They didn't even know the difference between rat traps and mouse traps! Also, if you have rats, watch out for rat mites. Other companies will know this.

Louis spent time educating us on rats/mice. He laid out all options and gave us price quotes. He even suggested how we could do it ourselves (which is what we did). Very nice and helpful. Did not try to sell us services we didn't need or make the situation sound worse than it was. I would instantly call him again if I had a pest control problem. Even showed up early.

THEY'RE EXCELLENT. I HAVEN'T SEEN ANY RATS SINCE. THEY PROMISED TO DO WHAT THEY WOULD DO, AND THEY DELIVERED. THEY GOT RID OF THE RATS. IT WAS DONE PROFESSIONALLY AND PUNCTUALLY.

THEY'RE PRETTY GOOD AT GETTING RID OF THE RATS, BUT THE SPIDERS ARE STILL HERE. THEY SHOW UP EVERY MONTH ON TIME. THEY TEND TO HAVE NEW PEOPLE SHOWING UP EACH TIME. THEY HAVE A HIGH TURNOVER WITH THEIR EMPLOYEES. I USUALLY NEVER SEE THEM. THEY JUST LEAVE A LITTLE NOTE ON THE DOOR SAYING THEY WERE HERE.